Dachshunds and Children

[Mutzie's Mom]

As most of you know, we lost our Mutzie last month. We are now looking to add onto the family. We have a 3 1/2 year old daughter and an 18 month old son. I've been reading that dachshunds are not the dog to get if you have small children. I got Mutzie when I was 10. She was so loving and patient. She was wonderful with me and all my friends. At 16 1/2, she was still wonderful with my kids. The only time she got irritated was when Logan took her Kibbles and Bits. She was very territorial over her food as well as everyone elses. I thought she was great with my daughter. She let her dress her up and slept with her on her bed.

Does anyone have small children and dachsies? We will be getting a long haired miniature. I've heard they're more patient, etc. I think as long as we raise this puppy with our children, they will be companions. I want my daughter to have that special bond with this puppy, like I did with Mutzie. I love the dachshund breed and wouldn't have any other! They're the best! : ) It just bothers me that I keep reading about them not being good with children. My children were very gentle with fragile Mutzie, so I would be sure to make them treat the new puppy the same.

[Brenda]

I have read that also - that doxies are not the best dog with children. I have 2 very active boys that were ages 5 and 7 when we got Rufus. Rufus just adores my older son, but is not very tolerant of my younger son. My younger son, Zack thinks that the dog is a toy that is there for his amusement. Rufus sometimes growls at Zack and sometimes runs away when he sees Zack coming but basically he is pretty good with him.

I think that as long as your children go easy with the puppy he/she will be fine.

Good luck -

Brenda
Rufus' Mom

[mardoniche]

Hi Mutzies mum, I think you should follow your heart and go ahead and get your next little sweet heart.I know that dacchsies are not renowned to be good with children, but I am sure it it more to do with how you bring your children up. Your children obviously have a great respect for animals and mutzie must have known that. Or she would not have loved them so. Puppies are more robust than a fragile oldie, so your children should be able to have some fun playing with the new puppy. And credit to yourself as well, Mutzie did not just happen to be such a beautiful person, you brought her up, she was obviously loving, well balanced and a joy to be with. Like your two legged babies your new puppy should grow up to bbe just as caring and considerate to all, just enjoy your new puppy. Love Dawn and dachsies <img border="0" alt="[Love]" title="" src="graemlins/love.gif" />

[Mom of Freddie and FG]

I have also heard that the longhairs are more mellow. So I would definately get a longhair since your kids are so young. But it also depends on the breeding linage. I would really do my homework to make sure to get a good quality longhair. Remember, Mutzie was old when your kids were born. If she were younger, maybe she would have not been so tolerant? I could be wrong, that's just my guess. Mutzie really did sound like a very sweet gentle dachsie who tolerated children well and didn't show jealousy. Not all dachsies are that way, and as you know can become very jealous.

I'm not trying to tell you not to get a puppy, but since your kids are so young, I would have concern about being able to DIVIDE my attention to both my children and a puppy. Are you prepared to get up every few hours for "potty time" with the puppy? Do you function well on little sleep?

It certainly sounds like you've taught your children to respect, good for you. :) I would just think hard about getting a puppy at this stage. If you can do it well, then go for it.

Have you thought about 'Rescue'? Whatever your decision is, I wish you good luck.

Susan

[Mrs.F]

My Penny is excellent with young children (she visits my kindergarten class regularly and puts up with an awful lot from my young nieces and nephews) but my Maggie is nervous and unreliable around young kids.

I think that pretty much sums up the dachshund population - some are comfortable with young children and some just are not.

Susan's suggestion of looking into rescue for an adult dachsie is an excellent one. Most have already been "tested" with children and animals. Although there may be other issues to work on, you would have a pretty good idea whether or not your new dachsie was comfortable with kids BEFORE you got him home and fell in love with him.

[crock]

Boy, a mixed bag. My parents dachsies didn't like kids at all. But, they were never exposed to children, so they had no idea how to react.
My 2 of my furkids love human kids and one is so-so. My daughter has a 6 mo old pup of mine and a 5 year old humand kid. They love each other and play together great. So, I think it matters how the pup is introduced to children, that has been my experience anyway. Kyle knows the proper way to pick up Rudolph and how to handle him, how to be careful playing with him.

Good luck
Char <img border="0" alt="[Bounce]" title="" src="graemlins/pink.gif" />

[Mutzie's Mom]

Thank you for your advice! Thanks for your words of encouragement, Dawn. We have tried to avenue of rescue and have not found 1 dachshund that they will send to a home with children. It is really disappointing. I love the personality of a long haired dachshund and knew my dog and her thoughts as much as I know my own human children. I am hoping to trick the little guy or girl into thinking they're human! <img border="0" alt="[Lol]" title="" src="graemlins/lol.gif" /> They certainly think they're human or above human. I teach sometimes during the week, but school is out in May. The puppy should be about 10 weeks in June. I will have lots of time to devote to my new addition. I think I've mastered dividing my time between my kids and now I will just have to divide it one more time. I don't mind getting up or dealing with the messes or the aftermath of a chewing spree. Mutzie had started reverting a little and we had to get up with her and deal with her messes. She didn't chew though. I do remember her getting under the Christmas tree and helping herself to 3 Barbies and a gold watch when I was 10. I have a lot of time to get my house in order and prepare the kids, etc. I am still going to call around to local shelters. I just have my heart set on a long haired miniature. I am so partial!

