Introducing kids to hounds is something that is second nature to us at this point. Dustin and I got our first hound shortly before we got married so our kids have never known life without a dog.
Our preference is to start them as puppies, but we have had our share of buying older dogs too.
We love getting a pup as soon as it's weaned from mom and the kids love on them daily! They get carried around the yard, lay in our laps while we work, and snuggle up on the couch for movie night.
The one point I want to drive home here is that the kids change their shoes if they've been elsewhere and we always wash our hands. The dogs are confined to the backyard... and house until after they've had all shots too.
We've had two bouts with Parvo and honestly, we don't care to do that shit again!
So, the pups and the kids play in the yard, snuggle on the couch and everyone is happy + stays healthy.
As they grow, we teach the kids to teach them not to bite the same way our old dog trainer taught us by holding their mouths closed and saying, "No!" Don't worry, you'll do this over and over about a million times, but eventually the dogs begin to respect you and the kids.
The next point I want to make is the fact that you should be aware that your kids will watch how you treat the dogs and mimic your actions. So teach them to respect the dogs and teach the dogs to respect you.
We all know dogs, just as kids can be frustrating at times, but keeping your cool even in the most trying times teaches your kids to have the tools in their toolbox to do the same.
When you're running a pack of 10 dogs they each have their own personality so in our opinion teaching them respect and not to plow over the kids any chance they get is key.
As for the older dogs, we are very selective as to where and who they come from because a mean owner = a mean dog and with kids we can't take that chance.
We like to give them a day or two to acclimate and then we introduce the kids simply by loving on the dog and we watch how it reacts.
We've been fortunate enough to never have a mean dog, but we've also had our share that we've had to sell because they didn't fit the personality of the pack we run.
Once your kids have ran around with the dogs, you throw them in the truck + head for the hills and make it your way of life!
See ya on the mountain,
The ColdStrike Fam
