Dogs for Kids

Giving Time - Teaching Skills for Life

This page will tell you about dogs for kids. This page was written by our son.

• I have a lovely dog he is a Maltese he is very friendly, loves everyone even complete strangers and is quite small with white fluffy fur.
• Dogs are lovely animals and are very friendly if trained well, they are clever and learn quite fast,
• they will need quite a bit of attention but the amount of it usually depends on what breed you have.
• They make great companions for anyone and are loving towards their owners.
• You can get many different breeds of dog that come in many different sizes and most have different personalities as well.
• The smaller breeds usually need less walking and care than the larger breeds.
• Dogs for kids are a big commitment and are expensive to buy and then care for in money and time so think carefully about the time you
• may have and how you want to spend it and your finances when buying one.

• Dogs love to be walked and you need to walk them at least once a day normally
• the distance would depend on how big the dog is.
• When walking your dog you must have a lead on it by law but in some places you can let them off the lead
• but only where a sign says you can.
• Some breeds of dog good with kids also have to have a muzzle on when you are walking them by law as well.
• The best way to walk a dog is to teach it to walk at your side and to not pull on the lead, or walking your dog can become
• a chore when it should be enjoyable.
• Dogs usually pull on the lead when they are young and will do this all their lives unless they are taught not to.
• The reason it is bad for a dog to pull on the lead besides making it hard for you to walk along with them;
• is because when it pulls on the lead it can damage their throat.
• If you have little time or can't€™t teach them you can get a harness for your dog.
• A harness helps to stop them from harming their throat by going around their whole body
• so when they pull the pressure is on the body and not the neck and so it protects them.

• Because dogs for kids
• are very protective of their owner and get very territorial they can become aggressive
• if they feel you are in danger or another person or animal comes near you or your home.
• You can teach your dog to be more tolerant of others but they will still be slightly territorial at the home
• because it is in their nature.

• You also should never leave dogs for kids alone with a child because the child can hurt or kill the dog quite easily
• (I once had a friend who accidently killed his dog when he was six. He was dancing with it and had its front paws
• in his hand and he slipped and pulled the dogs arms outwards which killed it instantly.)
• And the dog can quite easily hurt or kill the child as well.
• Most breeds of dog are good with kids but as I have already said never leave them alone together
• even the most laid back dog can turn because they may have a hidden worry or injury and they can't€™t talk so best to stay on the safe side.
• A lot of people get a muzzle because of these things to put on the dogs mouth so the dog cannot€™t bite anyone or anything.

• Dogs for kids communicate by barking and so bark when they are trying to talk or warn you or others,
• they will usually start to bark if they hear another dog barking as well.
• If they bark a lot it can get quite annoying but you can get them taught not to bark as much using various different methods.
• The best thing to do is take the dog to a dog training school that will help to teach you to teach them not to bark as much and give
• you tips on how to care for them in general. But remember you will never stop a dog barking totally because it is natural
• for them to bark and is how they communicate so that is another thing you should also consider when buying one.

• Dogs need to relieve themselves so make sure you remember that and have
• a space inside (if you do this then it is best to use either paper, a towel,
• or something similar on the place you want them to relieve themselves on so
• when they do relieve themselves it is easier to clean up and does not€™t go everywhere
• it will also give the dog clear boundaries of where it can go).
• Preferably your dog will relieve itself outside. Be ready for some accidents when they first move in
• (and the occasional accident later on in their lives when they cant hold on any longer because everybody has
• forgotten to put paper down or let them out) until you have trained them properly.
• Dogs learn fairly quickly and so it should be quite easy to train them to do it on
• paper or wait till they are outside but if you make them wait till they are outside you will have to
• let them out every couple of hours or so. Our Maltese has been taught to go to the back door and scratch
• on it when he needs to relieve himself which is very clever I think.

• You have to take dogs for kids for a check up at the vets every year and also when your dog gets ill or hurt.
• The vets are usually quite expensive even when you are just having a check up. The cost depends on what breed you have,
• normally the bigger the dog is the more expensive it will be but there are some breeds that are more costly than others
• at the vets even if they are smaller. So bear these things in mind when buying your dog.

• Dogs can get fleas quite easily if you have other animals or if they are outside a lot.
• Fleas start on the dog but will soon spread around the house and so you have to kill them
• or the dog will keep getting them. We have found the best way to get rid of them is to get a special
• flea spray from the shops. Most people without other animals spray the whole house and then leave for a
• couple of hours because the spray is poisonous.
• But if like us you have other animals first move all the animals downstairs and then spray the upstairs
• and wait downstairs for a couple of hours and then you and the animals all go upstairs and spray downstairs
• and wait for a couple of hours. You will also need to kill the fleas on the dog so we use a special flea
• collar that kills them and you can get that at certain shops. There are other things you can get at certain
• shops that can kill the fleas but always check on the flea killer whether or not it is harmful to your dog or
• check with a professional vet if your not sure.

• Dogs for kids have a tendency to run away if they have access to a door, low window, hole, or other such opening.
• This means that before you buy your dog you need to secure your home and make sure the dog has no escape routes because
• they WILL run away if given the chance unless you train them well but even this is no guarantee.
• It is best if you get them a collar with your address and telephone number on it just to be on the safe side or
• if you are willing to spend more you can get an identification chip placed just under the skin on their neck.
• This is done by a vet and I recommend it because we have had our dog chipped and it has€™s come in very useful the couple of times he has run away.

• When you go out for the day you can leave the dog at home but you have to leave it with food and water and a large area
• for it to move in where there is no danger of it damaging anything or harming itself and where it is not too hot or cold.
• NEVER leave the dog alone in the car because they can overheat very quickly and die or they can get tangled up or hurt in the
• car which can result in their death or an injury. If you are caught by the Police or RSPCA with a dog alone in your car that is overheating or hurt
• you can face a fine and the Police can break into your car and get the dog out.
• If you go on holiday and you cannot€™t take your dog do not€™t leave it at home alone it is best if you get someone
• you know and trust to care for it or take it to a kennels where they will look after it for a certain amount
• of money each day. Dogs are banned from a lot of public places so it is best to check to see if you are allowed dogs wherever
• you are going before you go just in case.

• At night when its time to go bed most people usually put their dogs in a cage made specifically for the dog with enough space
• for them to move around in and a comfy pillow big enough for them to sleep on, some others have the dog sleep on the end of their bed,
• and some people just let the dog go around the house as it wishes, while others have other ways they do it.
• The choice is up to you but remember dogs can get into mischief or get hurt when left alone especially at night.
• We keep our Maltese in a cage big enough for him to move around in and a big, comfy dogs€™s bed with a pillow.

• Dogs for kids make great companions and are really good company they make strong bonds with whoever cares for and loves them.
• They are very affectionate and start to become attached to the family they are with if they are given love and attention.
• The more you love and care for your dog the more they will love you. Dogs are very loyal animals and will try to please you
• whenever they can, they have inherited this from their descendants the wolf. They will treat you like they would treat any
• other dog because they treat their owner and their family as a pack and will look to you if you have trained them right as the leader
• and will obey you most of the time.
• They like to play with lots of different types of toys and like to play lots of simple games like
• fetch and tug of war (and our Maltese dogs€™s favourite game Find the toy or treat you have hidden from him in your jumper he loves it)
• and enjoy it most when you are playing along with them.

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