Would a 4 yr old be too old?

[jennifernikki]

We lost our beloved 7 yr old Shepherd, Max to bloat last month. I miss him dearly. But we have decided we want another GSD. I am in no way trying to "replace" him, no one will ever be my Max.
We found 2 dogs that we really like, both from different rescues. (we will only get one though) The one is 3.5 yr old, the rescue knows he came from a breeder, has been given up 2x, but has a pretty good history on him. But, he looks a lot like our Max. And my husband feels weird about that.
The other was a stray, so they think he's around 4. Passed the temperament test with flying colors.
We have 3 young girls ages: 1, 4 & 5. So I'm a little worried about bringing an older dog into our crazy house. But on the other hand, I am not ready for a puppy. Do you think a 3 or 4 yr old would be too old? Set in their ways? Plus, being that Max died at 7, i can't help but think how much time would I have w/ an older dog. Would a 2 yr old be better? I'm so confused.
Any advice would great. Thanks in advance!

[msvette2u]

I would make sure that the dog in question had been exposed to children, especially toddlers.
Many dogs who are older and haven't been exposed, are uncomfortable around small kids. A rescue will have this information for you.
For instance, we don't adopt to people with that small of kids because we don't have any that small/young. And can't guarantee it to be good with kids.

Don't ever leave the dog and your kids unsupervised. Not even to run outside to check the mail. Or go potty. Or answer the door and step outside on the door step with the dog and kids inside. Just don't do it. Also don't let the kids crawl on or otherwise use the dog as an indoor jungle gym.

Beyond that, no age is "too old" as long as the dog has been proven to be safe around kids.

[Anja1Blue]

Pretty much what was said above. I would add that there is no guarantee as to how long a dog will live, no matter what its age when it comes to you. I have had a puppy die at 11 weeks, an adult at 7. A 4 year old could live to be 13, or it could pass away the same year. No way to know, and not all health issues are immediately apparent.

Whatever the level of the dogs' previous training, you will need to reinforce it by taking it through some OB classes. Right away. That, and plenty of physical exercise, will reinforce a bond with you and your family. I can't stress enough the need for vigilance however - as msvette says, NEVER leave a dog alone with children - especially young ones. A dog is a dog not a person - and cannot be expected to put up with unruly behavior however nice it is. Some will some won't - but you don't want to put it to the test.

The rescues I know will allow you to take a dog on a trial basis. A few weeks or so, and if it doesn't work out they will take the dog back. It actually takes a dog up to 6 months in a new home to settle in, but any problems with being around children would probably become apparent right away (though I would hope that the rescue would have evaluated that ahead of time.) Good luck!
________________________________________
Susan

Anja SchH3 GSD
Conor GSD
Blue BH WH T1 GSD - waiting at the Bridge

[Emoore]

I think that a 3 or 4 year old dog that has been exposed to kids and who is known to be good with children is a great choice for households with young children. Honestly I think it's a better choice than a landshark, fuzzygator puppy. A 3-4 year old dog will definitely bond with your family, no question about that.

Unfortunately you just never know how long a dog will live. A friend of mine had a puppy develop a rare disorder and pass away at 6 months old. I had a dogg die last year at 4. My mother-in-law's GSD is 13 and still doing well. You just never know.

I would take a 3-4 year old in your situation.

[JeanKBBMMMAAN]

Like others have said, just make sure that the dog does LIKE kids. I have seen dogs who tolerate kids, but it stresses them out - they are just too good to do anything about it. You want a dog who would actively choose to be around children, who lights up when they see kids, etc. Not a dog who is "good" with kids but is waiting to be saved from the situation.

As you know, living in a 3 kid household 24-7 is very stressful. You need noise and touch tolerances set pretty high. I would say this for any dog, not just a rescue. Dogs that live in households with children have to be the most well balanced, stable dogs in the world. And of course, as you know from having a dog with kids (I am so sorry for your loss) you have to be diligent in supervising them and your expectations for your children's' behavior needs to be as high as those for the dog.

I have never adopted out a dog to a home with children because I don't have kids and have no way of knowing if my fosters could handle that 24/7 interaction. Please make sure that the dogs you are looking at have.

As far as the age, I just adopted out a 9 year old dog yesterday! She's bonding already and will adapt and adjust to her new home in time.

