Getting Children Involved In Dog Training

We often hear stories about dogs not respecting children in the home or being in competition with children for attention. It may come as a surprise then to learn that children can actually be involved in dog training from a young age. Getting children involved in training the dog will depend on several factors but it can be a great way for a child to learn about dogs.

The most important thing to consider before getting children involved in dog training is the child. You should consider the child's age and level of maturity. Children tend to have some natural advantages when it comes to dog training. Dogs usually like to be with them because they're playful and fun and children are usually less forceful than adults. Plus, children usually tend to coax and encourage an animal which makes it happy to do things for them. If your child generally gets along well with animals and is relatively mature then he or she should be able to learn how to train.

You should also consider your dog. If you have a puppy or dog without any special dog training problems then there is no reason that your child can't teach your dog some of the basics of dog training. With that said, you should still supervise your child's training sessions with your dog for the sake of both your child and your dog.

Depending on your child's age he or she should be able to teach your dog training lessons such as early leash training, sit, down, focusing your dog's attention, improving off-leash control, training a fast recall, and improving all of the training lessons that you work on with your dog yourself during training lessons.

Your child can be especially good at training your dog with toys and playing training games with your dog. Reward-based training, especially when the reward is a belly rub or a few minutes of play, will be especially good when taught by a child. Children should be careful about giving too many treats. Some dogs may try to mug small children for the treats. Praise, petting and play are often better rewards for children to give.

Remember as you supervise the training that your child is giving your dog that your dog should respect your child. Help your child work on basic obedience training exercises that gain the dog's respect before trying to proceed to any more advanced exercises.

Your child may also wish to attend classes to train your dog. There's no reason why a child can't attend a dog training class and learn with the adults. If your child and your dog learn the early lessons they can proceed to more advanced work. Youngsters can and do work on obedience titles as well as perform in agility and rally.

Getting children involved in dog training is a great idea. Children and dogs can have a lot of fun together with dog training. Let your child start with the basics and teach your dog to listen. There's no reason why your child can't do a great job training your dog.

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