What dog breed would get on with my cats?

Since becoming single I've been thinking about getting a dog. It's just me and my 5 yr old son in the house and I'd feel a lot safer if we had a dog. Currently we live in a nice neighbourhood, but may soon be moving to somewhere less nice I'd love to have a dog not only to feel more secure, but also to help bring out confidence in my son who's very shy & quiet. The only problem is I have 2 cats . I've just had a friends cat here for 2 weeks while she was away and had to keep them seperated the whole time . Would getting a dog be possible? Would probably get a puppy as less threatening to cats .Has anyone done this successfully ?

yes you would have to make sure the dog is trained to get along with cats

Well a good guard dog that would be friendly would be a German Shepard or a border collie. Border collies are protective friendly and smart dogs. And German shepards are friendly to family but very protective when it comes to strange people and will most likely bark and growl and bite anyone who seems like to a threat to family . Border collies also will bark at and bite any one who seems like a threat . Most dogs will protect . But these dogs make great family and all round dogs.

Terriers would be out, they have a huge prey drive. Huskies, boxers, akitas, shiba inu and chow chows are all known cat killers, their prey drive is huge and they would be a huge danger to your cats. Hounds usually have the same problem. A retriever would be a better choice, or a breed NOT used in hunting or herding. Most hunting dogs are expected to grab prey, retrievers, on the other hand, are expected to bring back what the owner shoots, so they're not bred to go in for the kill.

I have been very successful with co-mingling cats & dogs. The one thing I can tell you is you do NOT want to get an adult, female Black Lab if you have cats as Black Labs really don't like cats. My male will tolerate them & my female will kill one in a skinny minute!!! Fortunately my Labs prefer to be outside & both my cats are indoor babies. The best dog I had with my cats was a Golden Retriever. He & my cat were best friends & she grieved for months after he died!!! The most ideal situation would be to get a puppy & kitten at the same time. Since you already have cats, I'll warn you that if you get a puppy, you'll need to watch them close at first. Puppies are a bit on the uneducated side & love to play. Most cats don't care for a playful puppy & will swat at them. The only puppy I brought home to a cat got his eye cut open with her claws. As it turned out, it healed & he didn't lose any of his sight, but it could have just as easily gone the other way!!! If you bring in an adult dog, you will need to watch them for the first few days until the dog learns that it's NOT supposed to mess with the cat. Fortunately, it's easier to teach a dog not to mess with the cat than it is to teach a cat not to mess with a dog!!! I usually just put them in a room together & let them work out who is gonna be boss unless one gets too aggressive & then I step in & correct the offending critter!!! It has been my experience that most dogs will defer to the cat if it knows it's got a good home. My female Black Lab is my ONLY exception to my furbabies not cooperating!!! If I had to keep her in the house, I do think I could teach her to not mess with the cats; but she prefers to be outside & I like it that way!!! If you decide to get a dog, I suggest you get a shelter dog. They are basically homeless & appreciate love. Most often, the shelter can give you an idea how tolerant they are of cats. I have seen notes on cages reading "great dog, but not good with children or cats". Some read "gets along well with children & cats". My shelter dogs have always been the best pets as they seem to appreciate that you've saved their life!!!

Most dogs can live along side cats, it just depends on their upbringing and triaining. Eg. A dog that has been trained to hunt game and rabbits won't be able to live with cats, or a dog that has little discipline and chases things and doesn't stop when told.I would say get a german shepherd. They are great with kids and very easy to train. therefore can be trained to get along just fine with cats. They are also protective of the family but not to noisey.

I agree that a puppy will grow up to respect it's feline peers, though best to stay away from terriers and other hunting breeds other answers have given. I have found docile dogs like labradors are best if you can afford to feed them. My brother has chocolate labrador and an itinerant cat. The cat likes to claw the dogs cheeks and drags them down to make him look miserable; the dog accepts this like it's some private joke.