have a few requirements that me and my fiance are looking for in a dog.
good with children, getting married soon and plan on having kids within 2 years or so.
good with other animals, hoping to have at least 1 cat and 2 dogs.
large breed, fiance has always liked the saint bernards and mastiffs
don't need a purebreed

from what i have read saint bernards and mastiffs would both be pretty good choices, but i honestly can't see myself paying $1,500 for a dog.
i know about vet bills and stuff, have a 9 year old lab that lives on my parents farm, which brings up my other question

the lab has always lived outdoors on my parents farm, i have been in college the past few years and never been able to bring him with, although i do go back to my parents pretty frequently, i would really like to take him with when i get a house, but i am not sure if i should being he has been roaming free on the farm for so long and he would probably end up indoors or in a fenced in back yard

If you're going to get a dog and plan on having children and more pets, avoid large breeds. They have much shorter lifespans than a medium or small breed and are always at risk for bloat, unless you want to pay for a preventative surgery that attaches the stomach to the lining of the body. Assume that if you get a dog that 2 - 3 times larger than your average dog, then the bills are going to reflect that as well.

As far as your lap goes, I would see no reason why he couldn't live out the rest of his life in a more protected backyard or even indoors. Is he reasonably trained and housebroken? I would just suggest a full check up for him and such if you decide to take him. I guess it would depend on your comfort level and his activity level. You may have to take him for some strenuous walks every day if he's used to complete freedom to run around.

Saint Bernards are good with with kids, at least the one my uncle has was. But i heard from others that there good with there kids. I have a black lab part German Shepperd that's about 11 years old and it spend most the time time out side and when i moved to a new place without a fenced in yard it stayed in the yard and never wandered off. Labs are pretty smart dogs. Another thing you could see about is a golden retriever there also pretty good with kids. And it seems like the female dogs are usually best to have.

my cousins have a saint bernard and a mastiff..wierd


both are great dogs, both good with kids..most dogs take after their owners and can be trained too easily..most dogs are cautious around newborns



i myself have two black labs and love them..labs are probably my favourite dog..great all round dogs

i decided to leave my lab at my parents.
and i am still thinking of getting a st bernard, mastiffs imo would just be too big, and i was just wondering if anyone had any other suggestion for breeds. them are really the only 2 large breeds i can think of

golden retriever, german shepard, huskie

st bernards are the same size as mastiffs

i would get a mastiff before st bernard because i wouldnt want to brush em five times a week

Doberman >

there are several breeds of mastiff, some of which can be very large, but they are also more expensive at least where i live



not the type of dog we would be looking to get at all

This post was edited by ghc on Sep 26 2011 07:07am

dont get a lab or golden retriever, they're hunting dogs and will probably not suit well with cats or other animals