Right Age to Get a Dog?

I don't know about the right age . . . I was a stay at home mom with my son as well. We got a puppy when he was 11 months old, small dog, chihuahua. He was really gently with the puppy and loves him so much now.

Hi S.

I think she is a little young for a dog. Being a dog person (I have 4 dogs) and recently had two kids.
My dogs are great natured and will still occasionally growl and my kids when they get a little rough. I think when kids are 4ish is a better time.
I don't want to bust your husbands bubble but Christmas is the worst time to get a dog. If you do your reading online you will find that most dogs gotten as Christmas presents end up in the rescue groups! I did Sheltie rescue for years and saw lots of dogs that came into our organization b/c they were bought for kids or as gifts for someone.
My advice is to really do research on the different breeds. Rescue a dog if you can! Dogs that come from rescue groups have been in foster homes. The foster parents can tell you if the dog is good with kids, potty trained, food aggressive etc. A rescue group can match you witha dog that fits your families needs should you choose to go ahead and get one now.
My advice would be to wait, but if you cannot wait, pls read read read, talk to rescue groups about the breeds and their personalities (even it you purchase a dog, talk to those who know the breed).
I don't want to sound all negative, but puppies teeth and they bite (no on purpose) but if you get a puppy, your child is likely to get bit at some point just because the puppy is playing!
There are some great dogs out there that would be fine for your child...so if you do decide to get a dog for her now, please get a grown dog and not a puppy!
Good Luck to you.
J.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE wait until your daughter is older to get a pet. My best friend's son was mauled at 18 mos by their dog, who was a graduate of seeing eye school! The dog was obedient and obviously well trained, but the toddler got too near while he was eating. The dog damaged his face, tore tear ducts, and has left him requiring several surgeries near his eye. Dogs and kids can be a great combination. But PLEASE wait until your daughter is old enough to understand the rules of pet ownership, including never grabbing, pulling, taunting, or bothering a pet while it's eating. At 3 or older, kids start to understand space and rules. I would hate for any mom to go through the grief of my friend. The guilt, the worry, and of course, the heartbreak of destroying a dog that wasn't safe around children.

i think at 16 months she is too young to understand to be gentle with the puppy and more inmortantly the dog will be too young to understand to play gently with her. i'd wait until she is old enough to give verbal commands to the dog and to tell you if something happens.

Well that is going to have an influence on your feelings, but yours will change when you hold that puppy.I think that 16 months is fine you will have to watch more carefully than with an older child.It is good for them to learn to care for a pet even that young.Let her help with the caring of the dog each and every time. As far as anyone else forget about it. Like I said I raised 8 kids and I have heard the line please I will take care of it , so I gave in and for the last 35 years I have been taking care of all the pets. lol We just got 2 yorkie puppies and my 18 month old grandaughter gets a little rough picking them up. Everyone helped out for the first week and guess what??? I do all the care all the time. lol

Hi S., We got my Baby Girl a puppy when she was like 3 months old. We wanted the puppy to grow up with her, it's a Chihuahua, My daughter just turned 1 nov 1st.. her and the puppy play and fight..lol but he is little so its not like a big dog he was easy to train we would just get up in the morning and let him out now he has accidents but thats to be expected but for the most part he will go to the door to go out we have outside dogs so he like to go play with them. you will know when your ready to get her a puppy. in the meantime she can enjoy everyone else's dogs when she is around them teach her how to act and what not to do with all dogs they like to play and bite... I make Kara be nice and if she is being ugly i put the puppy out.. good luck to you and your family.. C.

I agree with most of what's been said--there is no "one right age"; but I come down on the side of "wait a while." In direct answer to your question, yes, she's too small to understand how to gently play with a puppy; and the puppy is too young to understand how to gently play with your daughter.

Puppies are very active, and do not always control themselves; and when you add a baby who's still learning to walk and run and interact, you might be setting yourself up for some problems. My 3-y-o son is very scared of dogs, tho at your daughter's age was fairly fond of them. I'm not sure what changed, but it was probably my sister's dog getting in his face or knocking him down or something. My younger son is your daughter's age, and likes dogs at a distance, but if they get in his face, he cries and is obviously scared.

I think a puppy is too young and playful not to sometimes hurt your daughter. When my younger son was about 8 m/o, a neighborhood puppy jumped up by the stroller and scratched his face near his eye. There was no provocation, and the dog was just being hyper and curious, which is the way puppies are, but it left a long streak on my son's face for several days, but could have been worse. I only think of what it might have been had my son pulled his ears or something--which babies and little kids will do.

If your daughter were older, or you were contemplating adopting an older pet, that changes the question, because then one or both would be mature enough to handle the playfulness of the other.

I think it would be fine my son is 5 1/2 months and we have one and he does great you will just have to teach the baby not to hot and to pet it and teach the dog to be nice and not jump...but she should be just fine

I think you should start out small, like a goldfish, and as she gets older then her responsibilities get bigger, and can her pets. I think something small to start without much trouble is more important right now for her to learn how to care for a pet.

I don't think there is a right or wrong age. I believe it is a preference. I personally don't want one. I don't want the responsibility and don't want to have to mess with it or train it. If your little girl seems to like them and you don't mind taking care of it and have the time and patients, Go For It! Sounds like your little girl will automatically do just fine if she likes them so well and being a puppy.... they will grow up together and learn each other. She will just know how to play with it.
Keep in mind too that puppies have sharp little teeth and don't know that they hurt when they play. My son brought a puppy home and I have a 15 months old. She seemed to like animals too until that dog. His teeth were so sharp and it hurt... now she is afraid of them. I made my son keep it upstairs away from her. So keep that in mind.
She may do just fine.... just giving you something to think about.