considering a ds

[ronni]

Hi my name is ronni i am 35 years old i live my girlfreind and our 2 kids at 1 and 3 years old. I live on the contry in a small house with at yard. The dog would have too stay at home 4 days a week from 8 to 15 while i work. I can take him out 30 min in the morning and he will pick up the kids with me on bike in the afternoon and get a off leach in the feilds on the way home. In the evening i will train him with him for obedence competition. Would this be enough for the dog and will he do ok with the children witch will be 2 and 4 years old when i get the dog.

[shana]

No. Please consider another breed. Ds's require a lot of time and effort they want nothing more than to be with you and 15 hours with a run a little obedience and a little off leash time will not be enough. Kids and ds's take some experience they are VERY driven dogs children running look like prey. Even those that do well with kids are still managed and worked with. Let me give you a run down of the schedule I have for my puppy mind you he's only 13 weeks. 5:00am wake up potty time. 5:30-7:00 I get ready for work he hangs out in his xpen or tied to me can't be trusted to run loose in the house that takes time and a lot of teaching on my part. 7:00am-7:30am we do tug/ball work a little obedience and some basic tracking/hunt drive building. 7:30-8:00am he takes a break. 8:00am-8:45am he gets a walk working on loose leash walking and focus on me. 8:45am-9:00am break. 9:00am-9:30am we do some free play together in the back yard. 9:30am we go to work. He comes out of his crate every two hours roughly and for an hour on my lunch break. Play time and some mental stimulation. Then when we get home a short ball/tug session another 45min walk. Inside play and crate time then bed. He's just a puppy. If we skip one thing it can throw us off for the whole day he gets really mouthy off the wall hyper and just plain bored. As they get older it changes. On top of that we go to a puppy class and a protection class so he has two days a week he gets I a work session. We also go hiking two or three times a week and I try to get him out several days a week. If you are unable to give your dog this kind of attention then this is not the breed for you. Not to mention dutches need a strong handler who knows how to handle them. They are not run around the house do a little exercise hang out with the family kind of dogs . If you put one it that situation your are only hurting yourself and the dog. I know this may sound harsh but I can't stress enough how much work these dogs are. Seen to many in shelters or being put down for behavioral problems that could have been avoided if someone had just decided on another breed. From what you wrote I do NOT this this is the right breed for you. I HIGHLY suggest looking into another breed that is ment to be a medium energy level family companion

[ronni]

Thank you for the good answer. I will concider somethin else.

[Dutchringgirl]

Yes, please. A DS will not fit into your lifestyle. Thank you for checking.

[simbathedog1]

I'm afraid I have to agree. Our Dutch shepherd is seemingly a lot more laid back than most and he loves our kids dearly...Our youngest is 10. But with his prey drive he cannot be outside when the youngest has friends over and they are running around being rowdy kids. He reacts to the chaos that inevitably comes with having kids...The prey drive kicks in. In the early time after we first got him he actually nipped my daughter in the butt enough to break skin. We have since learned he just needs to be kept out of that situation for everyone's safety. You need a dog that can participate with the family fully. You have a lot of years of chaos ahead you !! DS is a powerful, energetic, so crazy smart they get into trouble , high maintenance dog. They don't have that naturally soft mouth like a golden retriever does.. you would be setting yourself up for a heartbreak.

[Raven]

Thank you for the good answer. I will concider somethin else.

And thank you for your answer! It's relieving when someone takes experienced advice seriously.

[Mark77]

I'm not a trainer, just an owner and I'll agree that these dogs need some active time. Doesn't matter what it is, they need some time to either work on commands or play with eachother. At least three to four hours a day of doing something. I am lucky because I have two so they play together and need to have something to do. Simply, this is not a regular "pet" dog and though great with families, they need interaction. Even right now Riddick is standing near me wanting me to give him some commands so he can feel active and it's nearly 1am in the morning. Get a Lab or a Retriever if you want a minimal family dog. Dutch Shepherds are a commitment.