How do I stop my dog reacting to children?

When they encounter children for the first time as adult dogs, they may be extremely frightened by the unfamiliar size, smells, noises, and movements of children. Never leave your dog unsupervised with children. This should be the rule for all dogs but especially for a dog who's afraid of children or hasn't encountered them in the past. Don't force your dog to make friends with a child. Forcing your dog to stand still while a child approaches it or pets it is asking for trouble. Desensitization is the process of gradually increasing your dog's interactions with children to make it more comfortable with them. You can start by tossing your dog a few treats when it sees children from a distance and remains relaxed. Very slowly over several days, weeks, or months, you can decrease the distance between your dog and children as long as no signs of stress appear, all the while handing out treats and praise. Be Patient These things can take a long time, and your dog may never fully accept children. However, with patience and perseverance, you should be able to minimize your fluffy friend's fear and prevent dog bites.

To correct a reactive dog when her biggest trigger is children, take her on walks in a park at a distance from kids to desensitize her a little and work her way closer. Treats barely do the trick when she’s around kids. We had a training session and she was the best in her class, but the moment we left she saw a kid and she just did a 180, lunging, barking, growling. I need to know how to stop her in the moment because nothing distracts her when she’s around kids. I need her to be ok to go around everybody and be good. Anybody have any tips on things I should work on specifically.

If you have a dog that is scared of your child or other children, you must take the situation seriously and find ways to give your dog space from children so that he can learn to be more comfortable around the source of his fear. Be very careful when training your dog with children, and use only positive training instead of punishing your dog for showing negative behavior. Safety first, always supervise babies and young children around a dog and never leave them alone together, even for a moment. If your dog is scared of other children visiting your home, set up fail-safe management — gates, doors, physical barriers—between the children and your dog. Find a safe zone that your dog can go to where children are not allowed. If your dog is scared of kids outside the home, keep him away from playgrounds and parks where children play. Never allow your dog to run around off-leash in or near a playground. Never allow kids to greet your dog or come into his space. Teach any kids that will be visiting your household to pay no attention to your fearful dog. You can try to create a positive association with kids, if you have the right distance and calm children to help. Start having calm kids walk past at a safe distance, and when they pass, give your dog a high-value treat. Repeat this several times. If your dog seems nervous, move further away. Learn to read your dog’s body language and fear signals, so you know when your dog is becoming uncomfortable. If your dog shows any fear signals when around children, move your dog away immediately, without reprimanding your dog or the kids. If your dog continues to be afraid of children, seek the guidance of a positive trainer to help you with the process.