Best and Worst Dog Breeds for Kids

As a professional dog trainer for over 25 years, one of the questions I’ve been asked most often is:  “What’s the best breed of dog for families with young children?”  Whenever I answer that question I have to start with some disclaimers: First, it is impossible to predict the future behavior of any animal. Second, even within the same breed, all dogs are individuals, so it’s not fair to paint with too broad a brush. I’ve worked with aggressive Golden Retrievers and super friendly Rottweilers. Third, I have worked with every breed of dog you can name and I love them all. The fact that I would not put a particular breed high on my list for families with young children does not mean I think that they are a “bad” breed.

Since purebred dogs are bred to possess certain traits and to perform certain jobs, one can make some reasonable assumptions that will increase the odds of a good fit based on these traits. The following is merely an opinion - but it's an opinion based on my experience with thousands of dogs, and shared by many of my colleagues who are also experienced professional dog trainers. 

General Tips:

Consider adopting an adult dog instead of buying a puppy. Before we start talking about breeds, I want to briefly discuss the pros and cons of whether it’s better to choose a puppy or an adult dog. The advantage of going with a puppy is that you get to control what happens during key early socialization periods. The disadvantage is that you risk ending up with a genetic temperament problem that you won’t be able to spot until the dog is an adolescent. So if you choose a puppy, avoid pet shops and puppy mills, do your homework, find a reputable breeder, and try to meet the sire and dam. If you can’t follow those guidelines then you’re probably better off adopting an adult dog. With an adult dog, you can see what you’re getting in terms of temperament and drive.  My point is that a puppy is not necessarily a safer choice than an adult dog.

     Bigger is better. For families with young children, I prefer the larger breeds over smaller ones. Smaller breeds do not tolerate rough handling as well as larger breeds. So you will find only larger breeds on my list of recommendations for families with small children.  

Pit Bulls and Kids?

If you decide to adopt a shelter dog, you’re probably going to notice that a lot of them are pits and pit mixes, so we need to talk about them first. Let me define what I mean by “pit bulls.”  Believe it or not, this is not a universally agreed upon term.   The narrowest definition of a “pit bull” is the American Pit Bull Terrier and the American Staffordshire Terrier. Some people include the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, the American Bulldog and other “bully breeds” in this group because they look similar. Technically, these are different from the first two, but when I talk about “pits” here I am using the term very loosely – the way most people use the term – to describe any of the above breeds and their mixes.  

Contrary to popular belief and urban legend, pits and pit mixes have some qualities that make them great with kids. First, they tolerate rough handling and rough play extremely well.    They love physical contact and can be hugged, poked, grabbed and wrestled with and generally are good natured about it. I don’t recommend that type of play with any dog, but if you have rambunctious kids in your home, a pit bull is going to be a lot more forgiving of that type of behavior than many other breeds.  

On the flip side however, pits tend to play pretty rough. The rough mouthy play that is typical with most young pits and pit mixes generally makes them more difficult to raise with small children. They can be rude with their mouths until trained not to be. They love grabbing hold of and tugging at clothes and shoes. They have an “in your face” attitude that can be frightening to some children, especially visiting children. 

So unless you’re an experienced dog owner willing to put some time and effort into training your pit bull, with the full expectation of having to provide lots of supervision and to referee the interaction between your dog and your children, you might want to think twice about putting them at the top of your list if you have young children at home.   

  

Difficult Dog Breeds for Families with Children:

I know people who own great dogs of the following breeds, but based on my experience I would generally not recommend the following breeds for families with young children: Chihuahua, Dalmation, South African Boerboel, Belgian Malinois, Chow-Chow, English Bulldog, Akita, Husky and Shar-Pei.       

General Comments by Group:

Herding breeds like Collies, Border Collies, Australian Shepherds, Australian Cattle Dogs can be a lot of fun to own but they require lots of exercise, play and mental stimulation – more than a busy mom and dad can sometimes give them. Also, they sometimes use their mouths to “herd” children running around outside (until they have trained properly), so they are sometimes not the best choice for the novice dog owner with kids in the home.

Terriers are fun, loveable and intelligent, but you won’t find any terriers on my list of dogs for families with young children. Terriers are bred to catch and kill critters. They are bred to be tenacious. Many terriers have very little patience for the poking and prodding of young children.   

