Thoughts pls re possible adoption

Hello there,

I've never owned a dog before (not even as a child) and am considering a staffi girl that's been offered by a local small home rescue organisation. I went to see her today for a first meet up and she was lovely but it feels like a big step. (I've arranged to meet them again on Mon and take her for a walk).

My daughter has special needs so the dog's temperament would be of real importance (she certainly seems lovely natured) and the fosterer says she's house trained, easy going etc, likewise whilst she'll be loved within an inch of her life I don't have the time or experience for "issues".

I guess I'm just sounding it out please with staffi owners, any thoughts appreciated, good or bad ? I was a bit concerned that she's an older girl (listed as 6 but she looks older to me as v greyed round the muzzle etc).

Can a staffi be easy going and fairly low maintenance (obviously happy to do the walks, let her settle in etc but with my daughters needs I just don't have the capacity for difficulties).

Thanks in advance

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I'm fostering a rescue female at the moment.
She's completely grey around the muzzle, but with absolutely perfect teeth (which are often a better indicator of age), and the vet reckons she could be anything from 3 to 6.
She is proving to be very easygoing, very low maintenance, etc, so it is possible.
One thing I always ask anyone who phones up who has children is how old are the children? I think this is a key issue.

My daughter's 6

Tricky age to be honest.
You'd really need to be seeing a thorough foster assessment report (in my opinion).

Could you elaborate a little on the "tricky" bit ?

I think Battersea are running a "nanny dog" campaign etc promoting them for children, but at our local rescue there's very few recommended for children ? as I said it feels like a big step.

They are a very loving breed and always want a cuddle. I wouldn't say they are low maintenance though. She would require at a minimum two walks a day of 45 minutes each to be happy. They are a high energy breed and without the walks they will find other ways to entertain themselves.

Oresteia wrote:Could you elaborate a little on the "tricky" bit ?

They are a smallish but powerful breed which means it's quite easy to knock young children over. Some staffs don't jump up, others can leap a few feet in the air. That's why I mentioned the foster report.
There are other issues with young children such as how likely they are to tease the dog, pull its tail, stick a finger in its eye, etc.
Lots of people say they'll never allow children to put a dog into an uncomfortable position but often they don't realise that's just what they're doing.
I was looking at pictures on another site earlier of "cute" situations with dogs being handled by children - in some pictures, the person taking the photos might well think it's cute, but the dog's posture was saying it was very uncomfortable.

Let's see what others think.

Staffys mostly are people dogs who thrive on human contact and love their cuddles. They also generally adore children and are known as the Nanny Dog. Can any dog really be low maintenance? They would need at least two good walks of 45 minutes each and time with you for playing.

Please have a read of the info sheet below which has very useful info:

https://staffy-bull-terrier.niceboard.com/t14835-thinking-about-buying-a-puppy-or-rescuing-a-dog

I am unsure if I would recommend a Staffie for a first time dog owner who has never had one ever. That being said, they are wonderful pets to have with children! I have 4 kids ages 5, 8, 10, 12 and three Staffies. However, I have had dogs my whole life and know what I have. They are not laid back lazy beasts. Mine need two walks minimum besides play, training and cuddles. They can a do occasionally bump into me, my wife and the kids but they absolutely adore the kids! I do teach my children how to behave around the dogs for all to remain safe. If we have friends' kids over that aren't used to dogs, I usually put up a gate to give each space as well as give them some instruction (which my kids actually can give).

I agree that each dog is unique and some are in fact quite passive, but Staffies by nature are boisterous and need attention and exercise to stay healthy and happy. If you are the type of person who would be terrified if your 6 yr old was knocked over by a dog, it might not be a great idea. I personally watch dog body language and if one runs into the kids and knocks them over while playing etc. I simply tell my kids to get up. The dog did nothing wrong in that instance (unless I was telling him/her to sit, down, leave it etc.).

