The perfect family dog listens to everyone in the family, but achieving that can be challenging. Many dogs seem to see the kids as fun, but not someone to take direction from. This can result in frustration and even tears from the tiny humans, but there are steps you can take to make things easier on everyone.
1- Make sure the dog and the children have a good relationship. Do the kids respect the dog’s space and handle them with care? Dogs who are uncomfortable with a child are less likely to want to be around them, let alone follow commands. Children should always allow a dog to walk away and give them breaks when using physical affection. Additionally, children who interact with the dog by roughhousing, or playing chase games may have a harder time getting the dog to work for them.
2- Do the kids do anything with the dogs besides play? If the dog sees the child solely as a playmate, it will be hard to get the dog to listen to them. Having the child feed the dog, and take part in the more serious parts of care (brushing, vet visits, etc) will help your dog see the child in a more serious light, as well as teach the child responsibility. Having the kids alternate work with play is an easy way to get practice in. Do a few ball tosses, then a couple commands then some more ball tosses.
3-Use a positive, reward-based method. This method doesn’t require any pushing or pulling or physical force. Kids often aren’t strong enough to do these things and put your child at risk for a bite if the dog doesn’t like what’s being done. Simply rewarding for good behavior is more effective, and can be done by people of any size or strength. Plus, what kid doesn’t like to give dogs treats? Clickers are frequently utilized for this type of training. Because the timing of the click is important, younger kids may not be ready to be in charge of the clicker. For small kids, try having them do the command/hand signal, parent clicks, and child rewards.
4- Make training a family affair. Kids younger than pre-teen (and even some pre-teens) are likely to struggle with some of the concepts of training and get frustrated easily, especially until the dog has some basics. For very young kids, parents should do the training, and then have the kids help once the dog has a good idea of what’s being asked of them. Make sure you are right there to help get the timing right and remind the dog that the command is the same even a tiny voice is saying it. For kids who are older, you may simply need to stay nearby to help with instructions. If you want to attend a group training class, look for family-friendly ones who will allow you to bring your kids (as long as they can do so without being a distraction to the other students).
With a little effort, training really can be fun for the whole family!
Central Ohio Muttessori School is a reward-based, family-friendly dog training business in Worthington. We are hosting a half-day summer kids camp for dog training, July 22,24,26, 29 and 31 from 9 am to 1 pm. Full information is available at www.ohiomuttschool.com