Guarding breeds like German Shepherds, Rottweilers and Doberman Pinschers are among my favorite breeds – but they’re not for everyone. My kids grew up with at least 2 of our own Dobermans in our home, plus whatever Dobies we may have been fostering at the time. Guarding breeds are loyal, protective and extremely intelligent. But these breeds absolutely require good professional training and dedicated, experienced owners. If you don’t have the time and money needed to train them properly, I suggest that you choose one of my picks below, especially if you have young children at home.

Dog breed recommendations for families with small children:

·        It is impossible to predict the future behavior of any animal. Even within the same breed, all dogs are individuals. But over the years I’ve seen the highest rates of success for families with children who owned these breeds: 

      Standard Poodle.  Not the little guys, I’m talking about the large “Standard Poodle.” They weigh about 60 pounds as an adult. No shedding, very smart, great with kids.

·        Golden Retriever. Unfortunately many of today’s Goldens are prone to cancer and won’t live beyond 10 years. Otherwise, a great all around choice. 

·        Bernese Mountain Dog. They’re the largest on my list (about 100 pounds), easy to train and they love children. Unfortunately, they too have short life spans, about 8 years.

·        Labrador Retriever. Labs can be very mouthy (nippy) when young, but when properly trained by owners who are willing to navigate through the rambunctious childhood of a Lab, they grow up to be ideal family pets and are usually great with kids.

·        Beagle. Not as large as the other choices, Beagles top off at around 25 pounds and have a well-deserved reputation for being great with kids. 

·        Mutt.  Consider adopting (or fostering) a mixed breed dog from your local animal shelter. There are dogs at your local shelter who have been raised with kids and are great with kids. Some of them have been surrendered to shelters through no fault of their own (e.g. eviction, foreclosure, divorce, allergies, etc.). Most animal shelters have foster programs. These programs enable you to help your local shelter pressed for space, while at the same time giving you an opportunity to see for yourself if the dog is a good match for your family. 

One final thought - if you already own a dog and are having some challenges with behavior, a good trainer can help you navigate through the rough spots.  Any dog, of any breed, can be trained.

Dog Food Recalls, Contaminated Dog Food

Because of the recent problem with contaminated dog foods, many of my clients have been asking me for dog food recommendations.   

I don't recommend ANY of the dog foods you can buy in stores.  The commercial dog foods sold in stores all contain fillers, by-products and chemical preservatives. They need to be transported and stored over long periods of time, so they all contain chemical preservatives. 

Also, dog food companies use things like wheat and soy to increase the protein percentage that you read on the bag, but these fillers are not digestible.  The bag might indicate a high protein percentage, but if they’re not digestible proteins it just becomes more for you to clean up in the yard.

For these and other reasons I don’t recommend ANY of the dog foods you can buy in stores.

The only commercial dog food I recommend is "Life's Abundance" dog food, which is only available online. You can purchase it at www.naturalfoodfordogs.com

Formulated by internationally known holistic veterinarian Dr. Jane Bicks, the primary ingredient in this kibble is HUMAN-GRADE chicken. It also contains egg which is one of the most digestible forms of protein and is full of vitamins A, B, E, K, biotin and amino acids. 

Also it has fish meal, which is high in Omega-3 fatty acids. This is an all-natural food rich in antioxidants from whole food sources and it’s the only food I know of that uses probiotics and beet pulp for a healthy digestive tract, with lactobacillus acidophilus to help maintain a balance of friendly bacteria in your dog's intestines.

I’ve been feeding Life’s Abundance to my own dogs and to all of our rescue and foster dogs for years, and it’s great. Dogs with loose stools have firmed right up and even the most "finicky" eaters will devour it.  We no longer have to add supplements (fish oil etc.) to their diets - everything is properly formulated in one easy to feed dry kibble.

It’s a high quality food that will give you the benefits of feeding a raw diet, without the high costs and hassle of a raw diet.  Even though the price per bag is high, you’ll feed less of it (no fillers) so the net cost is about the same as store-bought food.  It’s made in the U.S. of high quality ingredients under the supervision of a holistic veterinarian, and there has never been a recall:  www.naturalfoodfordogs.com

Dog Growling When You Approach the Food Bowl?

How Do You Prevent Resource Guarding in Dogs?  Step One – Don’t CAUSE it in the first place!

"What NOT to do" #751: Annoying a Dog While They’re Eating to “Show Them Who’s Boss.” 

