Dogs That Are Good With Children

Its true, dogs do play pivotal role in child development. Health care specialists have noticed after a nurse, Elaine Smith, introduced dog therapy as an alternative therapeutic treatment how dogs can play a major role not only in therapeutic treatment but also in child development.

Companionship can be critical to children and it was found out that dogs can readily and efficiently fill that spot. That's why it is often recommended that smaller growing children should have a pet of their own, if only to break barriers that inhibit growth like speech impediment. Or just instilling a sense of responsibility at an early age. And naturally, dogs that are good with children are best candidates for this purpose.

Being sought more as family pet, selective breeding practices over the years were aimed to iron out aggressive traits of some breeds of dogs. Now there are those breed of dogs are highly tolerant; they tolerate well the clumsy handling of older individuals and the rough handling and playing of small children. Those that have undergone training are able to resist any instinctive retaliation when pranks are played upon them –typical to small children at play. One example of a highly tolerant breed is mastiffs. A trained English mastiff can be very tolerant and gentle that it can suffer most rough playing before showing signs of aggression, and won't bite even then. Pointers are also famed for their low aggression level, though their playful nature can be harmful for very young toddlers. Another trite example is the St. Bernard.

Depending on the level of play of youngsters, there are suitable dogs and there that isn't. For growing children that loves playing outdoors, dogs that are good with children should be also adaptable for such activity. That's why Labradors, retrievers, Dalmatians and American Eskimos are better dogs. But for those especially young children, who are more cooped up indoors, a St. Bernard or a mastiff would do nicely.

In a nutshell, there are dozens of breed of dogs that are good with children. Examples include but not limited to mastiffs, pointers, and some mossolers like the St. Bernard, and conventional toy dogs like poodles. However, breed is not a de facto standard for naming dogs that are good with children, as training is highly essential for dogs of this purpose.

If you are considering dogs that are good with children, you should choose a breed that's normally with gentle temperament like those mentioned above. And they should have the right training.