My yorkie is attacking my kids please help - YorkieTalk.com Forums

Cichowm1 · 08-25-2013, 05:59 PM

So I was looking for help on line and came accross this web site so this is my first post. We have a 11 month old make yorkie. He was great up until this past June. He would go after my oldest boy(11) and so my son would jump on a table after the dog would nip at his legs. This would send him barking and trying to get him. Now he goes after all 3 kids especially my 6 year old and has bitten him and my 10 year old being very aggressive and just going nuts. Since then we've blocked him in a separate room because even in that room if the kids come in socially my 6 year old he goes nuts barking ect to try and get at him. Same this happens outside, if he's on his 20 foot leash we let him out at he' ll come up to the kids start whining and then start grabbing at there shorts, they'll start moving away and then all hell breaks loose, I of course always have the leash and the kids have not been bit again. We've had a trainer in here a couple times but nothing Is working.

Any ideas would be needed here as we may not keep him if this continues

gemy · 08-25-2013, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cichowm1

So I was looking for help on line and came accross this web site so this is my first post. We have a 11 month old make yorkie. He was great up until this past June. He would go after my oldest boy(11) and so my son would jump on a table after the dog would nip at his legs. This would send him barking and trying to get him. Now he goes after all 3 kids especially my 6 year old and has bitten him and my 10 year old being very aggressive and just going nuts. Since then we've blocked him in a separate room because even in that room if the kids come in socially my 6 year old he goes nuts barking ect to try and get at him. Same this happens outside, if he's on his 20 foot leash we let him out at he' ll come up to the kids start whining and then start grabbing at there shorts, they'll start moving away and then all hell breaks loose, I of course always have the leash and the kids have not been bit again. We've had a trainer in here a couple times but nothing Is working.

I think a key question is have you put into practice daily what the trainer has trained you on? Are you doing obedience training every day with your Yorkie? With this 11mth yr old with hard work on your part it should be relatively easy to turn this behaviour around. At 11mths old a Yorkie should have a consistent SIT STAY WALK EASY COME LEAVE IT basic obedience commands. He needs to be exercised 2x a day. Have you built toy drive in him? For example does he play fetch? Does he play Find the Toy? If he doesn't know these commands you need to get busy and teach them to him. Once he is good to go with those commands, take one child the oldest out with you at least once per day when you walk the dog. Teach your child how to walk with a dog properly and gradually allow the child to walk the dog with you supervising 100% the walk.

Next question has he been neutered yet? If not why not? Neutering can sometimes change behaviour, it is not a guarantee by any means, but maybe you have a 50 50 chance that it will; HOWEVER basic obedience must still be instilled in the dog.

Any ideas would be needed here as we may not keep him if this continues

Please see the above missive

MandiesMom · 08-25-2013, 06:54 PM

I agree with gemy...it is going to take training sessions and exercise.

From what I have seen, the fast paced movements of children ( just normal life..nothing out of the ordinary) can trigger fear aggression in small breed dogs. Perhaps he has always been scared of the kids, but now he is older and a little bigger than he was months ago so now he is fighting back (I don't mean the kids intentionally scare him...just their natural quick movements do).

Training sessions with the children will help, I think. Let them give him treats for good behavior. I sort of see the situation as he thinks they are all equal in your "pack"/family. Doing these sessions and the walks like gemy said will help show him that the kids are all his humans.

Training/showing your children how NOT to react when he bites will help I think. If he nips at shorts or ankles, have the child simply and calmly stop walking. Not yelling, but sternly, say to the pup No Bite. Then not move or walk until the pup submits to stop.....the jumping up on the table and freaking out is most definitely fueling the pup's "energy"

Cichowm1 · 08-26-2013, 02:34 AM

Yes, So the trainer did have us do daily training sessions with him. Sit ,stay come, Fetch. They also said do not let him on furniture anymore. Also he was neutered a few months ago. The biggest thing is my 6. Year old and ten year old get nervous when he is nipping and that gets him going. We do walk him every day too , but my oldest will do it 2x a week and we do it the rest. The one thing I read was having a separate time out crate for him when he's bad. What do you think. Also how much time should we work with him a day on the sit stay , down and off commands?... He knows them and does them very good every time now as it is.

Magnus · 08-26-2013, 05:44 AM

Other than the basic commands of sit, stay, etc. What did the trainer suggest on how to handle aggression? Is the puppy nipping at anyone else other than kids?