People do all kinds of stupid things to their dogs because their dad, or uncle, or grandfather always did them. Some of the ones that really push my buttons are sticking a dog’s nose in an accident as part of attempts to housetrain them, rolling a dog on its back and pinning it down to prove you’re alpha, and hitting  a dog - with  anything. Regardless of what your Uncle Bob told you, all of these are always wrong, all the time.  

Guess what folks – a true pack leader (whether it’s an alpha wolf or a human pet owner) – doesn’t bother lower ranking pack members when they’re eating. That procedure does not teach them you’re the boss, it only teaches them one thing – that you are a threat to their food. This procedure does not prevent food guarding – it causes it. If you want to prevent food guarding in a young dog, then teach the dog or puppy to ENJOY it when you approach the food bowl. Without petting or annoying the dog, simply approach the bowl and drop in some more food. This teaches the dog to regard the approach of a human as a positive thing, not a negative. 

Canine Dimensions trains thousands of puppies each year. When we start with a young puppy we teach the owners to approach and add food during each meal. We have never had a puppy grow up to be a food guarder when the owner followed this advice. On the other hand, in virtually every case when we are called for assistance involving an adult dog who is growling, snapping or biting when someone approaches his food bowl, we learn that the owner made a habit of sticking his hand in the food bowl and annoying the dog when it was young.  Which brings us to…

"What NOT to do" #752: Habitually Taking Objects Away from a Puppy.

The principle here is the same as above, but instead of teaching a dog to guard its food, people often teach a dog to guard objects by constantly taking things away from them while they're young.  

NEVER snatch an item out of your puppy’s mouth without giving him something better in return. In spite of your best efforts to “puppy proof” the house, there will still be plenty of times you will need to take something away from your puppy that she’s not supposed to have. But the right procedure is to always trade up – for example if she picks up a sock, trade her a piece of hot dog while saying, “out” or “drop-it.” This teaches the dog to drop the item on command, and also teaches them not to run away, or growl and snap, to protect the forbidden item. 

The Risk of Treadmills for Dogs

The use of treadmills has become popular with dog owners, giving them a seemingly easy way to provide exercise for their dogs. Owners who are unwilling or unable to give their dogs the exercise they need through traditional activities such as walking, jogging, swimming and games are turning to the treadmill in ever-increasing numbers. But there are significant drawbacks to putting your dog on a treadmill.   

First, dogs will often run or walk beyond exhaustion. Owners must be trained in how to recognize physical signs of tiring in their dogs, such as how fast they pant, excessive salivation and other subtle changes that occur in body language as their heart rates climb.    

Second, dogs who panic and fall off the treadmill can be seriously injured.  If you absolutely must use a treadmill to exercise your dog, take the time to follow a gradual training protocol for teaching the dog to run on the treadmill without fear, since this is not a natural device for a dog to use.  Consider attaching a kill switch to the dog’s collar or harness so that the treadmill will stop running if the dog falls off, and never leave the dog unattended.

Third, in addition to the chance of slipping off, there is a chance that some dogs might find the electrical components a bit too interesting – chewing on cords, controllers and such. Again, if you absolutely must use a treadmill to exercise your dog, never leave your dog unattended.

Fourth, in addition to physical exercise your dog needs mental stimulation. A big part of the reason why dogs benefit from walking or running is the fact that they are doing it with the owner and exploring the outside world.  Like their canine nomadic-hunter ancestors, dogs find “traveling with the pack” to be a natural, enjoyable activity.  They might get a similar amount of physical exercise on a treadmill but they won’t get all the other highly enriching components inherent in walking or running outside with their owners.  

So what’s the bottom line? In my opinion, for the average dog owner treadmill training is ill-advised.  Don’t get me wrong – I have seen some excellent uses of treadmill training for dogs by dedicated owners who have done it the right way. And for physically challenged owners it can be a godsend. But for the average dog owner the potential for misuse or injury can far outweigh the potential benefits. 

One more thought about exercise for dogs – exercise is extremely important but it is not a quick fix for behavior problems. Exercise, play and mental stimulation are vital but they are not a substitute for training.  Treadmill or not, don’t assume that the solution for all rambunctious behavior is to exhaust your dog.  Most common behavior problems are caused by inconsistent rules in the home and lack of proper training - not lack of exercise.