Bringing a furry friend home can be a joyful and life-changing experience – especially when adopting from a rescue! Dogs from rescues often come with stories, second chances, and loads of love to give. However, when you have children at home, there are some extra considerations to ensure a smooth transition and a happy family dynamic.
Here’s your guide to adopting the perfect dog for your family.
1. Temperament is Key
Every dog has its own unique personality. When adopting, prioritize temperament over breed or size. A good rescue will typically perform temperament evaluations and can help identify dogs that are calm, patient, and child-friendly. Look for dogs that are tolerant and don’t startle easily.
Tip: Dogs that have been staying with a foster family with children may make a great choice for your family.
2. Age Matters
While puppies are adorable and might seem like a great idea, they require a lot of time, training, and supervision – similar to having another toddler in the house! Older dogs (2+) can often be a better fit for families with kids because they’re more likely to be housetrained and past the chewing and nipping phase.
Tip: Consider an adult dog who has proven habits and behaviors. They’re often overlooked at rescues but can be a fantastic addition to your family.
3. Energy Levels
A hyperactive dog might not match well with young children who are still learning how to interact with animals gently. On the flip side, a very low-energy dog might not thrive in a household filled with the joyful chaos of kids. Match the dog’s energy levels with your family’s lifestyle and activity level.
Tip: Spend time with the dog before adopting to see if their energy levels feel like a fit.
4. Health History
Most rescues are upfront about any health issues the dog may have, however, it’s important to ask questions. Do some research on your region of the country as well as the breed/s of dog you are thinking you’d like to adopt.
Some regions have a higher prevalence of certain tick-borne diseases, such as the Rocky Mountains, while others may have a higher prevalence of diseases such as leptospirosis, where there is significant rainfall with standing water.
If you are looking at a certain breed or size of dog, they may be predisposed to hip dysplasia, while others may be more prone to heart problems. Personally, if I knew a dog had the potential for one of these issues in the future but had the perfect personality for our family, it wouldn’t prevent me from adopting. However, I’d be sure I kept the dog in the best physical condition I could as well as be aware of early signs of the disease and be prepared financially to cover any future treatment and cost. Some of these things may be difficult for a shelter to discover without expensive diagnostic equipment, however, it doesn’t hurt to ask and self self-informed.
You may want to ask if the dog has been treated for worms or other parasites or had any vaccinations. Dental issues can be checked. Does the dog have cracked teeth or the start of dental disease from a poor diet? Small breeds with small jaws or breeds with flat faces may be prone to dental disease due to misaligned teeth or overcrowding of teeth. Dogs with significant health concerns may need extra care, time, or financial commitment that you should be prepared to cover. Finally, ask to ensure the rescue has updated vaccination records and any routine veterinary care.
Tip: Some rescues include a trial period or post-adoptions support to help with any medical concerns, but be sure to ask. Health insurance for your dog may be helpful, but many issues (such as breed-specific genetic issues) may not be covered, so do your research.
5. Meet-and-Greet with Your Children
Before finalizing the adoption, arrange a meet-and-greet between your kids and the dog. Watch how the dog interacts with your children and vice versa. Teach your kids how to approach and handle dogs respectfully to ensure a positive relationship. For more on introducing your child and the dog, see our post: Introducing Your Puppy to Your Child
Tip: Pay attention to the dog’s body language during the interaction. Signs of stress, like cowering or lip licking, might mean the dog isn’t ready for a loud or busy home. Look for a dog who looks happy and interested to be near the children and wants to interact.
6. Ask Questions and Share Honestly
Be upfront about your family’s routines, lifestyle, and experience with dogs. The rescue staff knows the animals and can make thoughtful recommendations when they have accurate information. Don’t shy away from asking questions, such as:
- Has the dog been around children before?
- Is the dog crate-trained or housetrained?
- How does the dog handle new environments or noises?
7. Prepare for the Transition
After adoption, it’s important to set both the dog and your kids up for success. It may be helpful to create a schedule for daily care and routine. Kids will be excited to help. Depending on the ages of your children, they may help with some of the responsibilities: feeding the dog, keeping the water bowl fresh, possible grooming, walking, and cleaning up the poop (it’s not a fun job but important never the less!). I’m more in favor of children helping with feeding the dog (which is more controlled and supervised) versus walking the dog unaccompanied. For more on this: When Kids Walk the Family Dog – Consider These Things
Create a designated safe space where your dog can retreat and interact when they need downtime. This could be a crate or room. It’s helpful to tell the kids that there are “no-go” spaces, meaning that the kids don’t bother the dog when they are in certain areas. Sometimes baby gates can be useful if children are very young or you have moments that you are concerned about supervision.
Set clear rules for your children about how to treat and interact with dogs. Remember, patience is key- both the dog and your kids will need time to adjust to each other. Often, when children and dogs are playing and the energy levels get too high, you may need to set timeouts. Throughout the day, if you can be consistent with nap times, it can instill a sense of security that helps regulate energy levels. I religiously set an hour nap time for our dogs following a meal or a walk.
Discuss in advance the rules for your new dog. What privileges will be allowed? Will the dog be allowed on the couch or on the beds? It is harder to remove a privilege than to add one at a later date.
Generally, I would reserve the couch for the humans and opt for a nice dog bed near it on the floor. This gives kids a dog-free space and can give the dog a kid-free space!
How will you address behavioral issues, i.e., jumping on people, pulling on the leash, or crowding family members while preparing or eating dinner? There may be instances where the dog takes a child’s toy. Prepare for this meltdown! Let your child know to always get an adult to remove the toy. If kids are aware that this could happen, they will be better at knowing how to react.