Magnus is calm and good with kids for the most part. But certain things do set him off. When I'm outside, I try to keep a lookout for whatever might get him going and try my best to avoid it. He's food driven so that make things easier.

Just from your post, the trainer didn't seem to do much for the aggression other than to keep the puppy off the furniture. Maybe you should find another trainer who can specifically help you with this? If this is only with kids, something is causing him to react that way so finding out what that is would be the key. Good luck... I hope you find a solution.

Rhetts_mama · 08-26-2013, 06:09 AM

This is a matter of not only training the pup, but the kids, too. Right now, your dog is viewing the kids as his litter mates. The kids feed in to this with the running, jumping on tables and squealing.

Your kids will need to, for the time being, tone things down around the dog. It's hard, especially when they are as young as they are. But it can be done. They also need to become actively involved in the obedience training. Even a 10 minute session (for each boy) with them working on sit, stay, heel (while you are supervising of course) will help them gain confidence around the dog and help the dog realize that the boys are to be respected as much as the adults. As everyone progresses and the dog matures, you might want to look in to agility training with the boys as his coaches.

In the meantime, it's imperative that you start reacclimating the boys and the dog. Allow them to spend time in the same room together. If the puppy nips (and at 10 months he is still very much a puppy), remove him immediately and briefly (5 minutes max) and then start again. No yelling, no hitting, no punishing. He needs to learn that aggressive behavior gets him isolated. If you wait to remove him or keep him separated longer than a couple of minutes, I guarantee he will forget why he got removed.

Think back to June. What changed at that time? What set all this off? Did the kids get put of school? Did you change something else in your household? Summer vacations and a lack of routines can wreck havoc on a puppy.

Good luck.

kjc · 08-26-2013, 06:22 AM

I would separate the dog from the kids to start. I don't allow dogs that bite to be near kids. I'm fine with the oldest walking him, under your supervision. Basically, a dog at the end of a tie-out with kids playing out of his reach is teasing him (unintentional) and could be a major part of his issues, IMHO.

Training him to not be aggressive: You need to interrupt his pattern before he gets excited. Once he gets to that point, it's no longer a training issue, but a bite/injury prevention issue, ie: getting him back under control. Nothing is learned and this behavior will be repeated.

Normal child behavior can get many dogs excited. Stomping feet, jumping, running, loud voices, etc are all triggers.

My Tink came from a home with 6 kids under the age of 12 years. She had also learned to bite, especially when playing with toys. She learned if she bites the hand holding the toy, she gets the toy. I had to retrain her how to play with toys, bite inhibition, and I had to get her to 'bond' with me. Once that was done, I let one child play for a very short time, and absolutely no teasing. It took 4-5 months of just me working with her, and then teaching the kids how to play and not tease her. During the initial part of her training, I did not allow kids near her.

Magnus · 08-26-2013, 07:01 AM

Since the OP didn't post any description as to precisely when these bites/aggression took place (ex. the child was running across the room). I was actually thinking perhaps her puppy was in the mind set that kids are below him in the ranking.

More details would always be helpful.

theporkieyorkie · 08-26-2013, 07:33 AM

It sounds like the dog has a strong prey drive...and is chased the kid onto the table just like my dogs tree squirrels.

It also sounds like the dog is feeding off the children's energy. Some dogs can't handle excitement...they will redirect the energy into aggression .My older dog can't handle other dogs playing...he will try to get aggressive. He would probably do the same thing around kids as well...we call him the "fun police" because he gets upset if anyone's having too much fun.

The above people have some great advice. I think you are going to have to exercise all of the pent up energy out of him and then work with your children. And like others said, you are probably going to need to teach your children to act calm around the dog and not react to him. No reaction='s No fun picking on the kids.

A lot of times, if you give a dog something to chase, he's going to chase it. Your kids need to start looking more dominant than prey-like. They need to start ignoring him when he gets excited, and you probably need to remove him from the room/situation if he starts to act out...until he calms down again.

I would say, right now, the dog definitely thinks he is alpha over the kids and he's being a bully.

gemy · 08-26-2013, 07:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cichowm1

Yes, So the trainer did have us do daily training sessions with him. Sit ,stay come, Fetch. They also said do not let him on furniture anymore. Also he was neutered a few months ago. The biggest thing is my 6. Year old and ten year old get nervous when he is nipping and that gets him going. We do walk him every day too , but my oldest will do it 2x a week and we do it the rest. The one thing I read was having a separate time out crate for him when he's bad. What do you think. Also how much time should we work with him a day on the sit stay , down and off commands?... He knows them and does them very good every time now as it is.

