No family is complete without a dog! For many people, this condition is a fixed part of life planning. After all, the four-legged family member is an enrichment in many ways.

Incidentally, children are taught empathy and responsibility from an early age by having a dog. However, for parents, the smooth coexistence of children and dogs poses a challenge. We’ll reveal how to turn your little ones into a real dream team.

Friends for life – Through Thick and Thin

For children, the company of a dog offers many development-promoting effects. Apart from dealing with other people, children learn early on, through dogs, to show empathy and respect for other living beings and take responsibility for them.

Ideally, children find an animal friend who stands by them through thick and thin. If the chemistry is right, the family dog becomes a confidant, providing support, comfort, and boosting self-esteem in its unbiased way.

However, despite all the positive aspects, there’s a caveat worth noting. When children get bitten, it often involves the family dog or at least a familiar one. This fact prompts reflection and underscores that the harmonious coexistence of children and dogs is not a random occurrence but the result of consistent education – for both humans and their four-legged companions.

Dogs and children – never without supervision

The most important and straightforward principle you should always follow without exception is: Never leave children and dogs unsupervised. An adult must always have the situation in view. It doesn’t matter how well you and your child know a dog.

Preparation is key

For a successful coexistence and the well-being of all family members, a few essential ground rules must be followed. The most crucial rule is: Nothing works without preparation. So, never go into a new situation unprepared.

This advice naturally applies to both situations. That is, whether the dog is already in the family, and a child is born or adopted, or the reverse order of family reunion.

Every preparation is individual

How much time you need to invest in preparation depends, on the one hand, on the age, character, and history of your furry friend. It makes a difference whether you bring home a puppy from a breeder or choose a street dog rescued abroad.

Therefore, it is also important that you can realistically assess your (future) four-legged family member. This is the only way to determine if you are a good match and which aspects need to be considered, trained, and reinforced.

If the dog came into the family first and has been familiar with you for a long time, this is, of course, much easier than with a dog you have only met a few times for a few hours.

On the other hand, the experience of you and all other family members also plays a significant role. It also largely determines how much preparation is required.

Awaken understanding for the dog’s needs

To prevent conflicts and dangerous situations, you should teach your child from the beginning that a dog is an independent personality with needs that must be respected. Not to forget: These needs do not necessarily align with human needs.

It is, therefore, essential for children to learn not to automatically project themselves onto the animal. It is only partially possible to instill this understanding in very young children.

Nevertheless, child-friendly education in the early years bears fruit in later years. Therefore, start from the beginning to teach your child that neither a dog nor any other pet operates according to a person’s will.

Be the Best Example

While adults, children, and, of course, dogs must adhere to rules, what is crucial is that these rules contribute to harmony and reflect respect and understanding for one another.

As the child grows older, it becomes easier to raise awareness for a dog’s needs. What you may need to convey in a fragmented way to small children can be deepened over the years.

Gradually, you can delve deeper into the dog’s body language and reinforce behavioral rules with explanations. This way, children can gradually understand why you establish certain rules.

As in all matters of education, the key is to be an example and embody your principles. If you do not adhere to your own rules, you will lose credibility in the long run. Therefore, always act the way you expect your child to behave.

Establish and Learn to Respect Privacy

Eating and sleeping – tricky situations between children and dogs often arise in the context of these two basic needs of the dog. Therefore, it is crucial to declare rest and meal times as off-limits for children and to create understanding in the child.

The right preparation is crucial here as well. To maintain the dog’s privacy in the household, the conditions for this must have been created beforehand.

Privacy for Your Dog: Rest and Feeding Zone

Make sure to establish a fixed feeding and rest zone for your dog that is “childproof,” especially with small children.

This requires spatial separation within the living space. This applies, incidentally, to households without children as well. Every dog needs a place where it can withdraw undisturbed at any time. It should be able to decide whether to be alone or participate in everyday hustle and bustle.

Ensure that the dog is not disturbed while eating, and no one tries to take its bowl away. Since dealing with food is always associated with a risk, small children should never be entrusted with feeding the four-legged friend.

Golden Rules for Safe Interaction

Over time, you gather numerous experiences from which you draw your own conclusions. Every dog is unique, and no one knows your dog as well as you do. Nevertheless, there are a few golden rules that you should impart to your child. They apply to your own dog as well as all other dogs.

Although some rules may seem trivial, they are not always heeded even by adults. Children are not aware of the impact of their actions, and that’s where the greatest potential for danger lies. Especially small children cannot assess the consequences of their actions or understand the dog’s reaction.

Basic Rules for Children:

One thing is certain: mistakes happen. This is normal not only for dog beginners but for everyone. What matters is how you handle them. Therefore, do not simply overlook a dangerous or even escalated situation.

If your child is old enough, discuss what happened together and how you can prevent this problem in the future. This way, you can become aware of mistakes and eliminate risks.

Mindful Trust: Do Not Underestimate Your Own Dog

In addition to all the behavioral rules, your vigilance as a parent plays a crucial role. Stay just as attentive with your own dog or a familiar four-legged friend as you would with a stranger’s dog. The problem is that risks are often underestimated by adults when it comes to their own dogs.

This phenomenon has nothing to do with unpredictable, aggressive “problem dogs” but applies to even the most good-natured dog. Dangerous situations usually arise from misunderstandings rather than malicious intent.

Study Confirms Lack of Risk Awareness

A study from the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna in 2016 pointed out the risk of underestimating one’s own dog. It showed that participants made a significant distinction between unfamiliar and familiar animals.

This can become a risk: Clear danger situations with their own dog were underestimated, and intervention was deemed unnecessary. The lack of risk awareness could be seen, for example, in the fact that about 50% of respondents claimed to leave their dog and child unsupervised.

In addition to dangerous misunderstandings, children interacting with a dog should also be supervised for another reason. Dogs may perceive children as puppies and, under certain circumstances, take corrective measures. Such behaviors must be consistently prevented by you. If you are unsure about the best approach, seek professional advice.

Dogs and Babies: Prepare for the Newborn

If the dog is already part of the family, and a baby is born, it is a significant change for the dog as well. If the dog has the closest bond with the expectant mother, his life changes radically overnight. This change should not be underestimated, as it is not an easy situation for him.

The good news, however, is that you can gently prepare your four-legged friend for the change and thereby facilitate the adjustment that comes with the baby. The key idea is to strengthen the dog’s relationship with the partner of the pregnant woman to offset the decreasing attention. The partner gradually takes on more of the typical tasks and spends a lot of time with the dog.

Practice the New Situation

Furthermore, it can be helpful to simulate the new situation before the child is born using a doll. By regularly engaging exclusively with the doll, the expectant mother acclimates the dog to the idea that it will soon no longer receive undivided attention.

This approach can also be used to “practice” with the stroller and crib. It is crucial that the four-legged family member is not neglected during this process. While the expectant mother focuses on the doll, the partner should engage with the dog.

Activities such as games that the dog enjoys can be considered. This gradual exposure helps the dog become accustomed to the new situation and associate it with positive experiences.

Establishing Rules for a Lifelong Friendship

Children and dogs mutually enrich each other in a family, there’s no doubt about that. However, transforming them into a genuine dream team is primarily the responsibility of the parents. Prepare yourself, set clear rules for both humans and dogs from the beginning, and remain consistent on both sides.

There are boundaries and off-limits areas for both your dog and your child that must be respected. No matter how much you trust your four-legged friend and your child, never leave them alone. An adult must be able to intervene to protect the child from the dog and the dog from the child.

Losing your healthy skepticism can contribute to biting incidents. A well-functioning family dynamic requires effort, and this applies to both two-legged and four-legged family members.