#206 Dog Meet Kid; Kid Meet Dog

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Fear of dogs is a common and completely natural experience for many children. When Ginger, an enthusiastic young dog, was scheduled to meet grandchildren who were both excited and nervous about the encounter, it presented the perfect opportunity to explore effective strategies for positive dog-child introductions.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
This episode is a little shout out to Ginger and
her family.
Ginger is a young, high energydog and her people told me that
their grandkids are coming tovisit.
The kids are excited, butthey're also a little nervous
because they've always beenafraid of dogs.
And that's not unusual at all,because they've always been

(00:26):
afraid of dogs.
And that's not unusual at all,In fact, when you think about it
, a two-year-old dog with bigzoomies can feel like a giant to
a child.
Even if the dog is friendly, itcan still feel like too much
when you're in that situation.
The goal isn't to convince thekids to suddenly love the dog.

(00:47):
The goal is to make the wholeexperience safe, calm and, most
of all, optional.
Kids need to feel like theyhave control, and the dog
shouldn't feel pressured either.
So one of the easiest ways tohelp is to give your kids the

(01:07):
height advantage.
If they're sitting on a porchstep, in a chair or even on the
tailgate of a truck, the dogwon't tower over them From there
.
You can even turn it into alittle training game.
The kids can ask the dog to sitand once the dog does, they can

(01:33):
drop the treat down.
No reaching, no grabbing, andthe dog learns to approach
politely while the kids stay incharge of the moment.
And another helpful setup isusing barriers like a baby gate
or playpen.
That way the dog can comecloser if they want, but the
kids don't feel trapped, andsometimes it's less intimidating
to toss a treat over a gatethan to have a wet nose pressed

(01:57):
up against you.
It also helps to make sure thedog has burned off a little bit
of energy before the kids comeover.
A dog that's been cooped up allday is going to come out like a
cannonball.
So a nice walk, a sniff sessionor even a little playtime makes

(02:17):
the dog a little calmer andhopefully a little easier to
handle.
It's also a good idea topractice polite greetings ahead
of time, Reinforce the dog forkeeping four paws on the floor
or sitting calmly with theadults before any of the kids
are involved.
That way you're not trying totrain the dog and comfort the

(02:38):
children all at the same time.
And games are another greatbridge, and fetch works
especially well.
But the trick is to always givethe kids two toys, so when the
dog brings one back, the kidthrows the second toy.
They never have to reach intothe dog's space or risk getting

(03:02):
pulled into a game of tug-of-warinto the dog's space, or risk
getting pulled into a game oftug-of-war.
The dogs have fun and the kidsfeel safe.
Now this might surprise people,but sometimes adult dogs are
actually easier for kids thanpuppies.
Puppies nip, they mouth, theydon't always have their jumping

(03:23):
under control and that can makethem seem scarier than a calm
adult dog.
If kids are going to interactwith a puppy, it's usually best
to keep the puppy on a leash theentire time so you can manage
the excitement and preventthings from getting overwhelming
.
And sometimes the best firststep is to let the dog just

(03:46):
exist in the same space.
Maybe the kids are drawing,blowing bubbles or eating a
snack and the dog is simplylying nearby.
You know, when the dog isn'tthe center of attention, kids
often relax and the dog becomespart of the background instead
of something they have to bracefor.

(04:06):
So if you have kids and dogs inyour life, remember that
introductions don't have to bebig, dramatic events.
The calm, simple moments wherekids feel in control and the dog
feels safe are what build trust, and that's the kind of memory

(04:28):
that can last for years.