Dog recommendations

[sunrise16]

Hello all. We are looking to get a dog for our family and would love suggestions/recommendations as it feels like a pretty big subject!
Ideally we would love a rescue but as we have young children (3 aged 2,5 and 8) I don’t think we will be approved.
We live in London but have a garden and all walk four miles a day at least on school runs so will have plenty of exercise.
Any breed recommendations? We don’t have
allergies so wouldn’t need one specifically for that.

The problem with any cross is that you have zero idea of which breed will be dominant so you can't guess as to temperament. Plus crosses like these are #1 target breeds for puppy farmers I'm afraid. This comes with issues around no health testing/lack of consideration for temperament or behaviour of dog and generations of cross breeding. Poodles aren't necessarily calm and can come with issues of their own which is why I can never imagine why you would cross them with a cocker 🙄. So many of these crosses in rescue centres due to behavioural issues etc.

I'd always go for a staffie.

Great with children, energetic enough to play and walk all day but equally happy lazing around the house if needed. Easy to train - they'll do anything for food. Plus they're gorgeous.

I got my previous staffie when ds was 18 months and never had any issues with biting or boisterous playing.

Downsides - Although short hair they do shed. I find dog hair everywhere. I've found mine ok with being left for a few hours, but they are MUCH happier with people around. They don't always like other dogs, so you need to put some effort into socialising them well as puppies.

Our vet told us that they are over run with appointments for cockapoos etc., with behaviour issues.

There is no guarantee with any breed so do your research, meet the breeder and most importantly meet the parents of your prospective puppies.

I’m a massive fan of Miniature Poodles. They are highly intelligent, easy to train, loving, don’t shed and easy to pick up if necessary.

Beagle! Known for being family pets, very gentle with children, loving dogs!

Very energetic though so daily exercise is a must. Very, very smart so keep your valuables out of reach. Food motivated so keep away from bins 😂😂

Stubborn but easily trainable. Little love bugs all round!

Beagles are known for being stubborn, my sister has one. It regularly stops on walks and refuses to move, it’s howls as well. Other than that…..

I’m also a fan of cockapoos and other mixes like Maltese crosses or Shih-Tzu crosses. Golden Retriever is a classic family dog, but they are big and bouncy - very easy even as an adult to get hurt just from the size of them alone!

and of course, as with any dog, training is a must - and I don’t mean dog training. While that is a must of course too, often times it’s the owners who need proper training. A dog is a dog, and no dog and child should be left together unsupervised.

Train your children how to handle a dog, and train your dog how to handle a child. One cannot be done without the other, ever.

There’s a reason rescues won’t rehome to families with 2year old children. Wait a couple of years.

Definitely not working cocker/Labrador.
Have you looked at miniature poodle, schnauzer or Tibetan terrier. Also a whippet is worth considering.
I have come across some lovely cockerpoos, and many more that have issues.

I have one too, and while she is stubborn when she wants a treat, I’m more stubborn than she is 😂😂😂

She only ever howls when she spots someone she doesn’t know coming into our yard, but that’s easily stopped with proper commands. I would recommend anyone with a Beagle start training from the moment they’re brought home

@UpsyDaisy352 to be fair you should start training with any dog from the moment you get it home. Most people leave it too late and then have all manner of issues.

That is very, very true!!!

Agree with no to working cockers. I know several and there's one we walk with most days. My dogs are cav crosses and the cocker has a need to explore into the woods far more than my two. I imagine a working cocker would hate all that lead walking.

We have a first gen labradoodle (not curly, looks like a scruffy lab), and he is a superstar. My boy isn't curly, doesn't shed too much and minimal grooming. He is part working lab and we walk him off lead with lots of vigorous ball chasing for 1 1/2 to 3 hours a day. In between he sleeps and is very chill. He is pretty lean and fit and luckily hasn't inherited the Labrador appetite! He is pretty easy to train as well.

That said, my friend has a cockapoo and I could swing for it, such an annoying, badly behaved, yappy dog! So doodle crosses can be a lottery! I know a few and some are lovely, most seem a bit hyper.

I did also recently meet a couple of Maltese terrier dogs who were lovely, and I did have a hankering for one of those in the future. A lot less vigorous walking required! My friend's miniature Schnauzer is also a fabulous dog.

We were also considering a Wheaten Terrier, bit like a cockapoo in size, but purebred.

…or think a 6 week puppy course means a trained dog!

Agree also an actual poodle. Not a doodle - every single one of them comes from a horrific backyard breeder. "Not but we saw them in a lovely home" sure but you didn't see the breeding sheds where the bitches are kept until they are discarded aged 5-6.

Actual poodles are fantastic dogs. Groomed with a teddy cut they are indistinguishable from your cockerpoos - but without the unknown quantity that a cocker adds into the mix. And the people that breed them tend to be actual breeders.

If you want the lowest maintenance dog ever / that actually will be happy with 4 miles on lead a day and will sleep the rest of it - a retired greyhound. Most rescues will quite rightly not rehome to a home with young children - but greyhound rescues might because they are the gentlest souls imaginable.

It might be worth considering why rescues don't rehome to households with young children. It's not because the dogs are dangerous- it's because most dogs would prefer not to live with small children who don't respect their boundaries and stress them out.

If you get a puppy it will bite and mouth and they have sharp teeth. Then it will go teenage for a while and might be doing that with grown dog teeth.

I've fostered quite a few dogs who had absolutely nothing wrong with them, wonderful pets - but who were surrendered because puppy/teenage behaviour and small children don't mix.

Thee dogs were perfect, not aggressive, not resource guarding, not a sly behaved - just put in a situation where they were set up to fail.

Had five different breeds over the years and have settled now on whippets. Easy to train, clean dogs that don't shed a lot , they are fun and goofy when you want
them to be , happy couch potatoes when chilling with the family. Very affectionate and not at all snappy or nippy. Don't bark constantly and are an absolute joy

As others as said, a puppy with kids that are as young as yours will be absolute hell. I’ve had two and I would never, ever do it with young kids around.

As OPs have said definitely don't go for a working breed, they need to work! I would also say avoid cockerpoos. I don't despite they're terribly cute but they can be completely crazy and some have issues with resource guarding. Remember that even though they cost mega money, they are a cross so you have less idea what you are getting. I'm another poodle fan here, provided you're willing to either do or pay for the grooming every 6-8 weeks.