Dog's Life! (Australia)
June 8, 1998

If you have a child who desperately wants to get a dog, point him or her
in the direction of this site: How To Love Your Dog (For Kids Only).

Comprehensive and very easy to read, it tells everything there is to know
about owning a dog, including all the downsides. The 27 Reasons Not To Get
A Dog include "Dogs need to go for walks", Dogs drool on you hands and on
your clothes", and "Dogs will die". There is also a detailed breakdown of how
much it cost to look after a dog.

If, after this, children are still keen, the site encourages research into different
breeds and gives information on basic training and care, as well as useful advice
on staying safe around dogs. On top of this, children can write in about their dogs
(they are told not to give surnames or street addresses). Although this site says
"for kids only", there's plenty here for adults to learn as well.

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Yahoo! Internet Life
(July, 1998)

Teach Kids Pet Care
How To Love Your Dog

So you say you're thinking about possibly getting the kids a dog? Walk them through
this site first. Tour the site with any or all of three collie guides - Cody, Kelly, or
Trouper - and learn important lessons on how to care for, love , and even grieve for
a canine companion. Safety, responsibility, respect, and even good citizenship come
into play here. And a nice touch is all the photo portraits of youngsters with their dogs.
It's a sweet, valuable site that can go a long way toward helping kids grow up right.

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Animal Watch (ASPCA)
Fall 1998

How To Love Your Dog, which has received the Top Dog Web Award from
Canines of America (http://canines.com) is devoted to promoting responsible
care of dogs. Issues addressed include choosing a mixed-breed or purebred dog,
committing to life-long care and training and the need for spaying or neutering
the dog. Information on everything from preparing for a new puppy to coping with
the loss of a canine companion is provided in a way that keeps children wanting to see
what will come next.

In addition, poems and stories submitted by children, as well as their
responses to a Question of the Month are presented (The question for
June 1998: "Why does my dog love me?")

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Twins
January/February 1999

Kids and Dogs

Can we get a puppy? Please, Mom? Please? If you are thinking
of adding a canine member to your family circle, there is a new web site
that you might want to visit with the kids. Happy music welcomes you to
www.howtoloveyourdog.com. There are wonderful stories about dogs,
great sections detailing the cost of having a pet and a discussion of the
special needs dogs have. A 'I Love My Dog' contract for kids to sign covers
the many responsibilities involved in pet ownership. There are lots of photos
including an adorable picture of twins with their golden retriever.

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Collie Club of America Bulletin
October, 1998

"Passing The Torch"
or
"Teach Your Children Well"

By Jeannette Poling (Golden Retriever Club of America, District Director)

Like many young girls I grew up loving animals, especially dogs and horses.
By the time I was eight years old I had memorized and could identify all of the
AKC recognized breeds. By age ten I was an "authority" on dogs and had read
and/or owned just about every dog book available.They were my passion, and now
today, almost 40 years later (oh no!) I am still writing about dogs. I came of
"dog age" in the 60's. Think what it would be like to be "dog loving" kid in 1998?
. . . the age of technology?! It's a wondrous thing!

Today the World Wide Web is an incredible source of canine information for
"canine-possessed kids" of all ages! From the AKC Web pages, to the breed specific
chat rooms and on-line e-mail lists, not to mention the incredible personal web pages
of knowledgeable fanciers, who are committed to, and are mentors for, the new
coming of age fanciers ---for those who have a love of dogs, the WWW has a
full plate of offerings.

One delightful delicacy is a web page that was developed and totally designed
by Janet Wall. If you have or know a child who is "crazy dog" this is the
place for them on the WWW. (http://www.howtoloveyourdog.com).
Jan's web site is entitled: HOW TO LOVE YOUR DOG . . .
A Kid's Guide To Dog Care. On this award winning 75 page
plus "responsible pet ownership" web site Jan's own collies,
TROUPER, KELLY & CODY, are the hosts for the tour which shares
information on all aspects of responsible dog care, including information
on care and training from a humane perspective, pet loss and bereavement,
as well as all areas of canine activities, lots of photos, jokes, riddles, poems
and stories sent in by kids, a reading list, links to other sites, and much much more.
There are many inter-active areas on the site and a child does not even have to be
a dog owner (just a dog lover) to have fun on these engaging pages.

