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Australian Labradoodles and kids
 
 
 

Children and Kids with Australian Labradoodle Puppies

Most Australian Labradoodles and Labradoodles are great with kids. That said there is much work to be done. One, you need to select the right Australian Labradoodle or Labradoodle that will be great with a child . Second, you need to assess your situation specifically. And third, we need to prepare, prepare your kids for an introduction to an Australian Labradoodle puppy plus prepare the puppy for your kids.

We specifically select our Australian Labradoodle puppies for each family Labradoodles and Kids based on two elements, one the family profile sent to you during the adoption process and two, puppy temperament testing, http://www.volhard.com/puppy/pat.htm , preformed with each puppy many times while they are in our care. Combining these elements to select the right dog is critical.

Selecting the Right Australian Labradoodle or Labradoodle for children

Not all Australian Labradoodles and/or Labradoodles are good with kids. The higher drive of some dogs is not a good match. High drive in some dogs results in jumping up and more crazy movements resulting from the constant movement of children. The size of the dog or puppy will not matter; however, the amount of drive will have a huge impact on your child.

Many first generation Labradoodles (the initial mating of a Lab to a Poodle, F1) retain the higher drive of the Labrador retriever. This high drive lasts for about 2 years. There is a reason Labrador Retrievers don’t even begin training for therapy work until age 2, they typically have a difficult time controlling themselves until this time. This does not mean that you cannot introduce a First generation Labradoodle to your family with kids, but it does mean that this match is more difficult and will take more time on your part and the part of the kids to make this match work well. Each new experience and change in the home environment and schedule will result in excitement for a dog. Dogs with a higher drive temperament will have a more difficult time controlling their behavior during these experiences. This can result in chaos. It is critical to know your breeder and the dogs expected temperament during the first year. If your breeder is not fully confident that their dogs will be fantastic with children during the first year or two move on to the other generations of Labradoodles or Australian Labradoodles.

Some second generation Labradoodles have what it takes to integrate easily with a family of children. The addition of the poodle temperament twice, second generation Labradoodles (f1B) are the result of a first generation Labradoodle bred to a poodle, aids in this ability. However, the breeding of any two dogs with poor temperaments themselves is a breeding practice to avoid, please run from these breeders. It shocks me the dogs some breeders will breed, those that have shown any type of aggression with other dogs or humans, those that you would not put with a toddler should not be bred, period. I would not recommend breeding with a toy poodle or any parent of poor temperament and I strongly suggest you visit any breeder you are interested and meet the parents if possible, or call the vet of record and just ask, “What are the dogs like, please describe their temperaments”, “Would you place the parent dog with a family of toddlers or kids”. Stick to a breeder in an organization like the ALAA, Australian Labradoodle Association of America, since you can be assured if a complaint was filed and proven truthful the breeder would not be listed. And above all know if your breeder breeds inside with close contact and a true understanding of the behavioral impact environment has on Are Labradoodles good with kids? the dogs they produce. We follow the Superdogs process, http://www.britfeld.com/superdogs/superdogs.htm.

What about Multigen Australian Labradoodles and kids? Multigen Australian Labradoodles are dogs of Poodle, Labrador Retriever and Cocker Spaniel, English or American Heritage. Furthermore they are the result of multiple matings of these dogs. i.e. the parents and grandparents are also Australian Labradoodles. Australian Labradoodles are dogs that typically have exactly what it takes to integrate easily into a family of children.

The same rules I describe above for second generation Labradoodles apply to Multigens. Select a breeder with top temperament breeding dogs. This is critical in producing a puppy that also has a great temperament and incredible with kids. Also select a breeder that understands the behavioral impact environment has on the puppies they produce.

Are you ready, really?

Puppies will mirror their families, if the situation is out of control the puppy will follow along. You need to look at your kids and your life. Will the kids follow your directions on how to interact with the puppy during play time? Will they have control of their little bodies and not run and scream when the puppy is around? Can they wait while you take the puppy outside to go to the bathroom? If you answered yes, then look at your life.

Can you follow a schedule that will involve at least 3 hours in addition to your day, outside supervising the puppy with the kids? Some of this time is just personal time with the puppy focused on training and petting the puppy, but it also includes having the puppy follow you around the house, cleaning up an accident and taking the puppy outside. All that adds up to time, do you have it? And will you have it for at least 2 months? If you just give up and confine the puppy, you will have a puppy that is not trained, unhappy and now out of control vying for your attention, negative or positive.

We do offer additionally trained puppies to families needing extras help. This involves our trainer working with the puppy in her home for 4 weeks, from the age of 8 weeks to 12 weeks. However, this does not mean the puppy will behave day one like an adult dog. It will be a trained puppy What this means is the puppy will know what to do outside, and not go to the bathroom inside, how to walk on a leash, not jump up, not nip and sleep in his crate all night. But without you spending the time to continue this training, especially the first two weeks home, it will all be worthless. Puppies are like kids in that in a new situation they test the rules and the boundaries.

Prepare, you and your kids

For the sake of the child's safety and for the sake of a trusting relationship between child and dog and let’s face it your sanity, you want your dog to learn "child equals good" so it is important to create pleasant associations. This is done by actively coaching the child, teaching the dog to have a positive association with the child and monitoring the dogs stress and the child’s responses.

Purchase the books, Raising Puppies and Kids Together, a Guide for parents. Pia Silvani, CPDT and Lynn Eckhardt and Happy Kids, Happy Dogs Building a Friendship Right from the Start, Barbara Shumannfang. If you are on our wait list, the first book is one of three books that will be sent to you during the 0 to 8 week period if you have kids.

