personally id never get a dog because your child wants it. it must be a family decision, guess who'll be looking after it after the Fluff factor has worn off.

i worked in a dog groomers and have trained some dogs for obedience work. Ive found that most of the nasty dog bites ive had have come from small dogs (west highland white terriers being the worst imo)
If your energetic and like walking then yes a spaniel would be fine, but you will have to take it out in the winter remember

Large dogs are maybe a bit out of the question as they can often scare children, though my niece sits on my dobermann watching tv and Breeze doesnt mind in the least (she adores kids), but they are very hard work. they do need training and get bored and destructive if left to much alone.
Basically what im saying is you need to do lots and lots of research before actually getting a dog. A good friend of mine once told me, Having a dog is like having another child. Its true lol
