Advice needed on buying a second dog for family home.?

I have 2 children under the age of 5 and a placid 5 year old chocolate labrador. What would be a good second dog to introduce to the family? We have a medium sized house with a garden and live within very close proximity to a large dog-walking park. We would prefer a small/medium sized dog with minimum hair loss, but are open to ideas. We would want to get a newborn puppy, but are concerned about the risk of getting all of our stuff chewed!!Advice needed on buying a second dog for family home.?
if you get a puppy your stuff will get chewed, that is just a part of the deal. i think a pug would fit in nicely but i am not sure exactly what you are looking for. here is a website that lists a bunch of breeds and what they are like.





http://www.akc.org/breeds/toy_group.cfmAdvice needed on buying a second dog for family home.?
With two children under 5, and a dog already, in my honest opinion you would be well advised to hold off for a few years. Although I obviously don't know you, it does sound as if you life is pretty full-on just now and bringing a puppy into this situation could be a recipe for disaster.





You will have the potential for having your stuff chewed, and worse really unless you have the time to devote to what will be another baby.





For what it's worth.
Hi,





One of the thorniest issues a pet owner may face is introducing another dog or puppy into the family. The initial meeting is important, so you'll need to prepare to improve your chances of success. Here's more info:





http://lnk.nu/dogtime.com/ssf.html
a rufty tufty cairn terrier great with children and buy a cage to put it in when you go out and your old dog need some peace .no chewing then get him used to be putting him away right from the start.
try a cockapoo


or wheaten terrier


spaniels


Cairn Terrier


beagle


muts


dashound


pugs


chiwawa


maltise
Okay this website is great because it narrows down what your looking for and really helps by asking you questions about what exactly you're looking for and what your situation is.





http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/search.htm





As for the chewing I personally feel labs are some of the best family dogs, however they go through a chewing stage (and it does vary from puppy to puppy but this is an in general lab trait) that will last until they are 2 years old. But I've never had any behavior issues from any labs I've owned and I've just made sure to be really firm about the chewing issue. And my lab is amazing with my daughter, he wouldn't ever let anything happen to her. Hope this helps!
Why not another Labrador? They are the best!
i have a black lab and she is 4 1/2 I was given a small


white maltese she learned most things from the lab


such as feeding times going to the washroom outside


and proper toys to play with.it's been a year now and


they are like twins
I had the same experience when we bought a second dog, it was a cocker spaniel puppy and it was very excited and would chew absolutely everything! but i would suggest getting a springer spaniel puppy as they are very very calm dogs. We have three of them and none of them chew or bark! But you could get any type of dog as long as it is young and you send it off to get trained you will have no problem! xx
toy jack russell?
Honestly I would get another dog over the age of 2. You want a dog with a similar energy level of your current dog so another lab would work wonderfully. Depending on how firm you are with enforcing discipline and boundaries Pit Bull type dogs (Amstaffs, APBT, Bull Terriers) are very good family dogs but require firm and consistant discipline and very clear boundaries. They are not for the light and fluffy dog owner.





And you don't get a newborn puppy, you get one that is 8 weeks. :) If you get a new puppy your house will be destroyed, pee and poop everywhere and it's a hassle with two small kids.
Getting two dogs if the same as owning one, just give them both the attention they deserve. Here are dog breeds i have in mind:


Golden Retriever, Labradoodle, Portugese Water Dog and a Greyhound.


These dogs get on very good with other dogs and children, and they hardly shed, be careful you don't get sucked into people saying one dog breed that they have.


Owner of two German Shepherds.