 |
The Working Group - The Hardworking, Gentle Giants Who Can Be Great Family Members
A Young Boy with his Great Dane
The Working group is primarily made up of larger breed dogs, who were bred with a variety of jobs to do in earlier centuries. From aiding in search-and-rescue missions to pulling carts on farms and carrying out guarding chores, these dogs have the intelligence needed to learn how to carry out complex tasks, and are generally naturals for training. Many of the dogs in the working group are extremely friendly to people, but the same dog who is so devoted to his family and frequent visitors that he has come to know, can be aloof and wary with strangers. Some get along very well with other animals, while others from the Working Group can be aggressive with other dogs or may tend to chase cats, something to consider if you have other animals in your household. Be sure to read additional information on each breed to get their "report cards" in this area. The AKC Working Group category is currently is made up of twenty-five different breeds. Of these twenty five, sixteen of the breeds are not recommended by Dog Paw Print as best for families with children. This does not mean that there are not times when these breeds can work for families, it just means that, in general, based on our research, we cannot recommend them as the best breeds for families with younger children. The breeds that we are not including in our recommended list are the Akita, Alaskan Malamute, Anatolian Shepherd Dog, Black Russian Terrier, Doberman and German Pinschers, Giant Schnauzer, Greater Swiss Mountain Dog, Komondor, Kuvasz, Neopolitan Mastiff, Portuguese Water Dog, Rottweiler, Saint Bernard, Standard Schnauzer and Tibetan Mastiff. There are three breeds that we recommend in the working group, with certain reservations - the Bullmastiff (not to be confused with the Mastiff, which is on our recommended dogs from the Working Group list), The Great Pyrenees and the Siberian Husky. If you haven't read our Choosing a Dog page, we suggest that you do so now, to learn more about the reasons that we recommend certain dogs over others on this site. Reading the information there, as well as taking our Selection Quiz for Choosing a Dog will help you learn more about your own needs and what our site goals are to see if they align well together. If you are looking for a great family dog, we think you have come to the right place for good information on how to find the best dog for you! 
Working Group Dogs that We Recommend for Families with KidsThere are six dogs from the Working Group that we feel can be wonderful additions for many families. They range in size from the Samoyed, which weighs between thirty-five and sixty-five pounds to the Mastiff, a giant dog that can be as tall as thirty-two inches and weigh nearly two-hundred pounds.Because most of the dogs in this group are very large to very large, they need to be trained immediately so that they can operate safely in your household. They are quite intelligent and take quite well to obedience classes, so if you can make the commitment as a family to work with your dog, you will end up with a well-behaved dog that you can control. Listed, from the smallest to the largest-sized dogs in the Working Group, these are the breeds that we recommend as the best possibilities to investigate in your quest for the perfect family dog: Samoyed The Samoyed has few health issues, but was initially bred for Northern climates, and has a coat that is designed for warmth. If you live in warmer climates, check with your veterinarian to see how you can keep your Samoyed comfortable during the summer months. One possibility is to look into a shorter summer cut. The boxer is also a breed that tends to do better in cooler climates. There are a few dogs in this selection that should only be obtained through a reputable breeder who is aware of the breed's genetic health concerns and who breed to exclude these genetic defects. The breeds of greatest concern for serious inbred genetic defects are the Newfoundland and Mastiff. The Great Dane can make a lovely family member, but can stand as tall as a human when up on its back legs. Be aware of the precautionary measures to take when having such a large dog around children. They are very sweet and gentle, but must be trained to keep their size issues from becoming a danger to little ones. Please bookmark our page or subscribe to our RSS feed, and visit us again soon! We will be adding additional data and information on the breeds mentioned here. From Working Group to the Home Page
|
