Keeshond Puppy Question...

My first dog was a Keeshound. I was a year old when my parents brought her home. She was my best friend, very loving and a perfect dog in every way. Both my parents have told me out of all the dogs they have owned Keela was the most amazing, easy to train and obediant dog.

I agree with Bobbi that an older pup (several months old) would be better for your family - young enough to be your children's friend, but old enough to take care of itself in a play situation.

I've never had a Kees, but my husband and I have raised puppies for Canine Companions for Independence. Young puppies are babies! They may seem sturdy, but they need a whole lot of care and training; a puppy can be badly hurt by small children, or frightened into unacceptable behavior habits (in self-defense). Some organizations have policies of never placing young puppies in families with young children.

But Keeshonds are so cool! Have you done your homework on the breed? You're asking for a lot of grooming! (That doesn't mean they're not worthwhile - it just means the grooming's part of the package!)

If you contact the Keeshond Rescue organization as advised, you might be able to ask for names of Kees owners in your area, and you can pick their brains about housetraining and all the rest. You'll be talking to the real experts that way. :^)

I LOVE keeshonds! I grew up with one and then adopted my own little girl after I graduated from college. They are a wonderful breed of dog, extremely loyal, amazing with kids and easy to train. I adopted Lola when she was just under 2 and she lived alone with me for years before I got married and had my daughter. She adjusted great and we never worry about her being aggressive (I worry about other dogs however and am careful with my daughter). I highly recommend this breed :)

Oh and about the grooming - when I'm not financially strapped, I take her to the groomers every 8 weeks. That's it. After I lost my job several years ago, I did go for quite a few months without taking her to the groomers and she was just fine, a little scraggly though. You can take her less often if you brush her everyday.

I've never crated her and she is very good. She doesn't chew on anything, and neither did my parent's keeshond. They are actually not super active dogs. I also grew up with labs and a golden retriever and they are MUCH more active. When I was working full-time she only needed to go out twice a day, but now that I'm a SAHM, she goes out more often. We also don't have a fenced in yard and I can let her out and know she will never run away. They really are that loyal (my parent's was the same way). Of course, you couldn't trust a puppy not to stray, but in good time this breed is extremely family-oriented and won't run.

One more thing - if you're a SAHM, I would say you'll be fine with handling the puppy and little boys. I really think it's nearly impossible to train a puppy if you're working full-time and it will take a lot longer. If you are working, I'd look into adopting a young (1-4 year old) keeshond like I did. Lola was already trained and never had mistakes so it worked out because I was working full-time.

This breed is prone to blindness. We purchased one from a pet store, decided to skip having the vet check so many days after purchase, and when we took him in a few months later, were told that he was slowly going blind which was common to the breed. I'd also go on the internet and find out about their temperaments with young children.

I think the best thing to do would be to find a reputable breeder or rescue facility in your area and ask them. They would be able to answer your questions far better than anyone on here.

I will say that having a dog is a LOT of work. It's like having another baby. Except that you can't pack up your dog and take them with you to the grocery store. Training them takes a LOT of time and energy. If you don't properly train them, dogs can be such a huge handful. Good luck with your decision!

My own personal "rule" is that all human babies have to be potty trained before we get a puppy, which will be almost as hard as having another baby at first. I would also make sure the littlest child is big enough that they are taller than the dog, when standing. If I were you, I would wait till the baby is at least 3 and potty trained, so he is old enough to help feed and brush, to understand how to treat an animal ( so as to prevent any ear pulling, hair pulling, and the dog possibly snapping at the baby) .

But that is just my personal preference, just don't get a puppy thinking it will be all fun and games, YOU will be its mommy too, and be feeding, caring for and cleaning up after it , long after your kids are self-sufficient.