Jan has loads of pictures of all types of dogs, and of course she has some great
Golden pictures, including ones of our son, Matthew with ABBY and SYLVIE (Poling),
along with others of our Collies past and present. If you have access to the World Wide Web
you definitely NEED to check out this site. I know you and any children
you share it with will love it! Of course we all probably can agree
that dogs and kids just seem to go together, but even more importantly
beyond the love they have for one another we know, and I quote from Jan's
web introduction page for parents and teachers,

". . . The benefit of children learning about dogs goes beyond care and training of our canine friends.
The lessons on respect, responsibility, love and compassion toward animals transfer to all areas of a child's life.
Kids who learn to be kind, gentle, and generous with dogs are likely to act that way toward people as well.
The information in How To Love Your Dog is a thematic unit on humane education that I developed
and taught in the classroom for grades two through six.The teaching of humane education
gives kids the chance to be kind, gentle and generous and practice those qualities."

If you have any suggestions for topics, ideas for improvements,
Jan would love to hear your ideas! Enjoy!

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The Herald Leader
(Fitzgerald, Georgia)
February, 1998

A great site for dog lovers of all ages, but designed just for kids, friendly
dogs provide guided tours through the steps to getting and caring for a new
dog, training a dog, special needs, older dogs and suffering the loss of a dog.
Be sure to check out the responses to the question of the month. This month's
question is "What's the smartest thing your dog does?" There are some children
out there with pretty smart dogs.

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Scholastic Network
December 1998

Don't miss this "just for kids" site on how to be a good dog owner.
How To Love Your Dog covers all the bases from basic pet-owner
responsibilities - such as feeding and walking your dog - to making the
life-long commitment to love, care-for, protect and respect your dog.
A wealth of dog resources, activities, and anecdotes.

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The Record
(New Jersey) August, 1998

Dogs and children are a natural match -- if the child is prepared for
the realities of pet care. How To Love Your Dog is a terrific site aimed
at teaching children about the responsibilities of owning a dog. The topics,
addressed in simple language on colorful pages, include what the dogs cost,
basic training, learning tricks, keeping safe, dealing with the loss of a dog,
and 27 reasons not to get a dog. Kids can also brag about their dogs; read and
submit dog stories, poems, and jokes; celebrate their dog's birthday on line,
and print out and sign a contract promising to care for their dog at all times.

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KMGH Web Site of the Day
(Denver, Colorado) August, 1998

What is there about the magic of a child and their dog? It's one of the most
meaningful and treasured relationships a kid will ever experience.
The love felt for a dog is natural for children, and the love returned
by the animal is just as innocent and beautiful. What may not be quite
as natural is learning how to care for the animal. Well, along comes
a website with all the answers.

One of the best qualities of this web site is its simplicity...
which begins with its name, How To Love Your Dog. This page is for kids only
(it's okay for big kids, too). The opening page sets up the journey:

If you love dogs, you're in the right place! Join us, as three very special collies
take you on some very exciting tours. If you're ready to embark on a great adventure,
then choose your tour and let's begin.

Kids can pick tours from Cody, Kelly, or Trouper. These collies help
introduce a wealth of fun information that children need about their pets.
Cody starts off by telling kids what they need to know before they
even decide to get an animal. Things like

The last on in that list talks about the commitment a child must
make to his or her dog. The story urges children to say the following
statements and mean them.

1.I am making a commitment to take care of my dog forever.
2. I will love him and treat him with kindness and respect.
I will give him food, water, shelter, health care and lots of time.
4. I promise to be a good citizen and neighbor.

There's even a silly link full of dog jokes and riddles.
What do you call a dog detective? Sherlock Bones.
At the end of the whole process, kids are then asked to read,
print, and sign an I Love My Dog Contract. It is truly one of the most
charming web sites I've seen lately. I don't even own a dog,
and I enjoyed it. I highly recommend you take a look at How To Love Your Dog.
You'll come away smiling about just about everything.

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Cody's Tour	Kelly's Tour	Trouper's Tour
Your New Dog	Well-Behaved Dog	Special Topics
A New Dog	Your Best Friend	Too Many Dogs
I'll Love You Forever	Training Basics	Following the Rules
What Dogs Cost	Obedience Lessons	Keeping Safe
What Dogs Need	Behavior Problems	Older Dogs
Puppy Basics	Learning Tricks	Losing Your Dog

Read our Privacy Policy How To Love Your Dog http://www.loveyourdog.com Copyright © 1998 - 2005 by Janet Wall May be reproduced for individual or classroom use only. Photographs, collie animations, graphics, and backgrounds may not be reproduced to other websites.

Please note our address: http://www.howtoloveyourdog.com

For links to all the graphics sites that have shared their great graphics with us, go to our Acknowledgements page.