Just going to be honest, a staffy is not a first time dog. I don't recommend it.

p.s. my sister is disabled and i can't have my dog in the house because of it, she is just too strong and my sister doesn't have the capacity to push her off or carry her training on, so its not safe enough.

If you can read these posts and think you can handler the situation and can get a good foster report, can you give time for the walks come rain or shine with your daughter ?? Sorry to pry but you don't say if you have a partner or not to help with the workload ??
If you are comfortable with all of this , then maybe the next step is a meet and maybe you can ask (assuming the rescus are happy to go ahead) if you can have a trial session for maybe a couple of days to see how things are before you commit ??
I wouldn't say no, but I wouldn't say yes , it really does depend on the dog. If you'd gone for it and got a type like my Tilly (a little Angel ) you would wonder why you never did it years ago , then if you got one like Tommy (aka the Tomminator > )with no previous experience with all the nipping and over excitedness you'd think what the hell have I done . Tommy is just a puppy and this is to be expected and he has come on leaps and bounds in the last few weeks but would you have time for this ??

We are a responsible forum and dearly love our breed and will offer you the best advice for 2 reasons

1) We want our dogs to be loved and in the right place, and I'm sure you could offer this so please don't take it a s a criticism
2) We dont want our dogs to go from 1 home to the next because they are not what people expected and become too much hard work

Thanks for the posts, helpful to read the good honest comments.

I met with her at the foster home, (for about 40mins & a short walk) and asked for an honest report, and I'm going again tomorrow with my daughter to walk her together.

Her history (the dog's not my daughter's ;-) appears to be that she is from a slightly 'happy chaos' of a family with a number of children and one other dog. She wasn't well monitored and kept getting out (going to the local school to wait for the children). The dog warden was repeatedly called at school & ultimately said that they would now fine the family if it happened again at which point the owner allegedly said they wouldn't pay the fine and were happy for the kennels to take her.

She's been with the foster 4 weeks and is (hope this is true!) a fairly steady girl, crate trained, house trained and during our (only short) walk I thought she was pretty good on the lead for a staffi ;-)

She was friendly but not over bouncy, jumped to knee height for a fuss but soon settled and is walked with 3 other dogs. Sooooo I'm kind of hopeful (ish!!!) will let you know how tomorrow goes.

I am on my own Dave, no prying felt ;-) (but husband does visit regular and he had a staffi (pup to 13) as a child from 12, so he's coming along tomorrow to "assess" a little)

I AM worried she'll be too much for my daughter (with her difficulties etc) but I'm hoping to get a better idea tomorrow - everything crossed!!!

It 100% depends on the individual dog as others have said more detail you can get from the foster family the better before you make any decision. I am a first time dog owner and wanted a staffy as i wanted a dog sized dog (if you know what I mean) but not one that would be too strong for me (lab/gsd).

Ledger is very laid back, he was 2 when I rescued him and although he will laze around the house he can also get very excited at times and it has taken a year for him to consistently not jump up at me when I come home I'm 5ft 2 and not the skinniest of people and am fairly strong but when I play with him he can physically wrestle me to the floor. Luckily when children have approached him in the park or in Pets at home (where children just appear from around corners and grab his ears) he has so far made no attempt to jump up at them and he kind of goes into standby and doesnt react but the 'what ifs' are always in my head

You can almost guarantee that there will be some issues of some kind you cant plan for how a dog will react to a new environment especially when you don't know their whole history.

Personally I would take the time and introduce your daughter to a variety of dogs in controlled situations she may guide you as to a breed which is most appropriate. If there is a Dogs Trust close to you get in contact with them as I know my local one was running kids events through the summer teaching children the respect they need to give dogs and showing them how to safely train and handle their pets. Also you say there is a small local rescue, spend some time there walk a variety of dogs commit to walking as much as you can and see how you get on before you commit to bringing a dog into your home

Like the others, I don't want to pry, but can you tell us what sort pf difficulties your daughter has?

If it's mobility, then an older staff can be very aware of a disabled person's problems. If it's behavioural, then it would depend on how your daughter approaches & treats the dog.

