Tips for rescuing dog with small kids

[Anonymous]

OP I adopted a 10 mo lab mix then 5 mos later brought home our adopted DD as a newborn. I may not have planned it that way but it has worked out great.He is now 7 and DD is almost 6, they love each other so much.Thanks for rescuing a dog that needed a home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here back to update. Thank you for all the feedback, both positive and negative. Positive feedback gave me hope and the negative feedback reinforced just how vigilant my husband and I need to be. 2 weeks in and so far so good. She is extremely friendly and chill to all people, dogs, kids, and even the neighbors cat!
She does not seem to be alarmed by the loud noises toddler inevitably make. We praise her when toddler is whining/ being difficult. We have been as careful as possible. We never leave them alone, don’t let toddler hang n her or get in her face, dog eats downstairs away from toddler and baby, she has a room to “escape” to if she wants....the funny thing is she hasn’t wanted to. She likes to be with the whole family. She greets the kids with a tail wags and a kiss every morning, and waits on the couch looking out the window while we are gone. She has not needed the crate and is getting 4 good walks a day (tired dog = good dog)!

She knows basic commands : come sit stay lie down. Do you think we should still do the PetSmart type obedience classes? Any other tips or things I haven’t implemented yet?

I'd recommend an in-home dog trainer rather than a class at a PetSmart or similar because your kids will be at home and it's important for the trainer to see that dynamic. One big thing we wanted to work on was our dog not running past the kids on the stairs. They're older than yours, but still small enough to be knocked over by a lab. You can't do that kind of stuff at an off-site location.

[Anonymous]

Never let the dog up on the furniture or otherwise at eye level with the children. Do not let the dog sleep on your bed or the children's beds.

Crate train.

Never play tug of war with the dog. He needs to learn to drop the toy, earn a tasty treat - then you can pick the toy up and throw it again. Tug of war is NOT safe with young children and dogs.

Put peanut butter on the back of your children's hands. When he licks, pet and give lots of praise and say "nice kisses," or "good gentle touches" etc. If he nips or is too mouthy at all (shouldn't since he is a slightly older rescue, not a puppy), then use a dime inside a taped-up soda can. Rattle it, and say NO. Do this for any jumping up on the kids etc.

Teach your toddler to "stand tall like a tree" if the dog jumps up on him. Have him stand tall with his hands crossed across his chest. Teach him to do this and turn away from the dog. The dog will get bored since the child isn't interacting, and this will eventually get it to stop jumping up on the toddler.

Prepare the dog's meal separately from the dog (so he doesn't get the urge to jump up on the countertop and help himself before you are ready!) and then bring it to the dog, and encourage him to sit and wait before allowing him to approach the bowl to eat.

Keep all barbies, legos and other small toys off the ground. Your rescue isn't a puppy but still may be the type of dog who likes to ingest, and this could set you up for a hefty vet bill.

Get free standing gates and set up areas (like the kitchen) that is a safe, fairly toy free zone for the dog to play in and the kids to play with him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here back to update. Thank you for all the feedback, both positive and negative. Positive feedback gave me hope and the negative feedback reinforced just how vigilant my husband and I need to be. 2 weeks in and so far so good. She is extremely friendly and chill to all people, dogs, kids, and even the neighbors cat!
She does not seem to be alarmed by the loud noises toddler inevitably make. We praise her when toddler is whining/ being difficult. We have been as careful as possible. We never leave them alone, don’t let toddler hang n her or get in her face, dog eats downstairs away from toddler and baby, she has a room to “escape” to if she wants....the funny thing is she hasn’t wanted to. She likes to be with the whole family. She greets the kids with a tail wags and a kiss every morning, and waits on the couch looking out the window while we are gone. She has not needed the crate and is getting 4 good walks a day (tired dog = good dog)!

She knows basic commands : come sit stay lie down. Do you think we should still do the PetSmart type obedience classes? Any other tips or things I haven’t implemented yet?

I'd recommend an in-home dog trainer rather than a class at a PetSmart or similar because your kids will be at home and it's important for the trainer to see that dynamic. One big thing we wanted to work on was our dog not running past the kids on the stairs. They're older than yours, but still small enough to be knocked over by a lab. You can't do that kind of stuff at an off-site location.

