What puppies are good with children?

Ready for a puppy? Excellent! If you’re looking for a dog that will work best with your family, consider the fact that dogs between the ages of 1 and 5 are better with children. This is because dogs in this age range are not as excitable or want to play rough as puppies. Small dogs at this age are not old enough to suffer from health problems that make older dogs cranky.

The best way to find a good puppy with children is to adopt one from a rescue center. And there you can ask them what kind of temperament the puppy has. Many shelters test puppies to see how they will react in a child environment. Shelter puppies typically live with volunteers who train them to get used to the experiences they will encounter in their permanent home. Ask about a pet that has lived with children.

When you’re at the shelter, test for yourself how the small dog reacts by gently touching its ears. He touches the paws and tries to put your finger in his mouth to see what he does. On the ground, he tries to run and make some noise. Look at the reaction. You are looking for a puppy that accepts the same behavior that you will have at home.

Did you know that you can adopt dogs from guide dog training programs? These are pups that didn’t make the cut as a guide dog, but they make wonderful pets.

If your heart is set on a purebred dog, my advice is to look at the mother and father of the puppy you are interested in. His temperament will tell it all. If they are sweet, the puppy will be too. You’d be surprised to find that many dogs considered good with children are petty because of their parents.

That said, there really are some breeds that are better than others for homes with children. For example, sporting retriever and spaniel breeds are known to be tame. They like to be touched and their bite is generally soft. However, they do have a lot of energy and as puppies they can have sharp teeth that can hurt when they bite.

As the world now craves toy breeds, believe it or not these are not the best with children. They are more self-preserving and can get hurt much more easily than a large breed. Dogs bred for herding, such as border collies, may chase children and bite them.

If you really want to know if the dog will be better off with your family, you can hire the services of a professional dog trainer in your area and have them perform a temperament evaluation. They charge around $75 an hour, but it can be worth it. If you use the trainer later with your dog, you’ll probably get the evaluation done for free.

In a 2006 study of dog bites by Pediatrics, they recommend that parents wait until children are of school age before getting a dog. Babies were more likely to be bitten by dogs they knew. Always supervise the interaction between dogs and children.