Dog experts I need help, especially Chihuahua owners!

[lovethemouse]

My 10yr old DD has asthma and can't have a pet indoors that has a lot of dander. We were thinking maybe a chihuahua because they are little and basically bald! Well, at least a little amount of hair! I've heard these dogs are not the best for young kids. Anyone that has a chihuahua or can give me another idea please help. She really wants a little dog that she can baby and snuggle with.

 

[skuttle]

My aunt has a chihuahua and it sheds more than I would expect a chihuahua to shed. The hair he sheds is short, but he still sheds a lot.

 

[lovethemouse]

uh oh that doesn't sound good. I was thinking they wouldn't shed at all or only a little.

 

[helenabear]

My friend had a chihuahua and honestly it was the snittiest dog on the face of this earth. I have met several (but only knew that one really well) and they just don't seem to be all that nice. My friend even disliked hers so much (and she is such an animal lover) that she called it the rat dog.

Here's a link I found quickly that might help decide which is the best for people with dog allergies.

http://www.k9web.com/dog-faqs/allergies.html

I guess some people are allergic to different things with dogs so if it is the saliva or dander, a short haired breed would make it worse. Good luck!

 

[skuttle]

I forgot to add that our Yorkie DOES NOT shed despite all of the hair she has. She's a great dog...but she is a barker at times. She LOVES people and has never met a stranger. The only down side is that she does require grooming because of all of her hair. But she doesn't shed...she has "human-like" hair.

 

[janette]

The dogs rated the best for allergies are Bichon Frise & Poodles. Others are not too bad but look for one that doesn't shed.

Here are some sites with some good information.

DogInfomat

DogPatch

 

[nativetxn]

I was going to suggest a poodle. Mine never shed at all

 

[Serena]

The only two chihuahua's I ever came across, pee'd on my shoes.

 

[Saffron]

Serena! ROTFLOL!!!

My mother is an asthmatic. She has been hospitalized several times over the years, once in respritory failure. She loves dogs! Until they were able to get her asthma stabilized, she couldn't be around any animals that shed. But, she loved dogs. So --- she bought a poodle puppy for a reputable breeder. It was the coolest dog! Some people say poodles are yappy or snooty, but this guy wasn't. He was just plain cool. I think because he was socialized with the grandkids, he became a kid's dog. I truly loved him. I would say to look into poodles. They don't shed, so you'd have to have him/her trimmed/groomed routinely, but I think they can make great family pets. The standards are beautiful dogs. My mother's was a miniature. Oh, and a side note: his name was Jock, because she didn't know how to spell Jacque on his papers.

Good luck! Let us know what you decide!!

 

[MerryPoppins]

Another vote for Bichons. We have 2 and they don't shed. I've also had 2 poodles in the past, but I like the personality of a Bichon better.

 

[disneyispi]

DO NOT get your DD a chihuahua - they are not cuddly nor soft and they "break" very easily. They are NOT child-friendly either - they bite frequently. Oh, and by the way, they do shed - a lot......

Child-friendly dogs that don't shed or bite kids - standard poodles - the minature and toy poodles are TOO high strung and frequently nip/bite kids. The same can be said for Bichon Frise (or *****in' freeze)and almost ALL terriers. Though the terriers don't shed they do NOT have good reps with kids.

There is a dog from Egypt, new to this country for about 10 years, that has no hear whatsoever (so it doesn't shed) and it has a curly tail. It's so ugly it's cute. If you contact the AKC, they can tell you its name.

Hope this helps. As for me I have asthma and I have a Boxer, he's great with kids (all Boxers are very protective of kids) but he does shed. Not much but he does. Doesn't bother my asthma.

Let me know what you decide.

 

[AZKathy]

Chihuahuas do shed. I have had two and both left hair. My first one came to me as a puppy when I was six and she and I were the best of friends. She was the greatest and had no problems with kids since she was around them from puppyhood. My second, I got as a young adult and she was a snippy little poop sometimes. She even bit DH in the nose right after we got married. Guess what? She had to stay and live with my parents after that. She was true and blue to me, though.

I think I read somewhere that when the dog starts with kids as a puppy, there is less chance of it not tolerating children. We just got a pomeranian puppy who was 10 weeks old and she will let my five year old do anything to her; they are best buddies. We named her TINK which fits her so well.

 

[janette]

I didn't have time to say more in my earlier post. We just got a Bichon Frise a couple of weeks ago (Pictures are here

He is my 11yo DD's dog and he has a really sweet personality. He does sometimes get tired and has snapped at my 8yo DD when she over does it. I don't think he'd be a good dog for very small children, but I'm not sure any puppy wouldn't do the same. My 11yo does fine but I know my 8yo DD is not ready for a puppy. She wants to carry him around, dress him up etc and he just doesn't go for that very long. This is the first time we've had a puppy since we had kids and it is lots like having a baby in the house. My 11yo DD sometimes complains about when he gets her up early in the morning.

My 8yo DD is allergic to dogs, we have outside dogs and needed to make sure an indoor dog would be okay for her. That was a primary reason in chosing the breed. They are also very cute She has had no problems at all, I asked her and she said that when she pets/handles the other dogs her eyes & nose start to bother her. With our puppy her eyes bother her a little bit but not much.

 

[MerryPoppins]

I can truthfully say that neither of my Bichons have ever nipped at any of us and we had elementary school aged kids when we got both of them. I think they are very mild-mannered and easy going. They are not high strung like a poodle from my experience. They are a little stubborn and harder to train than some dogs, but mine have always been very gentle and loving (even to my mother's brat of a puppy that comes to visit us! LOL)

 

[janette]

That's great MerryPoppins. Ours is very sweet, the times he's nipped have been totally my DD pushing too far. He is gentle when he does it, it's not a real bite but he gets his point across. She leaves him alone for about 10 min after. I think he's done remarkably well

 

[lovethemouse]

Thanks for all of the great advice everyone. I'm hearing so much about chihuahuas being "nippy" that I'm starting to think that breed wouldn't be the best choice for us. We have 3 kids with our 10yr old being the oldest. I had a bichon years ago that was the sweetest dog you could ever want, and great with kids. But he was very stubborn and difficult to train. I got him at a pet shop- the worst place to get a dog because so many of them come from puppy mills. I didn't know that at the time. But he was a real sweetie- not very smart- but very sweet. I guess we'll keep looking.

 

[luvmydogs]

We have three chihuahuas that we love so much! With that said, as a rule they are not good dogs for young children (although I'm sure there are exceptions). My DS7 has grown up with them and all kinds of other animals, but they do not look too kindly on him. Because of their small size, they have a high degree of self-preservation instinct. And children, whose moves are very fast and unpredictable, can inadvertantly scare and startle them. They tend to not appreciate a child's sincere "I love the dog" hug, and are too "breakable" to enjoy rough play. Chi's will not hesitate to nip or bite if they feel the need to defend themselves. They do shed! Their hair is very fine and short, but it does fill up my vacuum! We love ours to death, and they are loyal and loving lapdogs, but definitely for much older children and adults. Bichons and Poodles are great, and so are Schnauzers! I love Bichons. They Bounce! Good luck with your decision!