ARE THEY GOOD WITH CHILDREN?
While these dogs do make wonderful family pets, they are incredibly tough, sturdy dogs and are more naturally aggressive than a labrador retriever or a similar breed. You have to be strict when they are young so they know what is and is not acceptable. Behaviors that may be cute when they are puppies are not nearly as cute once they are full grown, at which time bad habits are much more difficult to get rid of. Also, (and this is with any puppy you get, not just Queenslands) puppies like to chew on things, especially toes and fingers. Small children have much more sensitive skin than older children and adults, so you will need to watch them with the puppy. You won’t have to worry too much about the children hurting the Queensland puppy, though, because they are such hardy dogs. We have had a two year old child out playing with the puppies (attended by an adult, of course), not always in a delicate manner, and the puppies thought the two year old child was wonderful.
Generally, no. Be careful when walking your Chihuahua to keep your Chi well away from toddlers and young children, who are often uninhibited and will approach your dog. Again, this is general good advice; some Chihuahuas are friendly around children (usually as a result of de-sensitization). In this case and others, the master’s knowledge of his or her Chihuahua and good judgement should prevail.
A Saint with the proper temperament will have an understanding of a childs way, and will be amazingly careful not to injure a child. They are excellent supervised baby-sitters and companions. Naturally, a child must never be allowed to torment any dog, regardless of breed, and children should never be left unsupervised with any dog. A Saint without this proper temperament is a danger, and should be regarded as such.
