tesster said:I would definitely adopt an older dog over a puppy with kids the age of yours. Young puppies are very, very, very high energy. If Tess didn't get 1 hour+ of hard play at the dog park until she was almost 2 years old, she was a nightmarish ball of energy. They are exhuberant and would very certainly knock over the kids with their playfulness.
I'd recommend an older boxer (2.5+) who has had a previous family with young children. If you do go with a puppy, you need to make a commitment to constant and consistent obedience from the very beginning. If the dog never learns to jump at 15 lbs, they won't jump on the kids at 60 lbs.
My parents' boxer, Reno, is very patient, tolerant, gentle and sweet with little kids. She let my year old cousin poke her in the eye for 5 minutes before she finally decided to get up and go lay somewhere else.However, she was 6 at the time. My Tess (2.5) and Conner (1) would blow right past them, knock the kids over and lick or box them.
I agree with this totally. I think an older dog that has experience with kids would work really well.
