Boston Terriers And Children

So, when it comes to the family pet choice, my vote goes to the Boston Terrier. When my husband and I were building our family, we tried out several different dogs (and a couple cats.) Searching for that kid-friendly match. They never really worked out. One bit for no reason, one ran away constantly as soon as the door was open an inch, another one refused to learn to be house broken and they were all, in one way or another, not a good fit for our family.

We decided finally to go back to what one of us knew. My husband was raised with Boston Terriers. Since he was an only child, they were his siblings, really. Great companions, loyal to the death and so entertaining. When you have two of them, life is never dull! They have a reputation of being excellent with small children and I have yet to run into anyone that doesn't really love them! We became parents to a little girl Boston. By the time she was a year and a half old, we had her bred and she had a litter of 3 pups. We kept one of these, a little boy. They lived to be 13 years and 15 years respectively. What an amazing addition to our family. The kids grew up with these two. They were life-long friends to our kids. Always fun to watch and very active, they were the perfect choice.

Boston Terriers come in a variety of colors and sizes. They run about 8-27 pounds. Their life-span is anywhere from 6 years to 15 years. I have heard of some living to be older. They come in black and white, butterscotch and white and brindle and white. They have short fur and shed very little which I find to be a plus. Their buggy eyes do need a measure of protection. Cats in the same household as a Boston would not be recommended. One scratch from a cat's claw could do some serious damage.

Known as the American Gentleman, Bostons are an ideal choice for any family. House or apartment, they're small enough to fit into any place you call home. They're great travelers too. They are very smart and love to be around their people. Socialized Bostons, or those around alot of people, adapt very well to most any situation. Now that our children are grown, we have one little guy, Mack. We take him with us to our shop every day and he's become a bit of a celebrity there. People always come in and want to be sure to see him. He works his magic on our customers. They love him. We also camp with him and he rides in a basket on my husband's bike!

Smart, adaptable, friendly, lively, entertaining. Just a few things Bostons are. Loveable and loving, most of all.  And, they're BIG smile-ers!

If you're interested in adding one of these special guys to your family, I'd recommend asking around to see if you can locate a reputable breeder. Stay away from puppy mills. Papered Bostons are the most desireable for purity of breed. They can run anywhere from $200 up to $800 in my searches locally. Your area may be different but that's a general idea. While the puppy stage can be challenging, they do grow out of that with time. Most of all, they need alot of play time with you. If you have kids, they can help you with that!  If you're not really into the whole training a puppy idea, there is a wonderful organization that places Bostons with adoptive famiies.  They are a Boston Rescue.  They do have a number of Bostons with health issues but they also have Bostons that just needed a new home for one reason or another.  Here's that link:  http://www.bostonbuddies.org/.  Check them out, they're doing a really awesome thing and you'll love the pictures! 

Give it a try. I don't think you'd be disappointed.