How do I get my kid to stop harrassing my dog?

Question

My 2 year old child is a good kid, and my 70 pound dog is very calm and docile. My kids jumps on him, pokes him in the eyes, and pulls his tail, and the dog does nothing but take it. How do I get my kid, who is incredibly energetic, to stop doing this? Keep in mind I can't let my kid play outside all the time.

Answer 1

Practice petting the dog and being nice. Make sure your child knows that he is hurting your dog.

2 years old is not too young for a time out or other form of discipline. When he does something to hurt the dog, take him to time out, take away toys, or stand in corner. Two minutes in the corner makes a large impression on a two year old. After punishment, make your child apologize to the dog and pet him in a nice way.  

Answer 2

I agree with "Heart's", now is the time you need to teach your child to respect animals.  Also, even though your dog is docile, that does not mean your child can't push him to his limits....in other words, if this keeps up your dog could possibly hurt your child.

Answer 3

had the same problem with mine. finally after all the explaining and showing, i thought, maybe if he understood it HURTS the dog, he might not do it. so everytime he pulled his tail i tugged on his hair a little, not yank it, just a little tug, not even enough to hurt him, i told him everytime you pull the dogs tail or jump on him, im gonna pull your hair. after about a dozen times of the hair tugging he would quit and say that hurts and i told him thats what it feels like to the dog. my son only did it a few more before he stopped. it may seem a bit extreme, but id rather tug on my sons hair to show him it hurts than have my 50 pound dog finally turn on him.

Answer 4

First take the time to show him how to handle the dog appropriately.  Hold his hand gently and move him through the motions of petting the dog appropriately.  Explain that any time he handles the dog in any other manner he will not be permitted to be in contact with the dog for X amount of time.  When he behaves inappropriately, separate him from the dog immediately.  Don't make the dog go to another room, your son should be removed from the situation.  He should receive a time-out for a set period of time in which he isn't allowed to play with the dog or any of his toys.  Don't forget to praise him when he is petting the dog in the appropriate manner that you have shown him.  It will take time and diligence on your part, but he will eventually learn that his behavior will yield results that he doesn't enjoy.  

Answer 5

You need to teach your son Respect for all animals RIGHT NOW...this dog may be docile but another may NOT be...VERY DANGEROUS...Start by showing your little guy HOW to be gentle, Show him HOW to PET the Dog and say to your son as he is petting.."Soft" Pet the Doggy Soft...allow him to try and if your son gets aggressive show him ONE more time...if that doesn't work...then you need to Paddle his little BUTT and remove him  from the dog!!~~And do not allow him to be arouind the dog until he learns to be GENTLE~~You could be saving his life~~The dog may get tired of the Abuse and turn on him~~

Answer 6

i went through this same thing several months ago with my two year old. i tried the telling hin and showing him to be gentle and soft and told my son that the dog was a baby and he had to be careful. none of it worked. kids will be kids, and boys will be boys. the sad part about it was that the dog got tired of taking it and bit my son. that was the end of that rope and we had to get rid of the dog because i couldn't get my son to listen and at the same time i didn't want my son to get bit again. i don't know if getting rid of the dog is an option but you should try to at least keep them separated until your son is a little bit older.

Answer 7

I can't understand why you would allow this, even once...

Tell him  "NO" and lead the child away when behavior is over the line, every time.

Better to calm tears than to be getting stitches in your child's face.

Answer 8

Try these, it really works! gently pull your child's hears, don't hurt him, and while you do that, ask him if it hurts, when he says yes, explain to him that that's  what the dog feels when he does it to it.

Show your child gentle ways to play with the dog.  

Answer 9

Put the dog somewhere safe, for an hour at a time, away from your son, until the boy is old enough to know that what he is doing is wrong.

Also, start putting your son in his room for a while if he mistreats the dog, he is old enough to start learning that you can't treat animals that way.

You really don't want the dog snapping at or biting him.  The main thing is the safety of both of them.

Answer 10

I've seen a lot of young children around your child's age act like that towards animals. You just need to sit down and tell him/her that their behavior is unacceptable. Show him a good example by lightly petting the dog. You have to show your child visually how you want him/her to treat the dog. When your child is mean or harassing the dog, there has to be punishment, possibly a time out. After a while, your child should realize that that behavior is wrong and he/she will stop.

Good luck!

Answer 11

I was wondering when I'd read the answer that said "The dog finally bit my kid so we got rid of the dog"...... Seriously.. How much would YOU tolerate? Train the child, spank (yes, I said spank) for the unacceptable behavior and don't blame the dog if your child is allowed to continue tormenting him  and he finally bites.

EDIT: As a mom of five I'm very well aware as to how a 2 yr old responds to the word "no".. And a crack on the butt hurts alot less than stitches to the face...