Hi all from an excited, soon to be staffy owner

Hi everyone.

In about a month, I'll be bringing home my new staffy puppy, a brindle male called Charlie.

I've owned a few dogs in my life but never a staffy, my husband and I did the research and decided that this was the breed fo us.

We have 3 children, a 7 year old daughter and 3 year old twins. They have all been raised around dogs and have been taught to respect them.

I was just wondering if anyone had any avice or tips about staffy ownership that will get us on the right track from the get go?

We have a crate for Charlie so he can have his own place to chill out and get away from it all if he wants to, plus we're hoping that will help us with the housetraining - the bit we're dreading the most!

We're looking forwad to many happy years with Charlie, I just can't wait to get him home now!

I'm sure I'll be consulting this site regularly

Hi &

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Hi, welcome to the forum!

Lucky you! A pup soon! Any problems, questions, just ask away.

Just a quick tip: get the pup used to his crate asap - it'll be a life-saver!

Wow, quick replies!

Thanks guys. Steve, I have read and will adhere to the forum rules and have had a look around the website, I can tell it's going to be very useful and interesting for me.

Caryll, I plan to put a nice blanket smelling of mum into Charlie's crate with some chew toys too and introduce him to it as soon as he gets home. I want it to be a pleasant, inviting 'den' for him to go to whenever he needs some 'me' time.

if he gets to the crying for ages stage in his crate when you get him home , fill a small kong toy with peanut butter and freeze it , should keep him otherwise occupied till he nods off

Thanks niff, will bear that one in mind.

I just want to make it as easy and as untraumatic as possible for him.

Do you guys have any strong opinions on Staffs and children? When I told certain family members that we are getting a staffy puppy, all they went on about was how dangerous they are around children and said that I'm taking too big a risk having one around my 3.

I did my own research, and it's obvious that the staffs just have an undeserved bad reputation like many other breeds (Mastiff, Boxer etc)

Are there any staffy ownes here with children that can tell me how their children and staffs interact?

i have two children , when i lived with my ex , my two staffs wouldn't go near them other than 2 have a wee quick sniff of a sneaky lick of the face , they used to follow the baby walker about to hoover up loose bits of toast lol , shady would be layed on the floor and my daughter mollie would climb all over him pull his ears bite his eras and he wouldn't bat an eye , they aint called the nanny dog for nothing ,

i think staffy make a great family pet if they are train the right way like any other dog breeds all my staffy love kids but i wouldn't risk leaving them in the same room together not because of the dogs because of the kids you know what kids are like, that goes with any dog breeds from jack russel to a great dane.

Thanks niff,

You've just confirmed what I already thought. My children have all been raised to respect dogs, I think that goes a long way when it comes to children and dog interaction. I'd heard about the nanny dog rep, a big factor in us choosing this breed.

I'll just tell ignorant family and friends to do some research before judging this breed. I just don't want people to keep a distance from Charlie or be prejudiced against him because of his breed. I guess that's something that all strong breed owners have to deal with because of the size and power of their dogs. Such a shame.

Steve I completely agree with you, there is no such thing as bad breeds, just irresponsible owners. I will never leave my childen alone with Charlie, accidents can and do happen. As long as they're introduced properly, and all respect each other, I'm sure it'll be a wonderful experience for them and him.

Well I'm signing off now, need to sort out my children's tea, but thank you all for the lovely warm welcome to the forum and for answering my queries.

you are welcome make sure you post plenty of photos of charlie when you get him

firstly welcome to the forum
and the advise you have been given so far is spot on
also when you get him home enjoy the puppy stages, but it never to soon to start training start off small things even down to getting used to a coller, basic toilet training, and dont alow mouthing,and i know it may seem cruel get him used to being left alone for small lengths of time as he will settle down on a night a lot quicker
and re- the puppy training dont know who will agree but staffys seem to grasp the training very quickly compared to some other breeds of dogs and arnt to bad.


and as for the suitablility of staffys and kids i dont personaly think you can find a better breed for this.
so basically when you get him enjoy and your lives will never be the same again for the better.
any more queeries ask away someone is sure to be able to help

Hello and welcome to the forum

I will most certainly be posting loads of pics of Charlie when we get him although I will need to be told how to do it cos I'm rubbish at that sort of thing!