Sherry

[TessieMom]

Based on my experience (4 dachsies of my own, plus 15+ fosters this year), commonly standards handle children better than mini's. Fast moving children frighten most mini's, while standards seem to see it as play. Some of the rescuers I work with in Texas do adopt to families with children, but they are careful about the temperment of the dog and the children. Rena

[MARTHA]

I would get a doxie, no question. When my son was born I had two doxies. Fritz was 13 and Mandy was about 4. Of course my doxies did have the advantage of going next door to my parents house when they got tired of my son. I really didn't have too much problem with my son. We started off at the very beginning...if the dog growls, snaps or bites, the kid is in trouble, he ahd to be the one causing the problem. My son never questioned it and the dogs love him. As a matter of fact, it's very hard to discipline a child when a doxie is standing between you and the child and showing you their teeth. Fritz died right after my son's second birthday but Mandy was around for several more years. You do have an advantage, your children have had training from your sweet Mutzi.

When my son was real young, I kept telling him that the doxies were babies and that he had to be careful with them, be very gentle. As he matured, he realized that mandy was older than he was...at that point he was ready to understand at a different level that he needed to be gentle with her and he was not going to treat her like stuffed toy.

You are a good Mom and I'm sure you will be able to handle a puppy or an older dog. If you want to go the rescue route you might try private rescue...Mandy and Sadie are both private rescues.
Check with the local vets and tell your friends. Mandy belonged to my allergy doctor's office manager and Sadie came from a friend of one our company's vendors. (I always tell poeple that I couldn't say "no" to the person that gave me Sadie, she came with the three "F's"...Free, Fixed and with Food).

If you need any encouragement or have questions, just ask, we're here for you.

Martha ( and The Girls - Sadie Mae and Skooter)

[Mom of Freddie and FG]

Tessie's Mom does have a point in that Standard's are generally better with children than Mini's. I forgot about that. Standard's are sturdier.

So the bottom line is, make sure the dachsie you pick is "kid tested". Puppies that are raised with children from the start before they leave for their new home makes it easier too.

The right dachsie will probably find YOU! LOL Before I got Freddie, my heart was set on a RED, but I ended up with a Blk/Tan. He picked ME! :D

You can bring your kids with you when you look at the dogs and see how the dogs react.

Susan

[Uschi]

When I was born & adopted, I came into a family that already had a Dachshund, Ginger, who was a mini/smooth of several years of age at the time. I only remember how much we played tug-of-war with old blankets and how much I cried when she was put to sleep when I was 5... So, I can't really say how she adapted to a young kid. Our family next got another (Tweenie/smooth) Dachsie when I was 9 and she became very much MY dog... practically my sister! We really got along well, though she was quite wary of my two boy cousins who were 5 and 7 and VERY rowdy!

Now that I've got my own family, we've totally been blessed with the Dachshunds that have come into our home -- one through the DRWP web page and one from the local animal control. They're both fabulous with our now-7 year old daughter, and really love going along to pick her up from school because they get LOTS of love and attention from the kids aged 5-11. (For the record, our dogs are M/Standard/Wire/7+yrs and F/Tweenie/Wire/3yrs, and a 5yr old mongrel.) I do think that longhairs tend to be more snuggly than the others, though our wirehairs are both such clowns and never, ever aggressive.

We did have a very young Dachsie pup with us for a day and she really seemed to enjoy being around my daughter as well as the other dogs. Perhaps it was because she was only 7 weeks old she hadn't had any bad experiences yet, and was quite outgoing and loving.

Here's my guess/take on the whole issue: 95% of the issue is how you train your dog AND your kids to live harmoniously.

It sounds like you're off to a great start! The best thing you can do is to continue to teach your kids as they grow, that dogs are in NO way toys, that they have to show the pup respect. Some examples: 1) When the dog's in its bed/crate, leave him alone. 2) Don't take the dog's toys when he's playing with them. 3) When the dog runs away or hides with his tail between his legs, don't chase him. 4) Don't pull on ears/tails. 5) Walk around dogs, don't run -- the dog may think it's a game and chase your child, which would likely end up with the dog jumping on your child and knocking him/her over. 6) Be cautious with shrieking or squealing (especially when combined with running around) because that's what PREY does... see previous comment. 7) Pick up any toys they don't want the dog to eat (that's for toy preservation AND dog safety) 8) Have any of your children's friends that come over follow the same rules, and if they can't or don't, ask them to leave.

And some basic rules for your dog: 1) Train him to SIT before he's petted. Only give him affection when his 4 paws are on the ground. 2) Ignore him (turn away) when he jumps up for attention. He has to learn that jumping on people isn't an acceptable way of getting attention -- your kids are too small to risk a dog jumping on them, even a small Dachshund. 3a) Don't let him get away with growling at or showing dominance over your kids, especially if they are trying to get near you and he's trying to defend 'his' territory of being by your side. 3b) However, don't punish the dog for defending himself. [Aggression vs. defense is the key.] It might be helpful to crate train your dog so when things get too hectic he can go there for refuge (leave the door open.)

As for dealing with 'official' Rescue, I can empathize! They told us that they rarely adopted out dogs to families with kids as young as our daughter was at the time (she was 5). It was quite frustrating when we know our daughter's a quiet, gentle, book-loving kid that rarely has friends over to the house and who even wants to be a vet when she grows up! :confused: It was tough to see Rescue's point of view when they have SO many dogs that need homes, yet they seemed OVER cautious with people really wanting to save a life by adopting a rescue dog.

Anyhoodle! I strongly, strongly suggest you check out <a href="http://www.petfinder.org">Petfinder.org</a>, <a href="http://www.drwp.net">Dachshund Rescue Web Page</a> and get on the breed request list if your local animal shelter has one. We found both of our wonderful Dachsies that way! <img border="0" alt="[Flower]" title="" src="graemlins/flower.gif" /> You may just find out how fun it is to have TWO Dachshunds around!

Phew!

--Jada & the Misfits Ripley, Kaze & Brendan <img border="0" alt="[Wow!]" title="" src="graemlins/wow.gif" />