Breed Suggestions for child's obedience dog

[Romy]

An AKC staffy bull?

[thehoundgirl]

A Schnauzer? They are not exactly short haired, but fairly easy to groom and very easy to handle. Atleast my Dixie is!

[Danefied]

Me, I'd go to the local pound or shelter and see what kind of mutt dog is there that's smart, drivey, and good with kids.

A couple months ago a local shelter had a shepherd mix looking thing with a slick-ish coat who could have made someone an awesome competition dog. Shoot, my own competition dog is a mutt foundling.

[DobeLove]

If she wants to do AKC juniors and be competitive, most of these dogs listed it will be hard to do. (There have been a few people that do well with less flashy breeds, but the flashier the breed the more the junior wins usually.) Less common breeds don't usually do as well either.

I'm not sure how small you want, but Papillons, Pugs, and Cavaliers came to mind. Even thought Cavaliers and Papillons have hair, they don't have a ton of grooming.

[Aleron]

Originally Posted by DobeLove

If she wants to do AKC juniors and be competitive, most of these dogs listed it will be hard to do. (There have been a few people that do well with less flashy breeds, but the flashier the breed the more the junior wins usually.) Less common breeds don't usually do as well either.

I'm not sure how small you want, but Papillons, Pugs, and Cavaliers came to mind. Even thought Cavaliers and Papillons have hair, they don't have a ton of grooming.

It's true that there are breeds which tend to do better in AKC Juniors. But I think it's also important Juniors show the breed they enjoy. There are Juniors doing well with all different breeds. With AKC Juniors especially at the higher levels, a show quality dog is sort of important regardless of breed though. Minor cosmetic things that would cause a dog not to be showable can be ok (mismarks, bad bites, oversize/undersize) but dogs with poor movement/structure or dogs with poor or very different type from what is usually seen in the ring can be more challenging to succeed with. Of course at the higher levels, it is often possible to show someone else's dog that might be more suitable as a Juniors dog. So one could always start with the dog they have and aim to find a breed/breeder to work with in the future if they want to show with a dog who is more showy or competitive in the ring.

[Laurelin]

A normal (not-Mia) Papillon could be perfect as well

Yeah Mia would be a bad choice. LOL but I think paps in general are great for old enough kids that know not to jump on them. They're typically super handler focused, very eager to please and easy to work with, affectionate, pretty mild temperament, happy, fun...

Originally Posted by Dekka

Actually around here I have had some great cattle dog/kid combos. 4Hers too (though 4-H here isn't as 'big' as it is in the states) The cattle dogs were combo confo/herding dogs vs strictly sport/herding lines. That might make a difference. They were very focused dogs, much like BC only smaller and easier for the kids to handle.

Cattle dogs around here are very much harder dogs than BCs. Dog aggression and lots of guarding instinct. BCs strike me as much much softer and less demanding. But I grew up in Texas and there's a load of truly working bred cattle dogs there. They're a ton of dog.

[Dekka]

Yes the working ones I know are a lot of dog. And the confo ones I know are very non cattle dog like (think labs..) The in between ones seem to be a nice balance for sport dogs. One of the 4H leaders around here breeds and shows them. His lack drive for my taste, but some of the split dogs have more drive with out a lot of edge.

[dignity]

I vote for smooth collie. Just make sure it's from an ethical breeder as some collie lines are not the best.

[lizzybeth727]

Originally Posted by dignity

I vote for smooth collie. Just make sure it's from an ethical breeder as some collie lines are not the best.

Me too. A couple of Keegan's brothers have gone on to live with young kids, and as far as I know they're doing great. You'll probably have better luck finding a rough collie - they're much more common so breeders are easier to find.... roughs also tend to be slightly more laid-back, less intense - but if hair is a big issue then go with a smooth. You should be able to find a smooth bitch that's around 50 pounds, IMO not a large dog.

[Romy]

Originally Posted by lizzybeth727

Me too. A couple of Keegan's brothers have gone on to live with young kids, and as far as I know they're doing great. You'll probably have better luck finding a rough collie - they're much more common so breeders are easier to find.... roughs also tend to be slightly more laid-back, less intense - but if hair is a big issue then go with a smooth. You should be able to find a smooth bitch that's around 50 pounds, IMO not a large dog.

Keegan's mom had never been around kids until she was an adult. The instant she saw toddler Aurelia she melted into a puddle of goo and was like, "I LOOOOVE it and I don't know why! But I LOOOOOVE it!"