Have Your Children Help With The Dog Training

It is not uncommon to hear about some dogs who feel like they need to compete with the children who live in the home instead of listening to them. Those who want to avoid this problem should have their children help out with the training process as soon as they get the dog. Not only does the dog learn to respect each child, but the children will learn how to care for the dog.

Before you decide to allow a child to help with the dog training process, it is important to consider whether your child is ready for that type of responsibility or not. If the child is too young, it may not be the right time to include him or her, but it will depend on how well the child acts around the dog. After all, most dogs prefer to spend their time with children because they love to play and are usually not nearly as demanding as the adults. If you notice that all of your children love spending time with the dog, they may be ready to get involved with the training process.

It is important to consider how your dog acts as well. If you have recently adopted a puppy from the shelter, it is the perfect time to start training with the entire family so that everyone can get involved. Even if you trust that the dog will not do anything to harm your children, you should always remain in the room with them while they are helping with training.

There are certain things that children can begin teaching to the dog right away, such as basic commands. Teaching the dog to sit when instructed or to get down instead of jumping are two of the commands that your children can start with. They can even work on leash training with your supervision. Of course, you will need to get involved as well to ensure that the dog is following these directions and eventually gets the hang of those commands.

Children can often have a good time teaching a dog how to play with different types of toys. When the dog does something that he or she was directed to do, you or your children can offer a nice treat to the dog by rubbing its belly or playing a game of fetch. While you can give your dog treats, it may not be the best idea to leave that up to the children because some dogs can easily snatch treats away from them.

Make sure that your dog is always being respectful to the children. A dog will become respectful after it starts learning obedience. If you are planning to go to a professional dog training class where you can get the extra assistance, you may even want to bring the children along with you.

Because your dog will be a member of your family, it is wise to have all of your children involved in training it. The training process does not have to be frustrating and grueling. In fact it can be a lot of fun and your children can do very well with it when everyone gets involved.