Huskies are not good with kids.

My parents were very upset when I was born they had to get rid of ours because she'd snap at me

Yes! It's insane! Everywhere I looked they were sooo expensive! One breeder got back to me about a lab pup and said she was $900. I also looked into golden retrievers and I couldn't find any for less than $2500!! It's crazy here, so many people with money! It's not that I wouldn't like to pay that to get the type of dog I want, I just can't stand the thought of those poor pups living at the pound, waiting to be adopted or worse, get put down! :-(

I love labs ?

Wow OP, 800$?!? yikes!

You can get a heeler for 250$

... Juuuuust saaaaayinnnnngggg ;) lol I jest I jest.

I second the lady who mentioned Shelties. I've had one for almost my whole life. They are wonderful companions and very loyal. They will attach to their owners/family and protect them fiercely. Yes, they shed, but other than that they are fantastic dogs. We just got the fourth one of my life.

Just get an alarm

Huskies and Akitas are really crappy dogs with kids.

Thank you ladies sooo much!! I might stick with what I know and go the lab route. We live in a single family home but my yard is only .33 acres. I'm worried that my house/yard isn't big enough for a 90+ lb dog. I spent the day searching and emailing a few shelters, rescues, and breeders. I would much rather adopt than purchase one especially since where I live, you can't get a dog from a breeder for less than $800!! I haven't heard back though! :-(

We have always had pound puppies and they have been very loyal and protective. I am afraid of German sheppards because i was bitten by two when I was a kid. Currently we have a boxer/lab mix, boxer/mastiff mix, and lab/collie mix. They all trained very quickly. We haven't had our baby yet but they are great with our family/friends kids.

I've had a lot of pits in the family and they are always playful and loving, and they take care of business when s*** hits the fan too. they always protect their family.

If you live in a home owners association check your by-laws. They may have breed restrictions. I know the development we live in has a breed ban on most everything anyone has mentioned.

I have bloodhounds. Big lazy couch potatoes with wrinkles, and extremely loud bark. Someone would be seriously stupid to come in my house.

Really, just about any dog is a deterrent to intruders. You don't necessarily need a large dog that would attack. Most intruders will automatically flee if they hear any type of bark. Even a smaller dog. Why? Because they know if they hear the dog, so do the owners, meaning they can no longer quietly sneak in and out. Homes with dogs are much less likely to be invaded.

We have a 25 lb cockapoo. He isn't large and certainly isn't ferocious. He looks like a fluffy stuffed animal lol. But he barks at all noises he doesn't like and is a great watch dog. Plus, he's just big enough that his bark is deep and makes him sound larger. He's not a yippy dog.

Just be careful seeking out a dog to specifically be a "guard dog". Lots of people land themselves in trouble when they try to do that. They end up purchasing or adopting a dog that they cannot handle and either deal with aggression toward the family or destructive behavior in the home.

Honestly, I would stay away from any type of shepherd breed or doberman pinschers or rotties unless you are already a very experienced dog owner. They can all be phenomenal dogs, but need a strong hand and consistent trainer, not to mention lots of stimulation and exercise.

I'd suggest maybe a Boxer. They are sweet and loving with children (basically big kids themselves) but are known for loyally protecting their families. Keep in mind, though, that they are high energy and will need multiple walks and forms of stimulation throughout the day, or they will begin to destroy things out of boredom.

Pits are wonderful with kids, actually, and would intimidate any intruder, but you would need to make sure you carefully select one with no behavioral issues.

Finally, I would most highly suggest you simply get a lab. They are smart, eager to please, easy to train, notoriously gentle and sweet with children, and have intimidating barks. Plus, most are large, anywhere from 50 to 90 lbs. Again, they will need plenty of exercise and stimulation. They can be hyper and retain their "puppy" attitude much longer than many breeds. This is also a reason they do so well with kids. They're super playful :)

Best I've ever had have been our beautiful kelpie X german shepherd and our current puppy (she's learning fast) that's kelpie X ridgeback

IMO Australian dogs are so loyal and amazing at letting you know when anyone's even at the other end of the driveway. Plus there gorgeous.

Both my furbaby girls have been wonderful around kids.

I'd steer away from jack russels, just have wayyyyy too many bad experiences with them biting, including my brothers one biting my 13 month old (in his defence we think he may be blind and Kydan came from behind him and lent on him, oh and it wasn't a bitebite, just a nip to warn him....)

I have a pit/boxer. He is an amazing family dog. He guards kinda, just the barking and overall look. He would never actually guard us. He loves everyone! So he does his job and is safe and loving to the boys.

*sweetest

I have a boxer. She's the biggest baby ever, lol!! Sweaters dog I have ever known :) She loves my two kids like crazy! If we pretend to attack she goes nuts, lol!!

I have a shepherd and a pit. My shepherd is very protective of us and playful with the kids. But only my kids, shes not a fan of other peoples kids. My pit is a big baby she will bark, her bark is scary lol, but then she will run away and come crawling back to lick you. She loves on everyone she just wants to play and be loved on.

just get an alarm system...

