subject: Teaching Kids About Puppies [print this page] Kids and puppies seem to naturally go together. Countless kids beg their parents to get a puppy. And countless parents tell their children they can't have one. But many other children are raised in homes with dogs. If you have a child and you're thinking about getting a puppy, what kinds of things should you teach your child about puppies? Here are a few suggestions.
1. Puppies are not toys. They are living, breathing animals with feelings. You can't mistreat them, pull the legs off them, swing them by their tails or sit on them.
2. If you do mistreat a puppy he may mistreat you. That's to say, if you pull and poke on a puppy, he may bite and scratch you. Newton's law applies with puppies: for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
3. Treat a puppy well and he will be nice. Teach your child that if you pet and play nicely with a puppy he will be nice, too.
4. Teach children not to run screaming away from a puppy unless they want the puppy to chase them. That may be fine if it's a Chihuahua puppy. It's less fine if it's a Newfoundland puppy that can quite accidentally overwhelm a child.
5. Teach kids how to handle puppies and pick them up if they are old enough to do so.
6. Teach kids that someone in the household has to be responsible for feeding and watering a puppy. Although many kids promise to do these things it usually falls on parents to care for puppies. That doesn't mean that a child can't learn that there are responsibilities involved in taking care of a pet.
7. Teach kids that someone has to take the puppy for walks or pick up after the puppy outside.
8. Teach your child about the rules for the puppy in your home. If the puppy is not allowed on the furniture or not allowed to beg at the table, talk to your child about these rules and explain them. Tell your child that he or she is responsible for following the rules, too.
9. Teach your child that puppies need a safe, quiet place of their own, such as a crate or a room where they can go to chill sometimes.
10. Teach children not to stare, bark or growl at a puppy since this can make the puppy feel threatened. And teach children not to sneak up and scare puppies.
Children and puppies belong together. They can form a wonderful bond. Children raised with dogs can have a lifelong love of dogs and other animals. But it's up to you, the parents, to set the guidelines and to make sure that both the puppies and the children treat each other right.
by: Tristan Andrews
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