What was your solution to this? Our dog does the same thing and so far we have just been making the kids not go down stairs in front of the dog. He always goes first then the kids follow. Curious if you have tips.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here back to update. Thank you for all the feedback, both positive and negative. Positive feedback gave me hope and the negative feedback reinforced just how vigilant my husband and I need to be. 2 weeks in and so far so good. She is extremely friendly and chill to all people, dogs, kids, and even the neighbors cat!
She does not seem to be alarmed by the loud noises toddler inevitably make. We praise her when toddler is whining/ being difficult. We have been as careful as possible. We never leave them alone, don’t let toddler hang n her or get in her face, dog eats downstairs away from toddler and baby, she has a room to “escape” to if she wants....the funny thing is she hasn’t wanted to. She likes to be with the whole family. She greets the kids with a tail wags and a kiss every morning, and waits on the couch looking out the window while we are gone. She has not needed the crate and is getting 4 good walks a day (tired dog = good dog)!

She knows basic commands : come sit stay lie down. Do you think we should still do the PetSmart type obedience classes? Any other tips or things I haven’t implemented yet?

I'd recommend an in-home dog trainer rather than a class at a PetSmart or similar because your kids will be at home and it's important for the trainer to see that dynamic. One big thing we wanted to work on was our dog not running past the kids on the stairs. They're older than yours, but still small enough to be knocked over by a lab. You can't do that kind of stuff at an off-site location.

What was your solution to this? Our dog does the same thing and so far we have just been making the kids not go down stairs in front of the dog. He always goes first then the kids follow. Curious if you have tips.

It's been a while since we did it and both my labs learned it in the first session and are now super careful, but basically we worked with the adults first and we could block the dog with our body and not let them get past. We used a word, I think "slow" to get the dog to go slower and stay behind us. Then we used the word while we were standing at the bottom of the stairs and the kids went up and down. Labs are pretty easy to train because they just want to please, so of course there were lots of pets and treats when they went nicely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here back to update. Thank you for all the feedback, both positive and negative. Positive feedback gave me hope and the negative feedback reinforced just how vigilant my husband and I need to be. 2 weeks in and so far so good. She is extremely friendly and chill to all people, dogs, kids, and even the neighbors cat!
She does not seem to be alarmed by the loud noises toddler inevitably make. We praise her when toddler is whining/ being difficult. We have been as careful as possible. We never leave them alone, don’t let toddler hang n her or get in her face, dog eats downstairs away from toddler and baby, she has a room to “escape” to if she wants....the funny thing is she hasn’t wanted to. She likes to be with the whole family. She greets the kids with a tail wags and a kiss every morning, and waits on the couch looking out the window while we are gone. She has not needed the crate and is getting 4 good walks a day (tired dog = good dog)!

She knows basic commands : come sit stay lie down. Do you think we should still do the PetSmart type obedience classes? Any other tips or things I haven’t implemented yet?

I'd recommend an in-home dog trainer rather than a class at a PetSmart or similar because your kids will be at home and it's important for the trainer to see that dynamic. One big thing we wanted to work on was our dog not running past the kids on the stairs. They're older than yours, but still small enough to be knocked over by a lab. You can't do that kind of stuff at an off-site location.

What was your solution to this? Our dog does the same thing and so far we have just been making the kids not go down stairs in front of the dog. He always goes first then the kids follow. Curious if you have tips.

It's been a while since we did it and both my labs learned it in the first session and are now super careful, but basically we worked with the adults first and we could block the dog with our body and not let them get past. We used a word, I think "slow" to get the dog to go slower and stay behind us. Then we used the word while we were standing at the bottom of the stairs and the kids went up and down. Labs are pretty easy to train because they just want to please, so of course there were lots of pets and treats when they went nicely.

Thanks so much. I'm going to work on this! You are very right to point out the dangers of dogs and kids on stairs!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Make sure the dog does not have even a shred of pitbull in its lineage

+1.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Adopting a dog (thought to be ~2) from a rescue. She was fostered in a home with young kids and did very well with them. We have a toddler and an infant. Looking for tips on the transition. I read a lot about bringing a baby into a home with a dog, but not the other way around.

We are committed to getting the dog, so this is not a question of “should we” but a post looking for advice on the best way to welcome her into our family. We are dog lovers who will get her into training classes right away. Toddler already knows not to chase/ hit/ pull tail/ etc and is very gentle with dogs. Baby is, well, a baby. We will be very cognizant of her space. I can’t stand seeing social media pictures of little kids laying on dogs!

TIA!

I am honestly surprised a rescue organization would let you have a dog.

You're a candidate for a puppy from a breeder. Rescuing dogs is for DINKs or families with much older children.

Don't kid yourself. The so-call rescue industry is a huge scam.

What is the scam?