which dogs are independent and be left alone while we are at work?

Question
Thank you very very much for your reply.  It was very informative.  Well, we are looking for more smaller breed no more than 25 lbs.  My friend's Caviler King Charles Spaniel just had 5 puppies and we were interested in one of her puppy.  We are not sure if we should go with this breed.  what kind of personalities they have?  I know they are good with children.  My parent have Shi-tzu and she is so spoiled and she will never be left alone buyers.  I don't want to have that kind of pet since my husband and I are both still working.  I want to make sure once we have a pet,  pet are happy also.  I am not a kind of person who just want to have pet and go get it without thinking about all the responsibilities comes with pet and also pet's happiness.  Please advise.  Thank you so much.
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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
My husband and I are looking for a puppy which is right suit for us.  My husband and I usually go to work around 730 and come home around 4 o'clock.  We have 2 daughters, one is 16 and the other one is 8.  We are looking for what kind of breed is good for us, since we both work, we don't really want to have the kind of dog can't be left alone during the day.  We are thinking about buying a cat since cat is more independent, but my husband is allergic to cat.  We really want to have a pet since all of us, especially my daughters love animals.
Can you advise us what kind of puppy is independent and won't be no problem if left alone at home bytes while we are out?  Thank you for your support.
-----Answer-----
Hi /my;
No breed of dog does very well alone for very long.
If a dog has a calm personality, and is not overly active, they do better.
German Shepherds, Rottweillers, Golden Retrievers, dogs with temperments like that.
Your Setters and other hunting breeds, need more activity.
In the amsller breeds, ?( You don't say if you prefer large or smaller dogs), English Bull,Pit Bulls.
I can't think of very mild smaller breeds other than thoise two.
Pit Bulls mild tempered???? Yes.
The aggression is TAUGHT to them. these dogs, when trained properly make excellent companion dogs, and yes, they are great with children.
I know many people who have Pits that are well trained, treated like members of the family, and are grat with children, and other pets.
If they are trained right !!!!!
This goes with any breed.
A well trained dog, and properly trained, is a good companion. an untrained dog is like an untrained child, a PROBLEM!
Children MUST have guidance and training, and they will be well behaved, and a joy.
I raised 4 children and 2 of my grandchildren.
They were normal children, and full of the dickens, but they were well taught, and they had nice manners. We could take them to any resturaunt or anywhere else, and there were no noises and misbehavings.
If it was an amusement park or some such thing where they could be loud and rambunctious, they were. If it was a lace to observe manners, they did.
It has always ben the same with my dogs.
I train them from the time I bring them home, to be good companions and well behaved in the house.
My dogs are raised just like I raised my children.
I teach them what is expected of them. I do not spank or hit, except for a capitol offense.
I think each of my children had maybe 2 spankings in their lives, and my dogs have averaged less. Spanks are given on the fat part of the bottom, and they are not hard licks, but they do more pointedly emphasize a point when nothing else has gotten through.
I use time-out for punishment.
My dogs HATE time-out!!!
Time-out is about a half hour in the smallest bathroom, with no toys, and not a lot of space to run around and play, after a good chewing out.
Usually when they get tacky with each other ( We have 4 dogs) asking if they want to go to time-out straightens them up.
If, when I was working ( I am retired), I got a new puppy, I would get it on Friday, so I had the weekend to accustome it to it's new home, get it housebroken, etc.
Getting an older dog from a shelter, that is already housebroken, and having the weekend to teach it where in the new place it is to do it's busines, and having a few days to get it used to the new people in it's life, is beneficial.
Get toys for it to chew on. Kong or Nyla Bones toys give them the gnawing they need and want, and is safe for them. They cannot bite off pieces they can choke on.
If the dog gets a lot of love and attention when you are home. Gets played with so it gets plenty of exercise, it will adapt soon.
If you got a dog when you will be able to take a wek or so off work, at least one person, so the dog can have more time to adjust, that would be even better.
Terriers are more hyper. Some breeds of terriers more than others.
Rescue dogs have adjusted a bit to confinement, and there are never enough volunteerrs to give it as much attention as needed, so having a lot of attention and exercise in the evening when everybody gets home is a new life for them. Feeling loved and cared for, will help them adjust to being alone for a few hours during the day.
If you have a fenced yard, and the dog can have a doggy door accessing the back yard, it can go and come as it pleases, and do it's pottying outside.
I stress a safe fenced in yard, that the dog can't get out of, and that is no accessable to someone stealing your dog.
