The best dogs for children? Simple. Breeds that are not aggressive.
While dogs and children seem to go hand in hand, there are actually quite a few things to consider when getting a dog if you have little kids in the house. Not every dog is well suited to life with children, and not all children are suited to life with a dog.
Some of the best dogs for children are breeds like the Labrador Retriever. There are other breeds that aren’t as good, surprisingly, like the Dalmatian. One of the most obvious considerations is that a the best dog breeds for children cannot be aggressive. The last thing you ever want would be to worry about is your dog biting your child or other children.
Low Maintenance
If you have small children under six, you may want to avoid large, high-energy dogs. These dogs can easily knock children over. You may also want to avoid an overly passive dog, as the poor dog will live a life of constant ear pulling and tail yanking.
The best dog breed for children is one that can live with a bit of abuse from kids. Parents with small children may find that they’re too busy to have a high maintenance dog.
Avoid dogs that require a lot of grooming, training, and exercise time if small kids are in the house. The best dog breeds for young children are those that are easy for the parents’ to care for. Keep in mind that you, the adult, will be the one caring for the dog. Your kids may beg you for a dog, but after the novelty has worn off, you’ll be the one feeding the dog and taking it for walks.
Dogs can be a great tool to teach children compassion, patience, and empathy, and can be great companions. However, young children are not capable of properly training and caring for a dog, so that job always falls to the parents.
Some of the best dog breeds for children are:
- Basset Hound
- Bernese Mountain Dog
- Brittany
- Boxer
- Bulldog
- Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
- Collie
- English Cocker Spaniel
- English Setter
- Flat-coated Retriever
- Golden Retriever
- Greyhound
- Irish Wolfhound
- Keeshond
- Labrador Retriever
- Newfoundland
- Samoyed
- Springer Spaniel
- Standard Poodle
- Welsh Springer Spaniel
“The dog was created specially for children. He is a god of frolic.” Henry Ward Beecher