How to Solve Your Dog's Fear of Children
Dogs and kids make a great combination under the right circumstances and often form lifelong bonds. When a dog is afraid of children، though، it's not always safe to bring them together. It's actually fairly common for dogs to be wary of kids (and vice versa)، and if your dog is among them، there are ways you can address its fears to help prevent confrontations.
Why Do Dogs Fear Children?
There are two major reasons why dogs may develop a fear of children.
- A lack of early socialization: Dogs who aren't exposed to children as puppies may become fearful when they meet them later in life. When they encounter children for the first time as adult dogs، they may be extremely frightened by the unfamiliar size، smells، noises، and movements of children.
- The aftermath of a negative experience: Dogs may also develop a fear of children after a painful or unsettling interaction. Young children often have a tendency to pull tails، grab handfuls of fur، steal toys، and even poke eyes. Some dogs are tolerant of children's poking and prodding. Other dogs may develop a fear of children after only one bad experience.
Next Steps
Because it's unlikely that a dog will go through its entire life without ever meeting a child، it's important that you work on managing your dog's fear. This is not only for the sake of your dog; it is also important to prevent dog bites and other injuries to children.1
Fortunately، there are a number of things you can do to minimize your dog's fear around children.
Socialize Early
If you have just brought home a puppy، start socializing it with children right away. Puppies got through a peak socialization period at around 8 to 12 weeks of age، during which time they should be exposed to as many different situations as possible. Keep in mind that all interactions should be supervised and kept as positive، upbeat، and calm as possible. Working on socialization now may save you lots of time، effort، and anguish later on.
Many people have pets before they have children. Then they're surprised when their dogs growl or snap at the new infant or toddler. This can be a heartbreaking situation for the dog owner and the dog، but the key to preventing the problem is early and frequent socialization.