German Shepard's are great

My boyfriend's small dog got attacked by the neighbors Akita, they put him down.

We have a siberian husky and she is amazing with my son and very playful. If anything gets in our backyard without going through the house or us with them they are a gonner. We have neighborhood stray cats and since our house wasn't lived in for over a year before we got it, so the neighborhood cats believe that backyard is theirs. My dog definitely put them in they place for sure.

Our backyard is also near a busy street (we have a privacy fence tho) and she does not bark at passing cars just when something gets in the yard.

Watch for shepherds and any herding type dog because they can nip at heels of kids to get them to go where they want them to. They never intend to hurt the child though, its just natural instinct. My parents have a german shepherd and she is the most protective dog and gentle with the kids. We have a boxer mix pup who loves our son and will let him do whatever he wants to him but is intimedating if you dont know the dog. St. Bernards, bernese mountain dogs, any of those type of dogs are great with kids but their size makes people back off. All breeds are going to have good and bad experiences associated with them. I recommend researching several different breeds and also the health conditions that can be associated with them. German shepherds are prone to seizures but not all have them.

As far as putting a puppy with an older dog it should be fine. The older dog will show its dominance and the puppy will learn.

I have two rotties! They are and have always been amazing with my 4 year old. Amazing guard dogs as well. They are the sweetest dogs, until someone becomes a threat. When my sister was living with us her and her (now ex) boyfriend got in a fight and he hit her. Ruger grabbed him by the arm and dragged him to the door. He didn't even break skin, but he would NOT let him go anywhere near her again.

But with my son they let him do whatever he wants to them. They'd lick him to death before they ever hurt him. At night Kimber sleeps at the foot of his bed and Ruger sleeps by his door. No one unwelcome will be going near my boy.

But PP is right, you have to watch them for hip dysplasia.

Ps. While you can get them from a training facility, you don't have to for them to be good guard dogs. They're naturally loyal/ protective of their owners and they're amazing learners. I paid around 360 for each of my babies.

We have a 4 month German Shepard and he's great with my 6month old. He brings him his toys which of course are dog toys but its still the idea he's being nice and I can already tell he's going to protect my lo because he will lay by him and when we walk near them he gets up like he's trying to protect him. I do agree he is kind of hyper but he's still a puppy and he is really smart just puppy stubborn right now. I also agree with pits. They were originally bread to protect the family and also act as a baby sitter I never had problems with our pit and she was raised around my oldest ones since my middle one was a yr old.

You have to be careful of shepherds and rotties, they are notorious for hip displaysia. We have two border collie/blue heeler mix year old pups that have been raised at our farm. Very energetic, maybe too much for a busy mom.

Butttt I strongly reccomend a heeler or ridgeback. Our climate is coooold in the winter and muggy hot in the summer, our heeler sheds accordingly and is comfy in most temps. She's fiercely loyal, and good with people after she "meets" them properly. We have tons of coyotes in our area, none if which will come by our barn thanks to our Bonnie girl haha. She is highly intelligent, was super easy to train (sit, down, here, and get 'em up hah) and is beyond sweet with our family. She's medium sized, which is why we got her (after Pitts, Dobermans and rotties, we wanted something a bit more compact) but still intimidating.

Our neighbors have ridgebacks, one alpha male and a few females with babies. Let's just say no one gets out of the truck unless they know the family lol.

I love my cattle dogs!

pit bulls

My first thoughts were either a German Shepherd or a Black Lab.

They are good family dogs and will definitely protect your children and home.

Pit bulls are also very good family dogs as long as you get one as a puppy.

My German shepherd is an awesome guard dog. She has a very viscous bark/growl, but she is also good with the kids.

Growing up we had a German/lab mix. We lived on a lot of land that backed up to a city property. More then once people would either "accidentally" come onto our property or a few times people running from the cops would try to hide in our yard (not a good neighborhood). EVERY time our dog would get the person backed into a corner and keep them there until one of my parent told him to back off. Every time the cops were called, and the dog never once hurt anyone but he did keep us and our house safe. All my dogs have been mixed, and they're all amazing! Any dog can be protective of its family and good with kids. I would say look for a puppy and start training early. The training is more important than the breed.

We have a Neopolitan Mastiff as well. She is AMAZING with our daughter and is also an awesome guard dog. So, so sweet natured but very protective if she needs to be.

I would wait before adding another dog to the mix, it could make your older dog's aggression worse and cause more problems. :)

My chihuahua is definitely the dominant out of her and my pit. We had the pit 4 years and got the chi in April the chi hated the pit for a day. Then they were bffs. Now the pit knows who's boss lmao

Dobermans!

They become attached to, and protective of their families. They're incredibly smart, and don't like strangers.