Hello Lisa and bigwazza, thanks fo the welcome. I certainly intend to enjoy every minute of our lives with Charlie, I know there'll be difficult times, especially during the puppy stage, but it's reassuring to know that I can get help and advice here, it seems like a very friendly forum

and welcome to the forum looking forward to seeing your pics

Hi Shontelle
Welcome to the forum....can't wait to see the pics.....always makes me want another when I see pics of pups.

Hope you find this forum to be invaluable.
Look forward to your future posts and pics of the new family member Charlie ><

Hi shontelle and welcome to the forum. Well done on getting your first staffy this is where the fun begins u are sure going to enjoy the breed best thing i ever did getting mine . And as for people stereo typing staffys its usually yobs that have them and bring them up nasty and use them as weapons against people but they are by far the most loving breed and are good with children generally look forward to seeing some pics of charlie when u get him good luck

Shontelle wrote:
Do you guys have any strong opinions on Staffs and children? When I told certain family members that we are getting a staffy puppy, all they went on about was how dangerous they are around children and said that I'm taking too big a risk having one around my 3.

I did my own research, and it's obvious that the staffs just have an undeserved bad reputation like many other breeds (Mastiff, Boxer etc)

Are there any staffy ownes here with children that can tell me how their children and staffs interact?

Obviously children must be taught to respect dogs & to leave them alone when necessary (especially very young pups as they need lots of rest & sleep), but staffords have a great affinity with children. My two (now both teenagers) both learnt to stand by grabbing the scruff of my dog's neck. I've said it on here before, but I don't think anyone will mind me saying it again, he used to look at me as if to say "Do I have to put up with this? I do? Oh, Ok then." He was patient and long suffering.

Be aware, though, that even if you socialise your pup from an early age some staffords never really get on with other dogs. It's something that you learn to live with, and most stafford owners will tell you it's no big thing!

P.S. The way we got our last stafford & our present bull terrier to accept their crate was to let them fall asleep in my arms last thing at night. Then I would gently put him in his crate, turn off the light (we leave a night-light on!) and go to bed. When he woke in the night & cried, we'd ignore him (harsh, but necessary). My husband gets up at 4am every day, anyway, so he'd get taken out to relieve himself then. Then after he'd gone to work, I'd play with the pup for 10 or 15 minutes so he was nice & tired, let him fall asleep in my arms (very therapeutic!) and back in the crate. For a little while you might want to put a small bed in his crate, or even a cardboard box with some bedding in it so he feels safe & snuggly.

Thank you so much for all the advice guys. I'm aware that some staffs just cannot get along with other dogs, I'll do my best to esure that Charlie is well socialised nad hopefully that won't be an issue, but if it is, I'll just learn to live with it like you said Caryll.

As for the staffy/children debate, I really appreciate your input. Obviously the very last thing I want is to put my children at risk, but from whatI've seen personally, and heard and read, these dogs are well known for their love of and patience with children. My children are good as gold with dogs and know when to leave them alone. Charlie will have his crate as his private place and my children will know to leave him well alone if he's in there.

Thanks again everyone for the input

Shontelle wrote:As for the staffy/children debate, I really appreciate your input. Obviously the very last thing I want is to put my children at risk, but from whatI've seen personally, and heard and read, these dogs are well known for their love of and patience with children. My children are good as gold with dogs and know when to leave them alone. Charlie will have his crate as his private place and my children will know to leave him well alone if he's in there.

Thanks again everyone for the input

Another good owner!!

I agree caryll