Are you raising a puppy to train as a service dog, while also raising a family? Dogs and kids bring so much love and joy to life, but combining them can be challenging. When you add a disability to the mix, you may be confused about how to best set up both youngsters to succeed. We’ve helped parents who are training a service dog succeed.
If you haven’t yet started the journey yet, read our post on How to Train a Service Dog for Your Child. If you’re already in the process of getting or training a dog to assist your child, or if you’re a parent train a service dog for yourself, these tips will help you make progress with this unique endeavor.
Hot Tip: With Babies (of Any Species) Prevention Is Most Important
While focusing on your dog and child having a good relationship does include fostering fun and love between them, in the early stages the most important way to build foundations is actually preventing a bad association. Building a positive relationship takes time and many positive (and neutral) experiences. But it only takes one bad exposure to create a negative association.
Establish a “Child Zone” & a “Dog Zone”
Make sure there is at least one space in your home that is a “child-only space.” Your child will appreciate a place where their toys are not chewed, they can eat a snack without an inquiring wet nose, and where they can run and yell without being jumped on. This can be a play room with a door or gate, or if you’re in a small apartment, it might be a corner of the living room with an exercise pen (“x-pen”) around it. Train your puppy from day one that they never get to enter that space by using barriers, or gently escorting them out with their attached drag leash, if a child leaves the gate open.
Likewise, set up a space that is for the puppy to retreat whenever it needs some quiet time. The ideal is a crate inside a room the kids seldom enter, like a parent’s office or bedroom. But if you have a studio apartment, the dog’s sanctuary might be a crate underneath the table in the entryway. It should be a space the dog associates with being calm, happy, and near its family. A crate in the basement or a distant room of the house will feel like banishment. Teach your children they must never stick their hands or crawl into the dog’s area. Likewise, if the pup is sleeping or has a chew or toy, to leave the pup alone.
Make sure that the puppy’s “safe zone” is a happy place where good things happen — feed meals and high-value chews in the dog’s crate or dog room. Spend time just hanging out nearby (working on your computer, watching TV, or cooking a meal) while your dog is in his special place.
Remove the Puppy when Your Child is Dysregulated
If you have a neurodivergent child who may scare your puppy when they become dysregulated, it is critical that you remove your puppy as soon as you know a storm is brewing. While you may want your adult service dog to interrupt or comfort your child when they’re upset, a puppy is not developmentally prepared for this job. If your pup gets scared when your child is having trouble, they may learn to avoid your child when they’re upset.
Keep a drag line on your pup all the time. If you see your child becoming distressed, calmly pick up the pup’s leash and move them away to their “dog zone.” Keep some high-value chews nearby so you can easily give your pup something to do till the storm blows over. A white noise machine or a visual barrier may also be helpful.
At other times, when your child is not present, train your puppy on a cue that means they should run happily with you to their safe space. Then, eventually you can cue your puppy to move away without escorting them. (For more information on training a service dog for someone with autism, read “Is an Autism Service Dog Right for Me or My Child?“)
Anticipate Puppy Troubles
You may have noticed that we promote separation in the first two tips. It’s part of this tip, too! There are times of day that tend to be challenging for puppies. The evening, around 5-8 PM, is often the “puppy witching hour.” Puppies may also be hyper or grouchy when they are overtired, need to potty, family or visitors arrive, riled up by play, or the children are loud or active. Tracking your puppy’s difficult times can help you set up your pup (and child) for success by giving them other things to do when they’re likely to struggle.
For example, if your puppy tends to chase the kids, nip, and jump around at 5 to 7 PM when people are coming home from work or school, and everyone is hungry and active, this is not the best time to train. Tire out your puppy from 4 to 4:30 with training, exercise, or play, let her wind down for 20 minutes, then put her in her crate with her dinner stuffed into several food toys. That way, she’ll be out of the way and quietly engaged when the kids and adults come home in the evening, dinner is being prepared and eaten, etc. Then, when everyone is calm after dinner, you can bring the puppy and kids together for quiet time to read a story or watch TV together before bed.
Select the Right Pup
If you haven’t brought your puppy home yet, making sure to get the right dog will make a huge difference in the long run. If you already have your puppy, use this information to consider the best pathway forward.
A public access service dog requires certain specific temperament and personality traits, as we’ve discussed in other posts and in our free introductory video. Additionally, for a dog that will live with small children, pay special attention to these three traits:
- Does the dog (or its parents, if a puppy) particularly love children? Some dogs have a special attraction to children. Some dogs prefer adults. Selecting a dog that is likely to have an affinity for kids will help a lot.
- Does the dog (or its parents, if a puppy) have any resource guarding tendencies? Does the dog get possessive over toys or its spot on the couch? Does the dog gulp its food if you approach or run away with its bone? Resource guarding can be modified, but it has a significant genetic component. Dogs with a tendency to guard are more likely to guard from children than adults.
- Is the dog emotionally sensitive? Dogs that are very sensitive to people’s emotions can have a hard time in a home with boisterous children, especially children whose disabilities might cause dysregulated outbursts. Other traits that are fantastic for a dog that shares its home with children are confidence, resilience, comfort with novelty, minimal interest in chasing moving objects, and comfort with loud or sudden sounds.
How do you find this special dog? It’s not always easy. The search process can be complex, and assessing puppies takes a lot of skill and experience. As we discuss below, getting help for the portions of the journey that are the most challenging can make the difference in the long run. Our webinar on Finding Your Next Service Dog is a great starting point. In the video below, Katy describes what it was like for her to train a service dog for her son Ty.
Get Help
Raising puppies — and children — is a lot of work! Nobody can do all of it alone. Service dog training, in itself, is a massive endeavor. I always say that it takes a village to train a service dog — even if you don’t have kids. Get quality support so that you, your dog, and your family can all shine.
The type and amount of support you need will depend on how much time you have, your training skill and experience, the particular challenges you face, and your preferences. For example, iff you love taking your puppy to class and training, but morning walks are hard on your arthritis or too difficult with getting kids ready for school, consider a dog walker for the first walk of the day. You’ll get a break, the puppy will get exercise and attention to help him be calm when he returns.
If training is overwhelming, day training or board & train are terrific options. Our Platinum Round-Trip Board & Train program for service dogs in training has been very popular and successful for our clients with children because it allows the dog to make progress at times that parents are more focused on children — such as during back-to-school or holidays.
Do you love learning how to train your dog, but find it difficult to make it out to a class in the evenings? We offer service dog foundation classes ONLINE so you can train in the convenience of your home. We also offer both day and evening class times, so you can focus on training while the kids are in school.
There’s no doubt that training a service dog while managing children is an undertaking that is not for the faint of heart! But, when it goes well, it can bring magic into all of your lives. Get in touch if you’d like us to add our wizardry!