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Getting an EM puppy when you have a 1 year old baby

ScottCO

Member
Hi, I am new here, I introduced myself in the introductions sub-forum after we had to put down our 11 year old English mastiff a few days ago. The house feels empty (even with an 8 month old baby), and still get choked up thinking about our lost loved one several times a day.

We are not new to owning an English mastiff, but we are new to being parents (1st kid is ~8 months now).

I am curious what people here think about finding another EM pup while we have a baby that would be about 1 year old when/if we find the right breeder with a pup. Some have told us "don't do it, it's too much to deal with when the baby starts going fully mobile and trying to potty train a puppy at the same time".

Anyone else go through a new EM puppy along with a toddler/pre-toddler at the same time?

I guess I have dealt with the grieving from having to put our EM to sleep by looking for breeders and trying to find our next family member. I contacted Glacier Mastiff, and one of the first questions on the application was do you have kids. Wondering if it's kind of frowned upon having a puppy/baby at the same time. We would never think of leaving them unsupervised at any point, nor would we have to neglect or divert attention since wife and I are both pretty much always at home (I work from home).

Any opinions on this are much appreciated. We just want to make the right decision, and if waiting a few years is advised, we can be patient. Thanks for reading!
 

trg

Well-Known Member
I am by no means an EM expert. By everything I have read and understand they are super with small children. If they don’t like what’s going on around them they will leave the area. Of course with any dog, I would never them them unsupervised with a small child. I am sure the breeder is just covering themselves, because any puppy especially a giant breed can be clumsy, they may also want to know how much time can be devoted to the dog, as a baby can be time consuming as it should be. I hope this may help, I’m sure others with more knowledge than me will speak up.
 

TylerDurden

Well-Known Member
I think the fact that you have owned an EM for so long before will be extremely helpful. As you know, training and raising a puppy (of any breed) requires a lot of time and commitment. However, being home almost all the time will make it much easier (especially if you have prior experience). We felt that potty training has been extremely smooth, but I‘m not sure how much of this was EM specific, or just him individually.
Our boy has always been very good with children. As mentioned, they should never be left with small children unsupervised, but every responsible owner knows that. I have carefully observed him with children and he has always been extremely careful, patient, and gentle with them. I‘m sure some of this must be breed specific (personality always plays a role too).
I think you guys are well prepared to take on the additional responsibility of adding an EM puppy. Good luck to you guys.