Hello, I am a single mom of two boys and I would like to get a dog or two. My only concern is that we are not home all day because of work/school. I have heard that very small dogs can use pads to go to the washroom so they would be OK home all day.

Is this true? Are there any breeds that would be best in this type of situation?

Please advise.

Thank you!

I'm a cat person and suggest you consider getting an adult cat (or two who get along--the shelter will know who to match up) from an animal shelter. You'd be saving a life plus cats sleep 16 hours a day or thereabouts, so it wouldn't mind being alone much of the day (i.e. they aren't pack animals like dogs are). Your family will still get unconditional love from a cat but it will have minimal upkeep while your family is gone from home much of the day.

From what I've read on the board (from the experts), pee pads condition a dog to pee on anything soft--scatter rugs, carpet, overstuffed furniture, blankets, etc. And like I mentioned, dogs are pack animals, so if you get a dog, it would be a very excellent idea to crate it while no one's at home (dogs like dens) and have someone come home or a dog sitter/neighbor visit during the day to take the dog for a walk and make sure he gets some exercise, a chance to potty, and some human attention.

Visit a shelter to check out both cats and dogs, and ask questioins of the staff/volunteers there.

The dog experts on this site will chime in, I'm sure.

I agree with Wondergirl, pee pads basically tell your dog it's okay to pee inside and often they get confused about where it is okay to pee and where it isn't.
They can be a handy tool for people living in apartments, but shouldn't be used unless there is no other alternative.

If you believe your situation really calls for them I would look into something like a potty patch instead. They are basically a tray of fake grass that can be removed and cleaned. The fake grass feels much different to your carpet or furniture and still gets them used to peeing on grass if you ever decide to train outside.

What sort of breeds were you interested in? And how old are your boys? (some small breeds aren't suitable with young children).

Thank you both very much! I have no clue, I was looking online and was thinking of maybe a Yorkie or a Shih Poo or something like that? Something really small I thought would be better to be home all day alone? I was also only thinking of 2 because then he/she would have some company?

I have thought about cats but I am not sure if I'm a huge cat person, but if that is my only other option if we want a pet at home, then I might have to look into that a bit further?

My boys are ages 13 and 5 so if there are any dogs that you can recommend would be OK in my home situation, I would take any advice I can get. I would only want to be fair to an animal, so I would only want to get the right kind of dog that would best fit our family and lifestyle.

With a 5 year old I would consider a Shih Tzu. I'm a pretty big advocate against designer dogs so I'll try and steer you away from the "Shih Poo" ;)

Shih Tzu's despite their small size are very tough little dogs and don't mind a bit of rough play from a child. I have lived with 2 of them before and both were lovely little playful dogs, but don't mind lazing around on the couch while you are away.

Yorkies are probably a little fragile for a young child. You can teach a child how to behave around a dog or puppy but accidents can still happen. If he trips and falls over or plays a little too rough I would hate to see the dog get hurt, the sturdier the dog the better.

If you are getting 2 dogs I would recommend finding older dogs not puppies. When I say older I don't mean you have to go out and find 'old' dogs. Just ones that are already at least partially trained. Training a puppy is hard work... training 2 puppies at once is a nightmare.

Shelters are a great place to start, there are also breed specific rescues that deal only in a certain breed of dog.
Next stop would be breeders who my have older pups available.

When looking for a breeder the key things to remember are this:
1) They breed for health. Any pup or dog you buy should come from health tested parents. Health testing is not just a vet check and vaccination, they should have actual genetic testing to rule out problems in the breed. There are certain tests for different breeds, a simple Google search will bring up the specific tests for whatever breed you decide on.

2) They breed for quality, not quantity. I show dogs so for me quality is important. To someone just looking for a pet it may seem irrelevant, but a breeder who is trying to breed close to the breed standard says to me they care about the breed. If no-one followed breed standards we wouldn't have the purebreds we have today.
Here's an example of the Shih Tzu standard to give you an idea of how breeders determine a "good" example of the breed from a "bad" one: American Kennel Club - Shih Tzu
In regards to quantity, generally good breeders will not breed more than a couple of litters a year max. It means you may have to go on a waiting list, but it is worth it to find a responsible breeder rather than just the lady down the road with a box of puppies.

3) If the breeder doesn't show their dogs I like to at least see them involved in some other way to "prove" their dogs. Agility and obedience are good examples of dogs being put to work and proving themselves.

Sorry for the overload, it may seem picky, but finding a responsible breeder is hard work and with puppy mills popping up all over the place sometimes it can be hard to tell a good breeder from a bad one.