The phrase “Raised with children”

As we read through all of the ads that say, “raised with children”, do we really know what that means? Sure it may mean there are kids in the house, and the pups have been around kids. But, that is where it needs to stop. Don’t get the notion that just because there are kids in that house, I can purchase this pup, take it home and everything will be great. It is a horrible but true fact that over 60% of all dog bites involve children. This number could be a lot less if people would be responsible pet owners. So many times people buy a pup with the “dream” that it will automatically be a perfect addition to the family. There need to be guidelines not only for the pup but for everyone that is in contact with a dog or puppy and these guidelines must be followed all of the time.
Children need to be taught the following
Don’t ever tease a dog or puppy
Ask before petting a strange dog
Children can’t dominate a puppy—if they do, this will turn the puppy into a biter
Children must be taught to be gentle with puppies and must always be under adult supervision

Dog owners need to do the following:
Make sure the pup is healthy with proper vaccinations
Have you dog spayed or neutered-this cuts down on the risk of cancer, unwanted puppies, makes dogs less aggressive
Children must always be supervised around dogs
Teach children to never bother a dog that is eating, sleeping, or is caring for puppies
Train the puppy basic commands-“sit”, “stay”, “come” and all family members should do the same, using the same commands
If your dog or puppy is nervous around kids, take the dog to a playground and observe from a distance and as the dog adjusts, move closer—don’t let the dog get out of his comfort zone

This entry was posted on Monday, February 12th, 2007 at 1:14 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. Edit this entry.