A non-profit organization dedicated to Dog Bite Prevention

How to Train Your Dog with Child Safety in Mind

We recommend clicker training as the safest way to train a dog and promote dog bite prevention. This is a hands-off method that even young children can use. Clicker training uses positive reinforcement to teach, while keeping the dog in a happy emotional state during training. Clicker trained dogs behave because they want to, not because they are afraid of the consequences. Fear can be used to motivate a dog, but can also result in dogs that are emotionally unstable and more likely to bite than a happy dog. Training methods that involve yanking on the leash, hitting the dog, yelling at the dog, rolling the dog on it's back, pinning the dog down or shaking the dog by the scruff of the neck may make the dog fearful or angry and this could result in a bite to a child. The dog may fear (some people mistake this for respect) the person who does this kind of training but may redirect aggression toward weaker family members such as children. Any training method that requires the use of physical force is not suitable for use by children.

Clicker Articles

Read a prize-winning article about clicker training by Joan Orr.

Fortunately force and fear are not required in dog training. Clicker training is fun and easy, even for children. You can start clicker training your puppy as soon as you bring him home and can clicker train an older dog even if he has previous training with other methods. Please visit www.clickertraining.com and click on Getting Started to find out about clicker training. Read an article by Joan Orr and Teresa Lewin about clicker tricks for kids to teach.

Clicker Pamphlets and Book for Kids Written by Kids

Clicker training provides a way to build a strong bond of love and respect between dogs and children. A dog can learn to respect and listen to even a young child. Children and parents can clicker train and have fun together with the dog. To help you get started, some very good child dog trainers, Evelyn Pang and Hilary Louie, have compiled pamphlets to teach the basics of clicker training for kids. You can download these here in three languages! Hilary and Evelyn have also written a book to help teach kids about dog behavior and training.

 

Pamphlets:

English: Intro   Tricks    Spanish/Espanol: Intro    Chinese: Intro

Good Dog! Kids teach kids about dog behavior and training

What is it that kids need to know about dogs? How to be safe around dogs, how to recognize what a dog is doing, and how to learn the right way to train a dog are three good places to start. And of course its really cool if the authors understand kids and speak their language, which in the case of Good Dog! they do because the authors are kids themselves. A fun and educational book on dogs, written by kids for kids!

Clicker Puppy DVD

Below is a photo of Zeuss at less than 8 weeks old. He was clicker trained by 10-year old Jennifer to wave before he left the litter. This entire litter of puppies was trained to sit, down, come when called, wait at the door, walk on a leash, wave, give high five and roll over before they left the litter and went to their new homes. Download excerpts from the Clicker Puppy DVD to see these puppies in action.

You can find out all about how to Clicker Train by watching children training puppies. If they can do it - so can you! Purchase the Clicker Puppy DVD and support the work of Doggone Safe.

FREE Clicker Training and Puppy Videos...

View instructional clicker training videos - in particular view the video entitled "Accepting Human Handling"

Watch videos of extraordinary trainer Sue Ailsby clicker training

Watch videos of puppies as young as 4-weeks old learning service dog skills - Amazing!

You can even virtually adopt one of the Puppy Prodigies and help support their non-profit work in training puppies to help people with disabilities lead more independent life. What a great unique gift for the dog lover who has everything! www.puppyprodigies.com

Painting Beagles of Newfoundland

Clicker training is so powerful that even a blind dog can be trained without any force or physical manipulation. Tonji Stewart of Canine Company Clicker Training and Consulting taught blind Tuig to ride a trike. Tonji has also taught her dogs to paint. Piper, the mascot for North Atlantic Petroleum won this role because Tonji was the only trainer who could teach her dog to lie with his head on a heating grate and close his eyes on cue.

Piper is the mascot for North Atlantic Petroleum

See more paintings by the Painting Beagles - mention Doggone Safe if you buy

 

The Painting Beagles of Newfoundland, Tuig and Piper (above) have been clicker trained by owner Tonji Stewart to wear a painting paw and create works of art. Tonji and the Painting Beagles were featured on CBC television in Canada earlier in the year.

At right is Tuig creating a painting called "Flight". Ironically, Tuig is almost completely blind and will never see his own work. "I started painting with Piper, to raise money for an eye operation for Tuig. He was adopted from Beagle Paws rescue and although he will not see again, he can be made comfortable with surgery", said Tonji.

Now Tuig is doing his own paintings and with clicker training has learned many other behaviours that make his life more interesting. Below is the framed "Flight" that was donated to a charity auction for a women's shelter.

 

 

"Flight" by Tuig Tonji shaped blind Tuig to ride a trike

"Bluebirds in Flight" by Piper

 

Find a Clicker Trainer

Find a clicker trainer in your area. If you cannot find a clicker trainer, try and find a trainer that uses the lure and reward method and ask if you can use your clicker in their classes.

Can't find a trainer? Click here to follow a clicker course on your own, thanks to Sue Ailsby

Clicker Training blog from Karen Pryor Clickertraining - all the latest news and interesting clicker happenings from around the world. You can even submit your own news or comments to share with the clicker community


Source: Doggone Safe!TM A non-profit organization dedicated to dog bite prevention. Contact us at doggonesafeinfo@doggonesafe.com

Copyright 2004 Teresa Lewin and Joan Orr


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