SearchDobermann and 2 year old?
Hey everyone,
my partner and I feel we are ready to add a dog to our family, and we are in love with the Dobermann. We have a 21 month old son who is a very confident and sure child (that's not code for brat! He's very loving and independent)
We have met with breeders who are also parents and read extensively on the subject. We have both owned dogs but never any of the larger breeds. Basically we want a Dobie but we really want to hear from people who have youngsters to make sure we are as informed as we can be before we take the plunge.
I am a stay at home mum doing a degree so I guess that'll make me the primary carer of our dog. Can any of you maybe tell me some stories about your family dynamic and offer any advise? We're receptive to anything you have to share on the subject.
Thanks all x
Hi,
I am new here. I found this site today.
I have grown up with Dobes. One was my best friend all through childhood. He became part of the family when I was 18 months old. He was the most gentle, loving play mate and friend.
I am now the proud owner of my own Dobe; Remus. Remus arrived the day my now 5 year old started to walk. We have never had an issue. They love and adore each other. They play really well. Remus is very gentle with my son. He can alwasy sense if he is sick and will spend hours lying quietly at his side.
I am a work from home parent and Remus is almost constantly by my side. He is certainly a people dog.
Over the years we have had 7 Dobes- some together and all with kids either myself, my sister and now my son.
I think they are great for kids and families. I would not have another breed.
I have found with well trained Dobes; they are loving, loyal, protective and great foar a family.
Before moving with me to college, my Doberman grew up from 8-16 weeks with my 2 year old niece. He is excellent around little kids. He is still a puppy (8 months, ~75 lbs) so he is very energetic, but still very careful around her. The only time I am concerned with him being around her is when he gets excited by something and may accidently knock her over. Other than that, I completley trust him around her.
As a kid, my parents always had at least 1 doberman while my brother, sister or I were babies and growing up. They always protected us, and would guard our crib during our naps. If anyone entered our rooms other than my parents, they would be met by a quietly growling doberman.
The only things I would suggest watching out for in the begining is the puppy biting, which will quickly turn to kisses with proper training. After that, just watch out for when your pup starts running. My niece has nicknamed by dog (Jake) Moose because of his size.
Your kids will learn to grow up together. I say go for it! My niece and Jake always get excited when they see each other, but are always careful with each other as well.
Good Luck!
Dakota is phenomenal around kids. Good socializing will help. It's like she understands... my friends 7 year old she plays with one way, and the younger you get, the more different the "play" is. We had her with a little baby that couldn't walk by himself yet (mom was holding him up by the arms and he was 'walking' around) and she just kinda sat there and let him touch her. She was super calm, didn't move at all, and the baby and Dakota loved it. The 3-5 year olds, she will run around with, very gently, and play with whatever they're playing. Kids a little older than that, and she will run more spiritedly, chase them around, etc, but never jump or do anything innapropriate. The she will play completely differently with the adults. I trust her completely around kids, but I do keep a very good eye on them. I'm more worried about the kids doing something than Dakota, but you never know, so it's better safe than sorry. She was carrying a ball in her mouth, and one of the kids was kicking the ball (while it was in her mouth) and hitting her with a blow up light saber. She didn't flinch or react in any way really, but little kids just don't always know how to act with dogs, and there's always a limit. I'd rather not find that limit, so we watched her pretty close. Everyone at the party couldn't believe how good she was with the kids, and the people in general. A well trained doberman will love everyone that you like.
I got my Dobie from a family that had a 3 yr old and 18 month old. She was just too much for them.
My girl is 20 months old now and is great with children. I don't have young ones at home just the grandkids visiting. Loves them dearly. I won't try to dissuade you from a Doberman but you should be aware that they are a muscular dog and as pups are all legs and excitement and this lasts awhile. Mine still is. They'll easily hurt a child by mistake just by running by them, heck, mine can knock me sideways when she's flying. If you decide on a Dobie you'll have to be on high alert and don't take it out on your pup if it knocks the child over. They are busy and it'll be like you have a terrible two yr old for quite awhile. A new baby in your home might be enough.
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I brought Snoopy home when he was 18 weeks old. I then had a 6 yr old boy and a 2 yr old boy in the house. I was kind of almost scared myself to bring a dog into the family. Not because I was worried about the kids, but more so worried about what my kids would do to the dog. I was very diligent with my older son learning how to be around dogs because he was at the age where he could grasp the concept of the rules with dogs in the house.
Snoopy saw the 2 yr old as a baby, and proceeded to leave him alone most of the time. My oldest son was considered a "playmate" or chew toy at first. We definitely had to address the issue of mouthing very quickly. We are still in the puppy stage so it is still a work in progress(snoop is about 19 months old) but Dominik(my oldest)really stepped up to the plate with treating the dog with respect and we have had to put rules in place when dealing with the dogs.
My youngest son who is now 3 yrs old does pretty well. He does not yet understand all of the rules in place so we as the parents just have to be extra diligent in supervising the interactions between him and the dogs. Both of my kids have come a long way. The one most important thing we stress is the dogs space as well as the child's space. Both of my dogs must sit before getting any type of reward whether it be affection, treats, or even to be let outside.
In my household my family and I reward calm behavior with the dogs, and that has helped us out tremendously. The way that has worked so far for us is that we all as a family have a specific way of doing things so that we do not confuse the dogs or the kids. The way we all interact is the same way and that also helps. Open communication and daily updates on what happened thoughout the day is also very helpful.
Now that the kids and the dogs have bonded and the dogs know what is expected of them as well as the kids know what is expected of them, things usually tend to run smoothly.