Newbie needs advice on a puppy

HI there!!
I am new and I need your advice on getting a new puppy. I want a lap dog!! Something that is NOT going to get too big. BUT I have a 6yr old dd and MOST of the information I have been reading on websites say smaller breeds are snappy(not happy with younger kids). My dd is GREAT with our other dogs and she LOVES animals, almost as much as I do so she will NOT be harmful to any puppy we get. Here are some I have looked into:

Papillon
Yorkie
Shih Tzu
Silky Terrier
Maltese
Lhasa Apso

I am so confused!! Maybe I have just read TOO MUCH(I have been to a LOT of websites!!) and now need your help. Any help or advice is GREATLY appricated!!

There are other breeds but my dh is REAL picky :roll: and does not like:
Poms
Chihuahuas

 

Shih Tzus seem to do welll with children. My aunt has one and she is such a lovable, sweet girl...she loves other animals, people and children.

Best of luck on your search. :wink:

 

Jack Russell
Small, lovable, fun, playful,fast, smart.Very easy to groom. Won't eat you out of your home.Vet care cheaper in some ways. A hand full the first year but if you work with it not so bad then. Kids well as with about any dog what you teach is what you get. Our boy is gone and we have know kids so I would let the kids near us play and walk her. Sassy and kids both learn. She holds her own with 2 Pyrs and one Collie.Sleeps on Male Pyr in the winter off and on ,most the time with my wife - her baby.

2pyrs

 

welcome I dont know much about small breeds, but a suggestion, you might want to post on the small breed site too since they are small breed specific.

good luck
honeybear

 

THANKS

I posted a question about yorkies on the toy breed side. I am just so confused now!! :? I think I am going to call a breeder in my area and talk to her in more detail.
Thank you!!

 

Hello and Wellcome!

It's good to see that you are trying to find a good fit for your family, Temperment IS very important. I'm not so convinced you should get a Shi tsu though! I have one and although I love him to death, he's a little weary of Children. But that could be because he's not aroung them all the time. My Grandchildren come to visit but seeing how we are 3 hrs away from them, I don't see them that much. And the last time they came one of my Grandsons accindently stepped on Freebie's tail, and Freebie snapped at him. I don't blame him, he thought it was done on purpose. Thankfully he did not bite him, but I kept a very close eye on him while he was around the Children.

My sister also has two of them and they are the same way around Children. BUT like I said: he was not raised with children so that may make all the difference.

Good luck on whatever breed you dicide on!

Susan

 

You want a small dog, a lap dog.
Active none active ?
Just how small do you want to go ?
Do you want to take it for walks ?
How much time do you want to spend grooming ?
Do you want to train it extensively ( competition) ?
Little dogs in some ways are more care then the big guys.
Talking to the breeders is some what a good idea but I feel the best way is to talk to the owners of the breeds you are looking at, if you can go and hold and see the breeds at there homes this would be best. Each breed of dog has it's own traits you need to compare these with what you want. I am partial to the Jack and small fox terriers.
Sit down and make a list of what you want in hopes it well make things easier for you and take it with you everywhere you go so you can pull it out and ask for information. Talk to your vet he is a good source of info on health and many traits of the many breeds.
Thank You for taking the time to look into the dog that you want, if more people out there would do that - well maybe just maybe we would have a few less dogs in the pound and on the streets.
2pyrs

 

try this emmesmon, http://www.petnet.com.au/selectapet/dogselectapet.html

 

I would suggest a shih tzu. I have a 5 month shih tzu mix puppy who has not been raised with kids but was good with my 4 yr old neice when she was here to visit. He is also good with kids that he sees every week at petsmart. he is very sturdy and has a high pain tolerance--although I think a 6 yr old is old enough to be trusted not to hurt a pup.

A woman in my puppy class has a pure breed shih tzu and a 5 nd 7 year old and she says he is great with them. He allows her daughter to dress him up and wheel him around in her doll carriage.

Also my mother's manicurist has a shih tzu and says she is great with her 7 year old.

I would just make sure to see the parents of whatever pup you go with and make sure they (the parents) have a nice temperment--friendly and not snippy.


good luck!

 

I have a pekingese and she is adorable and sweet and very smart and Oh so playful.She gets along great with my other dogs as well as with my kids.
She's the perfect lap dog. Pekingese usually weigh between 8-14 lbs but my little girl is a chunker! She weighs 18lbs

 

My Grandmother had a Pekingese what I remember of it was the hair and the hard time it had when eating as it got old. Shih Tzu, again the hair and under bite on some. My neighbor has two of them and they nip at her kid and others all the time and the new one she just got is a pup (yes it could be just her training or lack of) but she still has to pay for grooming. JACK - Easy brushing little shedding and no grooming bills. Loves to play and curl up on your lap and sleep,real lover. Smart and easy to train and you won't find a mouse any where in our yard or a bug in our home. If you don't mind hair and $75.00 and up grooming bills and slobbers and 100 pounds or more of love get A Pyr, you'll never have a cold night in the winter.The list is endless that's for sure. We all see ours as the best and I agree with that. In the end as much as we don't like to admit it money plays a roll, so be sure to get a dog you can afford to take care of and be sure to check out all the health problems of each breed, the vet is best for this as I said earlier and if you are not going to breed get it fixed please.


2pyrs