Regardless of all the positive aspects of owning a dog, parents should
not give in to requests for a dog, no matter how urgent, without carefully
thinking the matter through. While children can toss aside a
game or toy a month later with nothing more than a monetary sense of loss, a dog cannot be likewise discarded. Even if a child swears to
be totally responsible for the dog, it won’t happen. Parents will need
to see to veterinary care, licensing and training, even if the child is as
diligent as promised about feeding, exercising and playing with the
dog. Often, even feeding and walking the dog will soon become the
parent’s tasks as the child loses interest. So it’s essential that the entire
family wants a dog. Anything less will likely result in strife over dogrelated
chores. The dog will often be relegated to the backyard, where
she will be lonely, neglected and miserable.
Having a child and a dog in the family definitely requires more
work. Trainer Mandy Book characterized the adult responsibility as
“Supervise. Supervise. Supervise. Oh, did I mention supervise? And
don’t forget to supervise. Work on possession and food bowl exercises.
Teach the dog to enjoy rough handling and screaming, really like
it. Give the dog a place to go, when it gets too much, where the child
can’t follow. Don’t ever assume there won’t be a problem. Don’t ever
assume the dog will grow out of a problem. And oh yeah, supervise.”
Book is facetious to make a point: Lack of supervision can result
in a dog bite. Nearly all those reports of family dogs who “bite without
warning” are actually reports of families who failed to observe the
warning signs. So, the first safety tip is that the family must be ready
to welcome a dog into its midst, and willing to give the time to make
the dog a worthwhile family member.
Choice of dog may be important, depending somewhat on the
child’s age. Keep in mind that generalizations are just that, and that
no matter what breed characteristics you may read, each dog is an
individual. A breed noted for even temper and gentleness can still
include aggressive individuals, just as a highly reactive feisty breed can
have calm and laid-back members. Keep in mind that the following
observations are general in nature and should neither condemn nor
sanctify a breed.
Although Cocker Spaniels have been popular family dogs for
many years, in many studies they are the number one breed for dog
bites, and nearly always bite family members. Other studies rank
Chihuahuas as number one. Terriers in general can be active and easily
aroused and may bite without any ill intent. Herding dogs may nip
in an attempt to corral children into a manageable flock.
Many of the breeds recommended for families are part of the
Hound and Sporting Groups. Golden Retrievers have often been
called the perfect dog for children, but as they became more popular,
incidents of aggression have risen. Labrador Retrievers are often
touted as good family dogs, although some familiar with the breed say
to stay away from the chocolate variety and others caution to avoid
hunting lines. Newfoundlands and Old English Sheepdogs have been
popularized as “nannies,” and can be considered generally reliable
(but large enough to knock over small children merely by turning
around). Bloodhounds, Basset Hounds and Bulldogs are all recommended
for their equanimity. And don’t discount mixed breeds.
While you may not be able to predict exactly what the coat will look
like or precisely how much she’ll weigh when fully grown, you can
conduct the same sort of temperament check with a mixed breed that
you can with a purebred.
Whatever dog you bring into the home (we’ll talk about how to
make your selection later in this chapter), you need to do all you can
to accustom her to the sometimes annoying attentions of children.
Many problems arise around food bowls, so you should work to
avoid them. Make a game out of dropping little tasty tidbits into the
bowl while the dog is eating. If it’s not an issue, pick the bowl up, add
some extra treats and give it back to the dog. When you have done
some obedience work, have the dog sit and stay while you put the
bowl down. Children should not bother dogs while they are eating,
but in case they do, you don’t want the dog to turn instantly into a
slavering beast bent on defending her meal.
Families with children can become quite loud at times. While it’s
certainly understandable for dogs to react to sudden loud noises, they
shouldn’t take it out on the noisemaker or whoever happens to be
standing closest to them at the time. The best family dogs can sleep
right through the usual family background noise. If yelling is your
family’s style, have family members shout back and forth to each other
while you feed the dog some cookies.
Children also move in short jerky bursts and often flail their arms
around. This is a tough one for dogs. Such erratic movement triggers
their prey instinct and makes them want to chase and grab. Acting on
such impulses can be the last mistake a dog will be allowed to make.
Kids Speaking Canine 165
You can tell young people not to behave like this around dogs, and
perhaps your own children might even listen, but their friends probably
won’t, so you need to teach the dog how to behave in such
circumstances.
The urge to chase can be very strong, and you probably won’t be
able to banish it entirely. Instead, provide the dog with an acceptable
outlet. Teach the dog to chase and fetch tennis balls. Control access
to these toys and only bring them out to play the chase game. Then
start having your children play nearby while you play with the dog.
Next, have the chase toy out on the ground when your youngsters
start running and jumping around, and encourage the dog to get the
toy so that you can play the game. The association should become
automatic, so that when things start getting wild, the dog looks for a toy to grab. A dog with a toy in her mouth can’t be biting anything
else. You are responsible for ensuring that the toy is available to the
dog in circumstances where she may need it.
Most police dogs are rewarded at the end of drug searches or
criminal apprehensions with the chance to play with their ball or
a rolled-up towel. It’s a potent motivator and can avoid otherwise
deadly problems.
Teach your children how to behave when meeting dogs (which
we’ll cover in the next section), then take them somewhere that will
provide encounters with plenty of dogs, such as an obedience trial.
Watching how closely your children adhere to what they’ve been
taught will give you a good idea of their level of control. Seeing all
those dogs is pretty exciting—don’t be surprised if everything you
thought they’d learned falls by the wayside. It just means they’re not
ready yet and you have more training to do.
If there’s already a dog in the home when children arrive, then it
is up to you to make that dog as “bombproof ” as possible (meaning that nothing within the bounds of reason will set the dog off). It also
falls to you to manage circumstances at all times so that neither child
nor dog is put in a situation of potentially losing control.
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