Puppies: An Adorably Tempting Christmas Gift

Puppies are cute, there is no doubt about it! And their cuteness and loveable nature are often irresistible to both children and adults! However, I have noticed that this can lead to a certain problem during the holidays. I bet you have seen those fun home videos of people surprising their child with an adorable puppy on Christmas day. This happens a lot during the holidays as puppies can make a very temping surprise gift to get for someone during the holidays. But I will be honest with you, puppies do not make good surprise Christmas presents. However, this does not mean that you can’t give the gift of a puppy as a surprise Christmas present! You might be thinking that sounds a bit self-contradictory, right? Let me explain.

Three Common Problems

Puppies are quite adorable, small, and fuzzy little things that, on the outside, look like they would make a fun surprise for Christmas morning! However, this is not always the case, because when we go into puppy buying, or adopting, when we are consumed by the cuteness and the fun of seeing a loved one surprised, we often forget to do our homework. Thus, we end up with a toothy, rambunctious little adventurer on four legs that we were not prepared for! There are actually many problems that people often run into when they realize what they have brought home. However, there are three common problems that I want to share to help you know what to think about when getting a puppy.

Three common problems that arise in these surprise puppy gift situations are: breed specific behaviors, inexperience in understanding how much work a puppy is, and children and puppies getting in conflicts with each other.

Breed specific behaviors:

First, breed related issues. Every breed has its benefits and its downfalls. But sometimes things are not as they seem. Many “cute” dogs are not actually great to have in a home with children. The two biggest problems related to breed are when people get their children a small dog and when people get someone a dog based on looks. Now you might be thinking, what am I supposed to think about when buying a dog if I can’t think about their size and what they look like? To answer that, I don’t mean that you shouldn’t think about size and looks. You should consider these aspects of dogs when looking for a puppy! However, deciding which dog you pick based on these two criteria alone can backfire. For example, many people who want to surprise their children with their first puppy get a dog that will remain small, as it can seem that a small are safer for children. Thus, they think small dogs are the route to go. However, small dogs are not always great for children. Big dogs are strong enough to walk away from a child if that child is making them uncomfortable (though they should still be monitored when with children). But small dogs are at a higher risk of being mishandled by children because they have less mass to help them run away or walk out of a hug. Small dogs are often forced to be held and dragged out from under things when the child wants to snuggle. Although these actions are done out of love and desire to be with the dog, these situations can often end with children being growled at or even bitten.

The other problem that was mentioned in relation to breed are basing puppy choice on looks. Some of the more beautiful breeds, that are popular because of these good looks, are breeds that can come with surprise issues if little research was done before hand. For example, many people find Australian cattle dogs to be quite beautiful and want them because of those multi-colored coats and beautiful bright eyes. However, cattle dogs can have temperaments that are not always child friendly. Cattle dogs are high drive dogs (meaning they need a job to do almost all the time) that are not always great with children due to tendencies to chase and nip (a cattle herding technique) or tend to accidentally run over a child in their excitement to chase something (cattle dogs can get very focused and often don’t let things get in their way). As a result, young children can potentially get run over.

Puppies are a lot of work:

The second problem that often comes up is not knowing how much work puppies can be. In short, puppies are a lot like toddlers. As fun as they are they also put things in their mouth, they often seem to only be interested in what they can’t have, they can make a lot of noises of which we sometimes don’t know the meaning, and they can be quite full of hard to manage energy. So, when getting a puppy, first make sure you know things like how to safely trade objects with a puppy, how to prevent them from chewing on things like shoes, how to potty train them, and how to help them learn to be quiet at night.

Child and puppy conflicts:

The third problem, and one that can be dangerous for children and result in animals being rehomed or put in a shelter, is children not knowing how to interact with dogs. As much as we want to believe that they do, not all dogs like children. On top of this, very few dogs enjoy being hugged. Children have tendencies to hug dogs, pull on their limbs and tails, and take toys from them. These behaviors are often normal for both a child and a puppy. However, when the two are together, it can be dangerous. For example, puppies often come home with a tendency to play rough with their mouths. Puppy teeth are sharp and can break the skin, even if a bite is not an aggressive bite. So, if a child tries to take a toy the puppy has, the puppy might think that child is playing with it and go in for a playful nip. Another problem that often comes up when children have not been taught how to interact with a dog is “arguments” over personal space. Puppies can be avid space invaders, and this can be dangerous when children get knocked over. The children can also bring out certain responses from the puppy if it is the animal who needs more space. Both dogs and puppies can often scare children when they bark or growl in an attempt to regain their personal space. One common problem in this area is that barking, growling, and biting often seem to come out of nowhere later in the animal’s life! However, when a puppy or dog suddenly begins barking, growling, or biting at a child (or anyone), it is usually because their more subtle requests for space have been ignored.

Being Prepared and Surprised

These are just a few of the problems that can arise when puppies are bought as a surprise Christmas gift. But the overall issue is being unprepared. As a result, the simple solution is to be prepared. To avoid problems in the area of breed specific behaviors, make sure to do your research on the breed you are interested in before you make a purchase. Prepare for that breed’s specific behavioral tendencies and be ready to help your children or family know how to interact with the animal when those problems arise. To avoid problems with inexperience with puppies, do research and make sure everyone understands what the puppy will need and how to work with an animal of that age. To prevent problems between children and puppies, it is extremely important that puppies and children are supervised at all times and that children are taught to pet, rather than grab body parts, and trade, rather than take things from their furry friends and family members! I highly recommend hiring a positive reinforcement trainer to help you before and after you bring the puppy home! Happy Animalz Training Service offers these services, so make sure to check out the rest of my website and contact me for scheduling.

At the beginning of this post, I did mention that all of this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get your child a puppy for Christmas. So how can you be prepared and surprise your loved one? If you are thinking about buying a puppy this year as a surprise, try giving the person something other than the puppy on Christmas day. One fun way to break the news is to give the person a collar and leash or a dog bone and watch them put the pieces together! I encourage you to include the individual who is getting the puppy in the research and the process of picking out the puppy. You can still have the fun of a surprise, but this way everyone will be prepared for the coming family member!