We have a rottweiller that we bought from a guard dog training facility. He is the best with our son. He rides him around like a horse and just sat there when our son bit him. He is trained to protect the house and our family. When we walk he will stand between our son and strangers and won't let anyone in our yard if we don't introduce him. A man getting chased by the cops jumped our fence once and the dog had him cornered untill we got home 6 hours later and called the cops. He is trained in one word commands like ok, if someone is alowed near us, watch, if we need him to be on guard, eat, so he won't take a bait, attack, if we need him to defend us etc. he cost us $2000 but worth every penny and our family loves him.

I have a rottweiler, she is the sweetest dog ever. Never ever had a problem with her. They have a reputation for loyalty and intelligence.

Leonberger! Look up YouTube videos. They are HUGE and super gentle to babies and kids. But you need a lot of space for one.

to answer your question about your older dog. in my experience your older dog will show the new puppy who is alpha. I have seen MANY big breeds that bow down to a older small dogs even once they grow up.

Boxer. They're big & look intimidating. They are such sweet family dogs though and very protective. People always cross the street when I'm walking my dog but really he would just slobber on them.

there's a website you should be able to find by searching you can do a questionnaire about what you want in a breed and they will tell you which ones are perfect for you.

Now for another question, I have a 13 year old dog. She is a peeka-poo and 12 pounds. She is NOT friendly anymore. She nips at my babies (never bites). She is just a mean old lady now and her breeds life expectancy is only 11-15 years.

Now, should I wait till she passes to get a new dog? I would hate for her to fight with a new dog but I really want a bigger dog now and it might lighten the blow to my kids if we have another dog when she passes. Her and my lab lived together for almost 9 years and loved each other so much but she doesn't like other dogs that she just meets.

Thanks everyone! Very helpful!

akitias are NOT kid friendly

German Shepard kid friendly very protective....honestly a pit bull as well just know your breeder and its lineage

We have a beagle/hound mix. Lol I know they're not known to be guard type dogs but he doesn't let anyone get at my kids unless he approves.

We have a german shepherd, he is great with kids and will always protect us

I would prefer to adopt or get a pound dog. My lab was from the pound and he was the best dog ever. He was great with us as kids and was great with my son! All around a terrific dog! Not the best guard dog though, he was protective of us when someone first came in the house but trusted people easily after they had been there a few minutes.

mastiffs are generally very gentle dogs but are big enough to keep intruders away and can be quite protective.

bringing the puppy up with correct training, plenty of love and attention and stimulation is very important.

any 'good breed' dog can turn nasty or unpredictable in an inappropriate environment.

crossbreeds are often more intelligent, less expensive, and healthier than purebreds.

id suggest getting a puppy from the pound or shelter. u can keep looking until u find one that is crossed with something u might be after, eg a german shepard cross.

also talk to your vet they can help a lot with temperaments and breeds.

I have a german shepherd/Akita cross and he is the most amazing dog in the world. We were really lucky with him he seems to have the best qualities of both breeds and is 110pounds of loyal cuddly doggy devotion :-)

My rotties a wimp but she's kid friendly and people might second guess harming us just by her looks :)

We had a shelty (Shetland sheep dog) growing up. He was the best dog ever. Babies could literally crawl all over him and he seemed to enjoy it. He was also very protective. My sister and I were playing in the yard when the UPS guy came running up through the yard. Our dog made him run all the way back to his truck.

The only downside is they have lots of hair. They look like mini collies...you have to brush them a lot. They are beautiful, smart, loving dogs. :-)

I have a pit and chi. The pit looks scary as hell but she's a big baby and just wants kisses but she gets so excited she barks and jumps on people . But if I'm uneasy or irritated around someone she picks up on it right away and stands guard. I also can't sneeze without both dogs in my face before I'm even done sneezing!

My lab is super super energetic but he's very gentle with small dogs. (We haven't had baby yet, but him being protective over puppies makes me feel better) and he is very protective of us as well. He WILL bark at someone new or if the doorbell rings and all that but if we tell him it's okay he'll stop barking and start wagging his tail and being nice.

My brother used to have a Shepard. He said great things about them!

I have a Bernese Mountain dog, he lets my 18 month old do whatever he wants to him, very family friendly. Not hyper but does crave attention. Very big dogs and good for protection. When I first had lo, he would always sleep by his door, like he was protecting him.

Not a golden retriever lol

I agree w pitt or German Shepard. Shepards tend to b a one person dog but they in my experience r awesome w kids.

Animal Planets "Dogs 101" is actually super helpful and the information is on their site as well as the shows. Would highly recommend checking it out.

Does anyone have any experience with the Akita? DH likes them, they are beautiful dogs and I read that they are very loyal and very protective of their family.

Australian Ridgebacks will "herd" your kids, keeping them in a defined area, ie:away from streets, etc.

My husband and I will be getting a Neapolitan Mastiff once I'm further along. We were leaning towards German Shepherds, however we were eating the procs and cons of both breeds. But a German is a very smart and protective breed. :)

I love German Shepherds but they are very high energy and very intelligent. That combination sometimes makes it difficult to train them if you're new to training. Great dogs though