Kids’ Questions for The Dog Trainer

This week, https://mightymommy.quickanddirtytips.com/ and I have teamed up! Mighty Mommy conducted careful research to find out what kids want to know about dogs – that is, she asked her 8 kids. And I answered. The result: 8 earth-shattering questions about dogs, and the equally earth-shattering answers.

Question #1

Our two dogs – Molly, a 9-year-old Black Lab, and Gracie, a 1-1/2-year-old Pomeranian – always bark at squirrels, birds, or other dogs when they see them out the front window in our home. Why are they both so crazy when they see other animals near our house? (Brady Butler, age 10)  

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Answer

Because it’s exciting! That’s the short answer. Molly and Gracie would probably like to chase the fast-moving, furry squirrels and the hopping, walking, flying birds. And I’ll bet that once one gets going, so does the other. When one dog gets interested or excited by something, usually other dogs nearby will get interested and excited, too.

When one dog gets interested or excited by something, usually other dogs nearby will get interested and excited, too.

Molly and Gracie might just be excited about the other dogs going by the way you get excited when you see a friend. Or they could be warning the other dogs off their territory. You might be able to tell from the way they bark and from their body language. If they bark at the other dogs the same way they bark when they’re happy and playing with you, then they’re probably feeling friendly toward the dogs. If their barks are deep and scary-sounding, they’re probably trying to warn the other dogs away from their turf.

Question #2

When our friends come over to our house, both our dogs like to jump all over them—what’s the best way to keep them calm? (Annie Butler, age 7)  

Answer

One good way is to make sure your dogs are good and tired before your friends come over – that way they’ll have less energy left to get excited with. Some dogs won’t jump up if you toss a toy for them to pick up and run around with instead.

See also: /pets/dog-behavior/how-to-get-your-dog-to-stop-barking-at-guests

But the best thing to do is probably to teach your dogs that the way to get people to say hi to them is to sit politely or even just trot around without jumping. You can help your dogs learn that sitting is a great way to get attention from people by asking them to sit and giving them lots of attention and treats when they sit. Be really, really generous with love and treats.

If they jump up, walk quietly away from them and don’t talk to them. You might even need to leave the room! It can be hard to keep this rule 100% of the time, but it really helps your dog figure out what to do.

You can also have practice sessions to teach your dogs to sit when people come over. I did /pets/dog-behavior/how-to-stop-a-dog-from-jumping-up. You probably need an adult’s help for the training. Lots of people need a trainer’s help, so I promise I’m not saying that just because you are kids.

Question #3

Is it okay to give our dogs cheese when we want them to do something like a trick? (Brendan Butler, age 13) 

Answer

Hey, it’s only fair to do something for our dogs when they do something for us! It’s like saying thanks, or like bringing your mom’s plate to the table when she brought your silverware out for you. So, as long as cheese doesn’t upset your dogs’ stomachs, it’s fine. Use tiny pieces, so you can give more rewards without using a lot of cheese.

Sometimes, dogs learn that they never get a treat unless they see it right up front. So you might want to hide the treat so your dog doesn’t see it until after she does the trick. Also, sometimes you can thank her in other ways. For instance, if she especially likes it when you scratch her back right behind her tail, you could do that for her after she does a trick for you.

See also: /pets/dog-behavior/how-to-train-a-dog-with-food-rewards

Question #4

Sometimes both our dogs bark at us for no reason. Are they trying to talk to us? (Annie Butler, age 7)

Answer  

So, here’s the thing – it’s not for no reason. But the reason might be one that’s obvious to your dogs and not so obvious to a human. One way to figure out why a dog is doing something is to see if you can spot any patterns. Say your dog barks at you five times. The fifth time, you look at her and say “What do you want?” If your dog stops barking, then you can probably bet that she’s  barking to get you to pay attention to her. Try paying more attention to her when she’s being quiet and polite, and see if the pattern changes.

See also: /pets/dog-behavior/gross-things-dogs-do

Question #5

Our dog Gracie sometimes likes to drag her butt on the rug in circles. We call it the “Swiffer.”    Why does she do this? Is her butt itchy? (Brady Butler, age 10)  

Answer

Gracie should hit the vet’s office. It’s a good bet she has what are called https://www.dermatologyforanimals.com/faq-05/ The anal sacs are little pouches near a dog’s anus, and they can get clogged. This is uncomfortable and can make it hurt to poop. The vet can clean the sacs out so that Gracie feels better and your rug is cleaner too.

Question #6

Why do our dogs turn around in circles before lying down? (Brendan Butler, age 13)

Answer

Some people think it’s a “leftover” behavior from when dogs first evolved, and even from their wolf ancestors. Dogs and wolves might have turned around to make a little nest for themselves in a pile of leaves or among tall grasses, or as a way to start curling up to sleep. But the truth is that nobody really knows. Humans are very good at making up stories that sound like good explanations for things we don’t understand, and this is one situation where we’re just … making stuff up!

Question #7

When we throw Molly a tennis ball, she always chases it and brings it right back to us. But Gracie grabs it, runs off, and won’t bring it back to us. Why is this? (Brendan Butler, age 13)  

Answer

It’s like this: Molly has the most fun chasing the ball. She brings it back to you because when you throw it for her, she can chase it again. Gracie has more fun carrying the ball around in her mouth and hanging on to it than she does chasing it. If she brings it back, then she has to go to the trouble of chasing it again, and what’s the point of that?

You can teach a dog to enjoy bringing the ball back and /pets/cats/how-to-keep-your-dog-from-chasing-cats it, but unless it’s important for some reason, I wouldn’t bother. Just let each dog have the kind of fun she likes best.

Question #8

Both our dogs like to sleep in our bedrooms, especially Gracie. Is that okay for them and for us? (Annie Butler, age 7) 

Answer

Dogs usually like to hang out and sleep near their people. If your dogs like to /pets/dog-care/where-should-your-dog-sleep, and if you like to have your dogs near you when you’re sleeping, then everybody’s happy! Including me.

Say your dog sleeps in the bed with you and /pets/dog-behavior/what-to-do-if-your-dog-growls-or-snaps every time you move. Or say your dog gets in bed and then growls at you when you try to get in bed too. A situation like that can be dangerous and means that you should get a specialist in dog behavior to work with your dog. But otherwise, there’s no reason your dogs can’t sleep in your bedroom or even in your bed.

For more kids’ questions about dogs, check out /parenting/school-age/dog-trainer-answers-kids%E2%80%99-canine-questions where I answered more questions from the Butler household.

Pomeranian and Black Lab images from Shutterstock