If, after the school year, the children are going to be at home during the day, that would be an ideal time to get a dog.
They would have the daytime with it, and by the time school started, the dog would be an established member of the family.
Then when school started up again, it wouldn't take it as long to get used to everybody being gone all day.
I recommend you take a look at the dogs at the Humane Society and at animal rescue groups.
I work with several rescue groups here, and we foster the dogs. We keep them in our homes for a week or two, and housebreal them if needed, and we observe their good and bad habits, and how well they get along with children, other animals etc.
Then we know what kind of home they will be best suited to.
Some dogs have been tormnented by children, and can never really be placed with a family that has children, depending on how bad the tormenting was, and how long it went on.
Some people are very abusive to dogs, and some of those have to be placed with adults, or different situations, where they don't present a danger to anyone.
Buying a dog from a pet store, is advancing the practice of puppy mills.
I don't care where the store SAYS they get their animals, they DO come from puppy and kitty mills.
I don't know how much you have learned about such places on the news, but they are deplorable conditions where dogs are bred everytime they come into season, with little to no regard to health problems or anything else. The females are bred over and over, fed very little, and have no health care, until they just wear out. Then they are clubbed to death, shot or just turned out to starve.
The puppies resulting from this breeding can have every Hip Dysplasia and other inhereted diases and conditions you can think of.
What you pay for them at pet stores, you can get a really well bred dog from a reputable breeder.
Puppy mills and kitty mills should all be shut down and the operators put in prison, and in the SPCA, that is what we are working for.
If you prefer a purebred dog, there are rescues for almost every breed there is.
People get these dogs, don't train them, and when they get to be a problem, they abandon them.
If the dog is lucky, it ends up with the Humane society or a rescue group, who cares for it, trains it, and fixes the problems, then adopts it out to a good and loving home.
All four of the dogs I have now are rescue dogs we took in to foster, and for one reason or another, couldn't part with.
They are great dogs.
One is a purebred Sheltie that had been abused by children.
My grandchildren have worked with him till he loves children now, and is not afraid of them at all.
He throws a fit when he hears some of the grandchildren coming up the walk. He can't seem to wait for them to get in the house, and pet him.
Petsmart and Petco stores have weekend training classes for obedience.
I recomend these group classes. A qualkified trainer teacher the handler how to train the dog.
Once you go through the basic obedience class, you pretty well know how to train any dog you get in the future, and you can housebreak, leash train etc your dog.
If you are looking for a particular breed, and would consider an adult dog or older puppy ( several months old), you can search for rescue groups for theh breed, onlione, and there would probably be one close to you.
If you need help searching for a particular breed, or just for rescue groups in your area, write me and tell me what area you live in, and I would be glad to help you search.
In the meantime, you could find out what time the training classes are at your local stores, and go and watch a training session or two, so you could see what they do.
The 8 year old is going to spend the most time with the dog.
The older girl may be going away to college in a few years, and the little one will still be there with the dog.
I would let her be the handler in the training class.
If you decide on one of the more active breeds, you might watch some of the agility trials on TV.
She might like to get into that with her dog.
Shelties and Border collies are very good at agility trials, so are a lot of other breeds.
To select the dog that is right for your family, I would say visit the rescue groups and the Humane society.
there will be a dog that leapos out at you as far as , "Thst's our dog"!!!
Dogs will choose you too.
I hold a puppy and look in it's eyes, and talk to it.
Very quickly, the dog that is supposed to be mine will look me in the eyes, and we just fall in love, right there on the spot. LOl
Go to     www.aka.org
That is the American Kennel Club's website.
You can look at dog breeds there, and it says pretty much what kind of temperament the breed has, but remember, that is just a guideline.
Like humans, dogs have their own personality and are individuals.
This is getting very long, so I will stop.
If you have other wquestions, or need more help, write anytime.
Charlotte  

Answer
Everytime I see a pic of one of those dogs, I just want to grab it out of the pic and smooch the heck out of it.
If one ever comes into our rescue groups, I am going to snatch it and take it home with me.
I put it in search and founs a site that should tell you everything you want to know.
I also found more sites, so I put their addresses in too.
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http://www.ckcsc.org

http://www.ackcsc.org/

http://www.mayfieldcavaliers.com/

Those sites should give you a lot of info to decide.
They are PRECIUOS little things. SOOOOOO beautiful.
Charlotte