Children and Dogs

Teaching children how to interact properly with dogs is of primary importance. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) states that non-fatal dog bites tops the list of health problems for children in the United States, above childhood diseases such as measles and chicken pox.

If you are looking to adopt a dog and have children in your home, consider carefully the temperament and energy level of the dogs you are thinking about adopting. Avoid dogs that display the following behaviors:

• Avoid dogs that have excessive mouthiness or nipping, and that use their mouths to pull you around or guide you in certain directions. Even if the dog uses their mouth gently, this is still an attempt by the dog to control the person or child and these dogs should be avoided. Children also can tend to exacerbate this behavior by screaming and running and exciting the dog further.
• Extremely shy, withdrawn dogs do not do well with busy households with loud, excited children and lots of guests. Dogs that are fearful are more likely to bite if they feel cornered or threatened or handled in a way that is unpleasant to them. Children, particularly young children, often find trying to pick up and carry around a dog is irresistible and a shy, fearful dog will not tolerate this.
• Avoid dogs that are uncomfortable being handled in any way. A dog that lives with children should be able to tolerate lots of touch and handling and gentle tugs on their collar. If the dog appears uncomfortable being touched or snaps or turns around hard and fast when you grab their collar or touch them in a certain area, this is a dog to be avoided.
• Pushy dogs that attempt to control interactions between people are to be avoided. If you are viewing a dog in the play yard and it constantly pushes your child or another family member out of the way in order to get petting, do not adopt. Dogs like this can become even pushier in the home, and could also become possessive and guard one or more family members in the home from the rest of the residents.
• Avoid dogs with any signs of aggression such as growling, hackles raised, stiff body posture, erect ears and tail, and snapping. If a dog only shows aggression to other dogs or cats, realize that aggression to people and aggression to other animals are two different things and do not go hand in hand, BUT, owning a dog like this presents certain difficulties when you have children because the children MUST be vigilant when walking the dog or having it around other animals. A animal-aggressive dog should not be walked by a child.
• Avoid puppies if you have children under the age of 6 or 7. All puppies go through a teething stage where they use their mouths to explore their environment and sharp puppy teeth can be painful for adults, let alone small children. Puppies can also develop behavioral problems if left to run around with young children without supervision. Puppies are also a great deal of work and raising puppies with young children can be often times more than a parent bargained for! It is best to look for an older dog with young children, one that has reached maturity and displays a good, healthy temperament.
• Avoid dogs that appear disinterested in your children. A dog should actively seek out children and want to be with them and play with them.
• Avoid small breed or toy dogs with young children. These types of dogs generally don’t enjoy the company of children and do better in adults-only homes. If you are set on adopting a small dog, spend a lot of time with the prospective adoptee to see how they interact with your children. If you see signs of intolerance, snapping, or movement away from your children, this is not a good prospect for adoption.
• Avoid dogs that appear to be excessively energetic. You should look for a dog that is not overly energetic and not overly lethargic, but rather one that lies somewhere in the middle of the two extremes. Avoid dogs that are get over stimulated and aroused quickly.

Once you’ve found the right dog for your family, remember these important points:

• Never leave your new dog alone with your children unsupervised. A dog that has just been adopted needs lots of time and patience to adjust to your new home. Even children that seem wonderful with dogs and dogs that seem great with kids can have accidents, and adult supervision is a must.
• Don’t place the responsibility for caring for the dog on your children. It’s an unrealistic expectation. It’s wonderful to have children assist with caring for the dog by feeding, walking, playing, and grooming him, but an adult should be supervising at all times and realize that the parents are the primary caregiver. Unless you have teenagers, young children do not possess the emotional maturity to care for all of the needs of the dog.
• Teach your children how to properly handle the dog and respect the dog’s needs. Children must learn that dogs should not be bothered while they are eating or sleeping. Dogs should not be approached from behind to be hugged, and their tails and ears should not be pulled. Toys should not be used to tease the dog or make it overly aroused.
• Teach your children that all dogs can bite. Learning how to properly handle and respect the dog will greatly reduce the possibility that your dog will bite, but don’t be lulled into a false sense of security believing that your particular dog could never bite.
• Take your dog to an obedience class and have your children work with you to train to the dog. This is a wonderful way to instill the idea of structure to the dog and help your children to learn how to interact properly with the dog.