The following is a summary of the book and other information we have gained in preparing for an Australian Labradoodle if you have kids.

The first month is very challenging. It all takes time. I do believe that of all the breeds in the world, the Australian Labradoodle has been designed specifically for the family, both retired empty nesters and those full of many kids. However, this does not mean training a puppy does not come with time and challenge. This means challenge to the adults and kids. You are kidding yourself if you think a kid can take on this challenge alone or that you will not be the primary care giver or leader and constant supervisor of the puppy during the first 2 months home. Please read the Training Webpage I have provided for more detailed training advice.

Prepare a schedule, an example is on the Training Webpage. Look at your week and determine the exact times your puppy will get up, go out, eat, sleep, nap and play. This time table is critical for the puppy and the child. You and your kids need to know for example that morning time is for going to the bathroom with an adult supervising, to eat, then going again to the bathroom with an adult and then about 30 min. of solid adult supervised kid play before a puppy nap. This allows the kids and you to know when to play and when to leave the dog alone.

Set a training schedule. In that daily schedule set aside time for training the puppy…and the kids. This involves joining a class, and I suggest finding a trainer to come to your home and provide hands on training. Specifically look for a trainer that works on behavioral issues, not just how to sit, stay and roll over. Learning how to work with your puppy and kids on behavior training will apply to all aspects of training a puppy.

Go over the rules.
  • Puppies and children should never be alone together. You best bet is to use a short leash and let the puppy follow you around everywhere when in the house and the kids are playing. There should be “follow the adult around time”, private time (sleeps and eats), kid supervised playtime and lots of love/cuddle the puppy time. The book Happy Kids, Happy Dogs, Building a Friendship Right From the Start, Barbara Shumannfang, has an entire chapter on playtime activities for kids and puppies/dogs. Also Puppy Training for Kids by Sarah Whitehead is a book offering training play for kids 4 to twelve. These books offer planned supervised activities each day to empower your children to train your puppy/dog and build a relationship of love and friendship.
  • Children should not be allowed to carry the puppy at first, wait to use this as a reward for following all the rules for the first week or two, and then allow this with supervision.
  • No screaming, running or chasing, puppy play time is quiet and in slow motion.
  • The puppies private space, where they eat and sleep is private space and only for the puppy unless the adult is with them.
  • Never open the outside door and let the puppy outside, unless it is into a fenced area.
  • Puppy proof the house, and maintain this level of cleaning. You don’t want your puppy to eat your shoes, but we certainly don’t want the puppy to get sick from eating your shoe. Let the kids know that things on the floor will be picked up by the puppy until after a few months when it knows its boundaries.
  • Have appropriate toys and let the kids know if a puppy takes a non-toy then they need to get the right toy and trade. Chasing the puppy for an item results in a game that they will rarely win training the puppy to trade is the correct response.
  • Australian Labradoodles are inside dogs, never leave them outside except to go to the bathroom, they will never want to just sit outside. Never tie them up outside, they will get into trouble, not to mention this is not what getting a dog is all about. The rule is when the puppy is outside so are you so plan what the role of the kids is during this time. I had mine sit by the window and watch, this way I could see them and they could watch the puppy.
  • Socialization is very important. If puppy time becomes chaos and therefore you decide to keep the puppy in his crate, room or outside, nothing will get better, if anything it will get worse as the puppy will lack the social skills necessary to be with kids and even adults, he will distrust or even exhibit fear of any social contact. He will crave love and attention. Know upfront that this is time well spent and plan for it now. This means just as I have stated, plan for play time, love time, and visit times, just supervise them and keep things in control. I suggest holding the puppy in your arms when meeting more than one other adult person until the puppy has had about 50 great experience meeting people. We do what we can here to socialize your puppy, however once they are not in the security of us and our home environment the puppy needs to know that all meet and greets are wonderful. By holding the puppy up near the faces of those coming towards them you add a sense of security and reduce the overwhelming nature of two or more kids and adults standing over the puppy all trying to pet him at the same time. If this was you, and 3 giants came in to a home you barely know and all try and touch you….you would run. Once the 50 great experiences have occurred your puppy will be ready to meet people on all levels. Socialization referrers to meeting other people of all ages and race, meeting other dogs, cats, and so on, so complete the training by covering these areas. You should not take the puppy to places where sick dogs may be, for example, dog parks or pet stores, but yes take them to a friend’s house or have a friend’s dog visit.
  • Learn about puppy behavior and how to properly train a puppy. This includes mouthing, jumping up, lack of interest or listening to children, hiding, toy guarding, ignoring cues, growling, fear, the chase game, having the kids offer treats, understanding body language, knowing how kids should play with the puppy and more, so read the books recommended above and others. You, your family and the puppy will appreciate it. Chapter 9 in the book goes into specific detail on, How Do children Interact with Puppies, and How Should They? This section offers invaluable lessons for you and the kids.
The great thing about Australian Labradoodles is that, if breed properly; they will adjust to your schedule. They can handle a daily run or just playing around the house. They can be couch potatoes or athletes. This is up to you and your family. This does not mean that they can handle sitting in a room all day, but they are very adaptive to the typical family that does not always follow a daily walking routine. Make sure your breeder is well aware of what you expect from the dog and that the dog is selected to meet these criteria. And for heaven sake, it is a dog, not a stuffed animal, they will get into trouble, do the wrong thing now and again, it takes time just like all good things. Training a puppy is not much different than training your kids, but at the end of the day they will not throw a temper tantrum. And just like family, they will love you unconditionally. This is the reward all kids should learn as the result of taking on the responsibility to care for an animal.





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