doggie dude ranch & training center

BOARDING | TRAINING

Training Quick Links

Should Young Children Go to Dog Parks?

photo of little child and dog in park
"A friend called with a surprising story to share. She was at a local dog park with her small terrier, and not far away, there was a family with a lab mix. The family consisted of mom, dad and young daughter who was about 3 years old."

Guest Post from Lesley Zoromski, Dairydell Master Trainer

A friend called with a surprising story to share. She was at a local dog park with her small terrier, and not far away, there was a family with a lab mix. The family consisted of mom, dad and young daughter who was about 3 years old. A large dog ran by the family, and the young girl, somewhat surprised, grabbed onto her mother’s legs for comfort. Here’s the shocker…..

Her mother bent down to look into her child’s eyes and said, “Oh honey, you don’t have to be afraid of any dogs here because this is a dog park and all dogs at dog parks are friendly.”

Worst advice ever!

That’s because dogs at dog parks are not screened in any way.

  • Dogs do not have to be safe with children to go to a dog park.
  • Dogs do not have to be human or dog friendly, and some may in fact be bullies and jerks!
  • Dogs are not required to have vaccinations to go to a dog park.
  • Dogs that may be friendly, may still have terrible manners meaning that they could jump on anybody and anything, or use their mouth to grab, hold and pull… all with the intent to play.

Often times, going to a dog park is a dog’s only physical outlet to “let loose”. Rough play or rude behavior (towards dogs or humans) can be common. Couple that with an owner who is looking more at their phone or chatting with other dog owners, and things can go wrong in a nano second. Some owners are in denial about their dog’s inappropriate “play” and there’s not a lot you can do about that, other than recognizing potentially dangerous situations and leaving the park. Educate yourself about dog body language and good dog park etiquette to help be proactive and avoid bad situations.

Looking back on this dog park example, the child was shy, but another child may think it’s great fun to chase after dogs. Some dogs may be ok with this, but others may not. In fact, if they are running away and are nervous about being pursued by a child, they may turn and stop the child with a bite.

So if you want to give your child exposure to dogs, great, but find friends that have dogs that like children and are comfortable in their presence. See my blog on “When Things Are Going Well”, to understand body language that supports this.

In closing, always supervise your child and dog. By all means, if you see a child pursuing a dog that’s trying to get away, step in to intervene. Sometimes young children don’t know any better, and it’s our job to help keep both child and dog safe.

Lesley Zoromski

Lesley Zoromski

Lesley Zoromski is a passionate educator and lifelong dog lover. Her 15-year teaching career was focused on elementary education where she taught children ages 4 to 8. Since transitioning to the world of dog training in 2003, she has trained literally thousands of dogs and their owners in addition to helping dozens of local rescue groups and their dogs in need. With the specific goal of bettering the life of children and dogs alike, Lesley has channeled this passion and unique combination of experience into developing Stop, Look & Paws™. Over 5 million dog bites occur annually in the United States, with over half of all victims being children. For Lesley, these are unacceptable statistics. The critical need to provide improved safety was the driving force in creating the child/dog safety activity that is Stop, Look & Paws™.
Camilla Gray Nelson

Camilla Gray Nelson

Camilla has over 50 years experience with animals (she grew up on the farm!). She has trained, bred and shown dogs since 1989 and brings this broad background and knowledge of dog behavior to her clients and her business. Her life-long understanding of the animal mind helped her develop what has become her signature style of natural dog training and voice control, now simply referred to as the “Dairydell Method”.

Share this post

Have You Heard?... About Dairydell's

Board & Train Finishing School

Our Premier Live-In Training!

While You’re Home or Away…We train your dog in manners and obedience and teach YOU how to keep him perfect!

Dairydell Board & Train Testimonial Video Reviews

Play Video
Play Video
Play Video
Play Video

Leave a Comment

Monthly Maintenance Classes

For Board & Train Grads & Their Dogs

To better serve our Dream Dog™ Board & Train graduates, our monthly maintenance classes have had a Total Makeover! Now each month will have its own theme, and each class within that month will be geared for either on-leash OR off-leash grads and include Holiday preparedness exercises when appropriate. We will even be including special HOLIDAY training exercises for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and 4th of July!

Online Video Account Login

Remember....

After logging in with this form, you will find your video orders in the My Videos section