Tip: Enroll in a family-friendly dog training class to help your kids learn how to communicate with your new pet effectively. If you aren’t able to find a class that will include young children, take the class yourself, and much of the information may be useful to share with the kids. Dogs can learn new things at any age, but most obedience classes can be started when the dog is 5-6 months or older. Dogs are never too old to learn new behaviors. If you have children between the ages of 4 & 10, as a family you can learn together by playing Stop, Look & Paws dog safety sticker set. This can be useful and help to generate discussions and basic dog safety guidelines and dog body language.
In Closing:
Adopting a rescue dog can be one of the most rewarding experiences for your family. With a little preparation and the right match, you’ll be giving a deserving dog a loving forever home while teaching your children about compassion and responsibility. Remember, patience pays off, celebrate small victories, and don’t expect overnight success.
Here’s to wagging tails and endless memories!
If you’ve recently adopted a dog or are considering it, consider reading our children’s book: Finding My Forever Family – Diary of a Rescue Dog by Lesley Zoromski and share your journey with us! We are here to celebrate with you!!
Overall, be sure to do some of the activities your dog enjoys every day, and importantly, include the baby. For example, a dog walk with the baby stroller is an excellent activity. The dog sees everyone walking as a pack unit, with the baby in the lead. Plus, walking is very healthy for everyone!
If you play games like fetch, the baby can be present as you are playing with the dog. Also, if you play indoor scent games like searching for hidden dog treats, your baby can be present for this as well. Try to find as many things as possible that you can still do where your dog sees that the baby is included.
Of note, even practicing the basic commands your dog knows, followed by praise and a treat, while your baby is in your arms, makes the dog see the baby as part of the interaction and training. In the eyes of the dog, “Good things happen when the baby is present!”
Two final precautionary thoughts –
1. If you think your dog is showing signs of jealously, please contact a professional trainer to help you. It is usually a situation that can be helped by having the owner make changes in the way they are relating to the dog.
2. Most important, because things can happen in a split second, always supervise your dog and baby when they are together!
It is a wonderful experience for a child to grow up with a dog. Learning to have compassion and understanding of a different species starts with you, and how you model respect and kindness to your canine family member. Enjoy your new family!
Lesley Zoromski
Kids-n-K9s.com 
Sharpen up “come” command. The last thing you need when you are trying to do so many additional things in a busy household or rush off to an appointment is to have your dog ignoring you when you are calling them to come to you. This is a super important command to reward so be sure you praise/or treat your dog consistently each time they reach you.
Practice calling them to “come” every time you’re calling your dog for their meal. That is always positive for a dog!
A good solid “stay”, can be so valuable in many areas of your life with the dog especially when you are answering a door or carrying the baby from one room to the next. You don’t want a dog getting under foot.
Practice teaching your dog to go to their bed. This is the “go to your spot” and “stay in your spot” command. The goal is to have them stay until you return to release them. Practice in advance so you are prepared for when the baby first arrives. If you haven’t perfected the solid stay with distractions, putting them on leash, or tethering them to a solid object can help. If your dog is crate trained, using a crate is another good option to control your dog when people arrive at your home, or use a baby gate to control their access to rooms.
“Stay out” can be used at the door of the baby’s room. Your dog will be happy to watch things from the doorway. If in the future you decide your dog is calm enough to come in, you can always allow it later. If this is initially difficult to do, use a baby gate at the doorway. Your dog can see what is happening but stay at a distance.
If your dog decides not to “stay out”, you can use “get back” to help them stay out of baby’s room, and learn that it’s off limits. If they “get back” and then “stay out”, they won’t get into the diaper pail, which for one of my dogs is like going to a 5 Star restaurant! “Get back” is also good to use if your dog is crowding you and not giving you space when sitting with the baby. Then you can ask for a “down” next to you so they can be close, but not too demanding with your space.
“Wait” is just a good command to use to teach your dog they have to wait for things. It may be for dinner, leaving their crate, or going out the door for a walk. It helps to teach a dog how to have discipline. It can also help keep things calm, and calmness around a baby is a good thing!
“Sit or down” can be used to help make a dog calmer for petting, but this is only if they know how to hold this without you repeating yourself over and over again. You want to say it once; they sit and stay in place until released followed by lots of praise!! If your dog stands calmly to be petted, they don’t even need the sit. The most important thing is that they know how to stay calm in the presence of the baby.
“Leave it” can be used if you or the baby drops something. A quick sniff and investigation by your dog is OK. This also can be very useful if your dog likes to take toys or articles of clothing. You don’t want to create a game of “keep away”, but if it happens anyway, you’ll want to teach “give it”.
One way I use the “off” command is to have a designated baby blanket on the floor that dogs are not allowed on. This gives the baby a chance to have some tummy time, and allows the dog to be a part of it without being in the middle of it. Of course “off” is good for a dog that jumps on people or objects. Basically, the command means get your feet off of what they are touching.
If you don’t have these commands mastered, use your leash and collar to help show your dog. Dogs have unique personalities, including levels of excitement and curiosity. You will have to judge how much guidance or training you need to do with your dog. If you’re unsure, as many new parents/dog owners are, hire a professional to help you!
Your goal should be to maintain calmness and control with your dog. Remember this is all new to them, so it is important to teach them your expectations for their behavior. I like dogs to see what is happening with the baby, but initially keep at a distance until I can see how they are reacting, and they get more familiar and comfortable with the new baby.
That’s all for Part 2 of the blog post. Part 3 is all about “the meet and greet”. I will make suggestions for your dog getting close to the baby to be sure things are safe and pleasant.
Lesley Zoromski
Kids-n-K9s.com 