[jennifernikki]

Thank you for all the great information. We took a look at the 4 yr old we were interested, omg, this guy was GORGEOUS! But this poor dog has been thrown from shelter, to foster home, to another foster & has been kept trapped in a crate, because the foster has like 9 dogs! so this GSD wants to pounce on everything. Has a really high prey drive, so wouldnt work w/ my cat for sure.And doesnt like other dogs. This poor guy just needs so much training. Not at all how they described him to me.
Reading all of your responses made me re-think our decision in getting an older dog. We're thinking more of a younger dog, maybe 9 months. I know, it will be a lot of work. But this way they can be raised w/ my kids. It's so confusing now w/ the kids & cat. When we got our 1st GSD, we didnt have kids. Oh how I miss my Max. He was so good to them! I just hope we can be that lucky again.
Thanks for everyones help!!

[BowWowMeow]

Hi there,

Just wanted to chime in here: I have adopted and fostered dogs of ages ranging from 5 weeks to 5 years old. As others have said, the key is finding a dog who is in the right foster home (or original home) and has had significant exposure to kids and not the age so much. I have had older puppies who were terrible with kids because they hadn't had much exposure and just wanted to chase and grab them.

I've had dogs who were a little bit older who did great with kids though (1 to 1.5 years). And sometimes you can find a really wonderful dog who was in a family with kids before ending up in rescue.

[jennifernikki]

I would LOVE to rescue a dog & give it the perfect loving family they deserve. We just seem to be having such a hard time w/ the rescues. It seems that most of the dogs were strays , so they don't know their background. I live a Chicago, so we have quite a few in the surrounding states that I've been working with & have just been down on my luck. Of course, the few that I found that were good w/ kids, those were adopted very quickly.

[KZoppa]

Originally Posted by jennifernikki

I would LOVE to rescue a dog & give it the perfect loving family they deserve. We just seem to be having such a hard time w/ the rescues. It seems that most of the dogs were strays , so they don't know their background. I live a Chicago, so we have quite a few in the surrounding states that I've been working with & have just been down on my luck. Of course, the few that I found that were good w/ kids, those were adopted very quickly.

Look at it this way, and this really goes for all those who have lost a pet. When the time is right, be it sooner or later, the pet you lost will send you your next one some how, some way. They wont discriminate based on age. They will pick the next one for you and it may very well be one you're already aware of or it could be one you knew nothing about until that moment. Listen to your heart and Max will guide you to where you need to go. Stacking the cards in your favor in terms of what you're looking for when you put in an application with a rescue will help but dont be surprised if your next guy or girl comes from some place else.

If you tell the rescue what you are looking for in terms of good with small children and small animals/other animals make sure you are specific on good with other dogs and cats. They will better be able to find a dog in their rescue that might be a good match for your family. Also, some shelters will also be willing to cat test a dog or allow a professional to cat test a dog.

[RocketDog]

Just wanted to say: When my first shepherd died, my kids were 2, 3 and 5. I knew we couldn't do a puppy at that time (my husband was not on board) so we contacted breeders around our area and in our state. (WA) Also, a caveat: This was a labrador, not a GSD. Anyhow, we found one on the other side that had a dog that was almost 3 and they had shown him a few times but ultimately decided not to breed him and kept him for a pet. THEN-the husband lost his job, had to start a new business and so she went back to work. She didn't want him to be home alone and he didn't travel with their show dogs, so wa-laa. We drove over and therein began our relationship with one of the most fabulous dogs ever to grace my life. I'm getting choked up just writing about it. He was a ROCK SOLID dog. Even though he had only been around their grandkids a bit, he was absolutely amazing. Once, two years after we brought him home, he was laying sound asleep by the couch. My son, 4 at the time, FOR SOME STUPID REASON (we'd always had a big dog but kids will be kids ugh) decided to take a running jump and land directly on the dogs side. He let out this big "WHOOSH" (the air out of him I think), whumped his tail as a wag twice, and didn't even open his eyes. I couldn't believe it. I rushed over there and stroked him and he licked my hand as if to say, Ah well. Kids. I knew then, even though to his final day I always watched and supervised them and as my kids grew older, their friends, that this dog was something special.

Don't give up on one yet. Keep emailing. Keep looking. Don't forget about contacting reputable breeders in your area, like I did. The hole he left in our hearts, the grief I saw in my children was deep--because he truly was a giant part of our hearts. And he was "older", as in not a puppy really. He was the best thing that could've ever happened to us. Good luck.