Jessie

I am writing this response with an 8 week old Keeshond puppy on my lap! She is the third one I have had (just picked her up on Sunday, her name is Macy Mae). The first one I had as a teenager and the whole world loved her, she was the most popular dog in the neighborhood. The second one from 2000 until April 2010, we miss her terribly. I love this breed, and they are wonderful family dogs, and amazing with children. They do require a lot of attention, grooming, etc. I found a good website recently with specific information about Kees, and many other breeds, too. It is called yourpurebreadpuppy dot com. It is the good, the bad, and the ugly with no minced words. I also ordered a training book from them, that is the best book on the topic I have ever read. The most important characteristic of Kees to consider is that they are VERY attached to the family, and have terrible separation anxiety. If handled incorrectly, it can lead to a lot of bad behavior (chewing, peeing when over excited, etc). I know this, because I made some mistakes with the last one, that I promised not to make again. More importantly, be prepared for doubling your workload. A puppy will require as much time and attention as both your kids. You can't put them in a crate for more than 2 hours (except at night) and you probably can't trust them alone in the house until they are two years old. In my opinion, no dog will every love you like a Keeshond, but that is just me. You are welcome to contact me via email if you have questions. There are a bunch of other things to consider, like where this 14 wk puppy is coming from. I lost my last one to a genetic condition PHPT that reputable breeders are testing for prior to breeding. It is an expensive condition to treat and you will be setting yourself up for heartbreak. Also, your kids are too young to do much as far as care of the puppy, it will all be up to you. Good luck with your decision and feel free to contact me.

Keeshonds are beautiful dogs, but make sure the pup has been socialized with children. I would definitely find and talk to a good breeder. My husband had two dogs when I met him. The Keeshond was very sweet and cuddly but grumpy. If we had had children while he was still around I'm not sure I would have been comfortable. The golden cross was a true sweetheart, my niece climbed all over him and he was very protective of my son. He died when DS was 10mths. We started the search for another dog when my son was 4. We adopted a beautiful hound dog pup from the local rescue, but she ended up being too much for me to handle (very alpha) and we sadly returned her. We now have a wonderful small rescued fluffball who is just right. Definitely consider your temperament and dog experience as well. Good Luck in your search.

Your kids are very young for you to be introducing a puppy into your home. Puppies are like having babies, only more work I think. Whatever you do, you'll need to get your dog/puppy into classes right away. I have heard that keeshonds are fairly easy to train. If you don't do classes and the dog ends up being a problem (which so many do) then you only have yourself to blame.

A great alternative to a puppy would be to rescue a keeshond in need of a home. Here's a site with info on that:
http://www.keeshonden.org/rescue.html

We have 2 keeshonds, one girl, one boy. Both are great with the kids, 3 yr old and 8 month old. But I would still never ever fully trust any dog with a child, especially if the children are a bit rough with them. They were our lives before the kids came. They are both 7 yrs old and I'll feel bad when the kids have to deal with them leaving us. My 2 issues with them is hair and noise. The hair is a crazy mess and with 2 kids, it can be hard to control. I think it will be a bit easier when the kids are a little older so I spend a bit more time with the dogs again. They bark at EVERYTHING!!! They were bred to be Dutch Barge dogs to guard the ships. Well they definitely guard everything!!! They would bark at any stranger and is very hard to control, however they would never hurt a fly. My male barks at someone new and then will hide behind me if he's scared. Love their look and personalities but with their noise level and hair level, would probably not ever buy this breed again. Plus we've had problems with my males knees and hips and our female has hemolytic anemia. Good luck in whatever decision you make. They were alot less of a problem when there were no children to eat the hair or wake up from their precious naps and bedtimes from their barking!

I would not get a dog while your boys are so young. Dogs especially puppies require a lot of work and attention. We had 2 adult dogs when I had my youngest and it was not fun bundling up two boys (one had to be carried) to walk them during the middle of winter or any bad weather. I googled the breed and they are pretty active that means if you don't walk them and get a lot of exercise in daily they will find ways to get it out like chewing your furniture, destroying pillows, etc. Nevermind all the attention you need to devote to a puppy.