How To Teach Your Toddler To Care For The Puppy

I was blessed to have a Toy Poodle and Red Doberman for my children. They picked the Red Doberman from a litter of black Doberman puppies. The puppies proved to be very good with my children. They had very good temperaments and were protective of my children, but yet gentle with them.


Possibly you have a puppy already. That is great. Your toddler can learn from you about caring for the puppy. Remember the puppy will need care just like your toddler does. There have been those that have said their puppy was just like a member of their family.

1. House training.

Include your toddler in the house training. Allow your toddler to watch your interaction with the puppy. When you take the puppy for a walk, allow your toddler to walk with you. Usually have your puppy eliminate in the same area outside. They will usually sniff that area once they use it the first time and will automatically eliminate there again. Remember to reward your puppy just like you rewarded your toddler when he/she used the potty. Let your toddler see you rewarding the puppy. Keep a pooper scooper to pick up the puppies poops and dispose of it. Once your puppy is house trained, you might want to consider obedience school also. A well trained puppy is so much better to deal with as compared to a puppy jumping all over you, jumping on the furniture, or barking constantly. The website below explains about house training. Carolyn Clark gives several tips.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsSsxU12xGU

Below is another video by Dr. Ian Dunbar. He explains and shows demonstrations. He speaks about teaching your puppy to ring the bell when he wants to go out. Also, I kept the dog chain on the door knob. When my Toy Poodle wanted to go walking, he would go get the leash and bring it to me or one of my children. Very intelligent dog.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4zsaBtr5Iw


2. Feeding.

Usually allow your toddler to help with the feeding. If using dry food, keep a measuring cup in the bag to dip the food into the puppy’s food bowl.

3. Shots.

Puppies just like children require shots. Take your toddler with you, so he/she can see the process when you go to the veterinarian.



Doctor examining a poodle




4. Traveling.

When it is vacation time, decide if your puppy will travel with your family. If you decide to take your puppy with you, you might want to travel with your puppy around in your car before that time, to be sure that your puppy will not get motion sickness. When traveling by car with your puppy be sure to take the pooper scooper with you to scoop up his poops and dispose of them when you stop at rest stops. Also, if visiting with relatives make sure that your relatives are okay with you bringing the puppy. If you decide not to take your puppy with you, consider getting a house sitter. In that way, the puppy will not be taken out of his/her natural environment. You might also, want to consider taking your puppy to a dog boarding facility. Include your toddler when you go, so he/her can see the process.



Traveling with your puppy



photo caption: fotosearch.com


Have A Merry Christmas and remember the reason for the season.