My old lad, Bandit, was very 'robust' and would happily knock down anyone who played with him, but was extremely gentle with the very young, the elderly and the disabled.

Hello,

Caryll daughter has autism, low level phsyical and low level health issues in brief.

We met staffi girl again yesterday & are meeting her again on Sun - this will be our 4th meet up & walk & I'm REALLY thinking of going ahead.

My daughter's very good in terms of knowing our "doggy rules" and keeping to them and I have no concerns that she would tease or bother the dog at all - my concern is that she's quite gentle, might lack confidence and be scared OR not bond

Her dog confidence has come on tremendously over the last 9months (since Christmas we began walking a friend's dog once a week) & she's MUCH more confident than a year ago (when I would never have considered it) & the hope is that this would grow & grow with OUR dog.

The staffi girl SEEMS quite steady and dare I say it quite a special little girl - I hardly dare say it as even after our 4 meet ups I'm getting quite fond of her awwwww BUT it'd have to be right with daughter.

Will keep you posted after Sun as that's decision time - eek

Hey I hope it works for you and does sound very promising , I am assuming from your description of your daughter's autism that this will not affect the exercise and I know it is a proven fact for the right dog to work with an autistic child does fantastic things for the child and I have to say the dog will be getting a lot of benefit too. Please keep us posted ><

I have heard many reports of a dog turning around an autistic child's life. Staffords especially seem to have endless patience with the autistic! Most children bond very easily with a dog, any dog, especially if the dog becomes fond of the child, which is normally a given with staffords.

If your daughter likes her and you feel comfortable with her then I don't see why not. You could see a very special friendship build between your daughter and your dog!

Thanks both - roll on Sunday - we get her for the whole afternoon :-)

Just a little (true) story....

My daughter went to first communion classes with a young girl who had a severely autistic brother. By his age he should have taken his 1st communion the year before, but there was no way he'd have been able to do the classes & would have very much disrupted the rest of the class so it was agreed to postpone it.

The parents had a dog foisted on them by a 'friend' who was going to have it pts because the didn't want it any more. the poor thing was a nervous wreck & the boy's parents were very concerned about how they were going to cope. They had contacted several rescue centres & none could take the dog.

Within six weeks a bond between their son and the dog had formed so strongly that the boy was actually starting to look after the dog himself. From never speaking & staring into space or tantruming he began to call the dog's name, focus on her and go to her when he felt anxious/tense. His tantrums lessened, and if he did go into one, the dog would whine & try to lick his hand, calming him down quite rapidly. As for the dog, she became more confident, less nervous & a happy little thing.

It was a lovely thing to see.

Reading that your daughter has autism i think a dog is wonderful for that. Again just make sure you are ready for a staff, they are quite head strong.

Oresteia wrote:Thanks both - roll on Sunday - we get her for the whole afternoon :-)

Hope it works out for both of them , let us know how it goes please and some pictures would be nice , we like pics on here

What a lovely story Caryll, lets hope that your experience is as good Oresteia. Good luck, I hope everything goes well. I have a friend who has aspergers syndrome, he had always found it difficult to cope in social situations and had no confidence. He found it difficult to talk to new people and understand their emotions. When he began living alone I became worried about him, he would stay in the house for days and when I went round would be staring at the tv for hours on end.

I heard about a stafford x labrador who was unwanted and uncared for and was locked in the utility room for hours with no interaction. The owners has decided to put him on preloved (!) and I couldn't see anything happen to him so I snapped him up as a possible companion for my friend. Risky decision but I took him into my house with my other dogs and never looked back. We had puppies at the time and he was so gentle with them and such a wonderful loving dog.

He has turned Henry's life around. He is more confident, approaches other dog owners when out for long walks in the park. He has a group of people who he walks with and it means he has a purpose in life. He takes Neo to training classes and the bond they have is incredible. When he doesnt understand somebody or a social situation he can look at the dog's body language and read from that. There are so many benefits, I hope Sunday goes well for you