OP you have gotten a lot of good advice. Of course your kids get nervous when he is nipping them, I would too!

A separate brief time out in a crate is good, and can be done effectively.

And what another OP said the kids also need to be trained. But first is separation, and 100% supervision when the kids and the dog are somewhat free together in the same room.

In house; let us say you want to cook dinner, I find that all dogs love to be in the kitchen with Mom when she is cooking, and btw so do the kids

Now tether the dog to you. That means your dog is leashed in the house, with the lead around your waist. Instruct the boys no running, no jumping, no squealing etc. They the kids can walk in and out of the kitchen or sit at the kitchen table and talk etc. Use a halter on the dog please. Now your job is to along with making the supper, keep watch on the dog. He will have to follow you as you move through the kitchen doing your making food tasks. Give the dog the command to SIT, treat him for obeying. Then ask one of your older children to just walk by you and the dog. Ignoring the dog and you. If your dog goes to interact with the child especially in an excited way, say a firm NO, give the command to SIT again. Treat the dog if he sits. Have your son walk back, and if the dog ignores the child treat again, and say GOOD SIT. It will take many many repetitions of this.

This is only one scenario. But it is a controlled one. Both the children and the dog need to learn how to inter-act with one another.

One of the greatest keys to training I have learnt from my mentor, is that reward and discipline for the dog need to be as quick as possible! That means almost as if you need to be prescient. Let me give you a for instance, and this is with a very large breed dog. He was still a young dog, about your dogs' age, and despite much socialization and walking around and such, he disliked bikes, anyone on bicycles zooming by. So he would lunge and bark and basically be a bad doggey citizen with any-one zooming by us on a bike. My trainer and I set up the situation, in an area we knew multiple bicyclists would be passing us by. A relatively narrow sidewalk trail, when I heard a bike coming up on us, we stepped off the trail, I quickly put Magic in sit, and as that cyclist zoomed by I immediately corrected with a quick leash correction Magic who was just Lifting off his sit. It took about two weeks, and bingo, no more unacceptable re-action to cyclists zooming on by.

All this to say it can be done! Just be patient and can I say stubborn too?

Your heart is in the exact right spot. You care for your children and your dog. That is why you are here asking for advice.

Trust in the process. Be dedicated to it. Rewards, discipline, training of all will give you and your family a wonderfull family pet.

Animed · 08-26-2013, 07:42 AM

As others have said, fear can be a big trigger for aggression in dogs and it also sounds like your Yorkie may be trying to exert some dominance over the kids. Training seems like a good idea as he's obviously getting a tad out of control judging from your post!

luvlee · 08-26-2013, 10:03 AM

My female yorkie used to nip at my 12 y/o son. I quickly realized that our Lucy viewed my youngest son as beneath her in the pack order - with my daughter and myself at the top.

Whenever I'd call my son to dinner or to do his homework, my Lucy would start barking at him - as if to tell my son: "Do as WE say!"

At first, I thought it was cute & tolerated the behavior. Very quickly, it escalated to jumping & nipping at my son (nearly catching his privates on occasion - ouch!!)

So, we began a plan that whenever Lucy barked at my son, my daughter and me would reprimand her and use a touch on the side of the neck to immediately stop the behavior.

Then, we had my son also reprimand her with touch also.

Lucy now knows her place. We stop the behavior as soon as it begins now so it doesn't escalate.

Good luck.

kjc · 08-26-2013, 10:57 AM

IMHO, I think the puppy just wants to play with the kids, but when the tie-out stops him but not them, he's getting frustrated and trying to hang on to their clothes so they won't run away from him. Not a healthy situation for anyone including the pup.

This is why many times homes with young children are not appropriate for yorkies, because if this problem cannot be fixed, the pup will need a new home or possibly end up in a shelter or PTS for biting.

My Tink had 3 different homes before mine, was on Death Row at the shelter, and she was a handful to retrain at 2.5 years old. And she's a larger Yorkie, with big teeth. She's not perfect now, but we have come to an understanding.

