Just Lost a Family Dog

I lost one of my dog's and wanted another, someone was giving away a dog that was great with kids, potty trained, did tricks, etc. Their son moved away and couldn't take the dog. I took her and she seemed perfect one year old great with the other dog's, we loved her. Well three days after we got her she barked at my 3 year old and I let it slide, the next day he was palying with a toy and she tried to bite the toy. Two days after that she lunged at him and nearly bit his face! We had to take her to the pound before something worse happened. She never showed any aggresive behavior with my husband or me or our other pets and she had been "raised" around kids of all ages. I believe now that when children are invloved a puppy is the best bet.

puppies are so much work. As much or more than a baby. I'd recommend looking for an older dog who has a record of getting along with children. A friend got a second dog and she took her dog to the possible new dogs home and let them play to see how they got along. I would recommend also having an agreement that you could bring the dog back if he didn't work out in your home.

The Humane Shelter would be a good place to shop for a dog.

There is no guarentee that a puppy will fit in any better than an older dog and you have to train him. That is a lot of work.

We got our dog from a shelter and he was already well trained. He didn't bark, responded to commands, and is still gentle with my grandchildren. We were lucky and found him on our first trip. It may take several trips to get the right one.

We also adopted a cat that way and she didn't get along with the baby at all. We returned her and received a credit towards another one.

Puppies are hard on kid and adults alike.. i know .. LOL i Bought Star our 20 week old sheltie about 12 weeks ago. lets say it has been interesting. while i love the sheltie breed and would NEVER dream of getting rid of str it is so hard to take her out every 30 minutes to an hour and take care of my two girls Mackenzie is almost 3 years old and Kayla Sue is one year old. we have 2 shelties and they are the BEST family dog in my own opinion. i hope that you have made your desision and that it was the right one! an adult sheltie that is good with kids is harder to find because only too often you find that the sheltie wasnt raised right you know what i mean? but shelties are so much fun!
B.

Sorry to hear about the loss of your dog. My dog died 2 years ago and it was really hard on the whole family.
When I decided to get a new dog I went to the pound in hopes of finding a puppy. What I went home with was a 7 year old dog who is housebroken, gentile with my kids, doesn't dig, doesn't bark and I couldn't love him more. The sad thing is that he would have been put down the very next day if we hadn't taken him home.
So while I was sad at having lost my first dog it was gratifying to know that through that, we saved the life of another. Maybe it's something to consider. Good luck!

I HAVE A 10YR & A 13 YR OLD. WE LOST OUR CAT ABOUT A YR AGO. IT WAS HARD ON US ALSO. I ALWAYS GO TO THE LOCAL POUND TO ADOPT. THEY HAVE YOUNGER PUPPIES AS WELL AS ADULT DOGS. IT LIKE IT THERE BECAUSE THEY HAVE LITTLE NOTES THAT TELL ABOUT THE DOG. IF THEY GET ALONG WELL WITH CHILDREN ETC. THEY ALSO ARE FIXED AND HAD THEIR SHOTS. THEY ARE ALSO REGISTERED. ITS AN IDEA.

C.-Losing a pet can be very tramatic for the entire childrn. We lost our cat in April...we just got a new kitten 2 weeks ago. My children are loving it!
Good Luck-H.