Hrossen11 · 08-26-2013, 11:55 AM

It reminds of cattle dogs, they are using their teeth and body to direct. My puppy did this when we first got him and it took us a few months to stop him. My kids had to learn to walk when around the pup, I also had my oldest carry a can filled with pennies and shake it any time my pup began to chase her. It redirected his line of thought, you could also use a squirt bottle. My pup was only a few months old so the teeth didn't do anything. He just got super excited and wanted to play the only way he knew how, his teeth and chase. This however, is a bad habit that needs to be corrected before it gets any worse. Do not have the children playing any where near the pup, he has not learned hoe to play with them yet and their energy just instigates the problem. Have a playpen set up where pup can see the kids but can't get to them. While pup is in playpen, have the kids drop Cheerios into it so he associates them with treats. At kids and your meal times put pup in playpen, while you eat lets him know the kids are not equal to him but above him, feed the pup meal after family has eaten. The bottom of the pack eats last.

Cichowm1 · 08-26-2013, 01:17 PM

It's hard. The dog was fine with me today. Vogt excited as the kids came home so I had them pet him from behind the gate he settled. Then he went nuts again. Put him in the crate. Let him out and he kept going nuts. Let him outside in his leash. My son came up to him while going to the garden to let and relax him and it just jumped up and bit him hard in the leg... I really can't tell my kids anymore to work with him. They are 6 and up there safety is more important

08-25-2013, 05:59 PM	#1
Cichowm1 YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: WNY Posts: 3	My yorkie is attacking my kids please help So I was looking for help on line and came accross this web site so this is my first post. We have a 11 month old make yorkie. He was great up until this past June. He would go after my oldest boy(11) and so my son would jump on a table after the dog would nip at his legs. This would send him barking and trying to get him. Now he goes after all 3 kids especially my 6 year old and has bitten him and my 10 year old being very aggressive and just going nuts. Since then we've blocked him in a separate room because even in that room if the kids come in socially my 6 year old he goes nuts barking ect to try and get at him. Same this happens outside, if he's on his 20 foot leash we let him out at he' ll come up to the kids start whining and then start grabbing at there shorts, they'll start moving away and then all hell breaks loose, I of course always have the leash and the kids have not been bit again. We've had a trainer in here a couple times but nothing Is working. Any ideas would be needed here as we may not keep him if this continues

08-25-2013, 06:54 PM	#3
MandiesMom and Shelby's too Donating Member Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Millbrook, AL Posts: 7,842	I agree with gemy...it is going to take training sessions and exercise. From what I have seen, the fast paced movements of children ( just normal life..nothing out of the ordinary) can trigger fear aggression in small breed dogs. Perhaps he has always been scared of the kids, but now he is older and a little bigger than he was months ago so now he is fighting back (I don't mean the kids intentionally scare him...just their natural quick movements do). Training sessions with the children will help, I think. Let them give him treats for good behavior. I sort of see the situation as he thinks they are all equal in your "pack"/family. Doing these sessions and the walks like gemy said will help show him that the kids are all his humans. Training/showing your children how NOT to react when he bites will help I think. If he nips at shorts or ankles, have the child simply and calmly stop walking. Not yelling, but sternly, say to the pup No Bite. Then not move or walk until the pup submits to stop.....the jumping up on the table and freaking out is most definitely fueling the pup's "energy" __________________ Terri, proud mom to Mandie & Shelby-Dale

08-26-2013, 06:09 AM	#6
Rhetts_mama Donating YT 4000 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Georgia Posts: 5,959 Blog Entries: 1	This is a matter of not only training the pup, but the kids, too. Right now, your dog is viewing the kids as his litter mates. The kids feed in to this with the running, jumping on tables and squealing. Your kids will need to, for the time being, tone things down around the dog. It's hard, especially when they are as young as they are. But it can be done. They also need to become actively involved in the obedience training. Even a 10 minute session (for each boy) with them working on sit, stay, heel (while you are supervising of course) will help them gain confidence around the dog and help the dog realize that the boys are to be respected as much as the adults. As everyone progresses and the dog matures, you might want to look in to agility training with the boys as his coaches. In the meantime, it's imperative that you start reacclimating the boys and the dog. Allow them to spend time in the same room together. If the puppy nips (and at 10 months he is still very much a puppy), remove him immediately and briefly (5 minutes max) and then start again. No yelling, no hitting, no punishing. He needs to learn that aggressive behavior gets him isolated. If you wait to remove him or keep him separated longer than a couple of minutes, I guarantee he will forget why he got removed. Think back to June. What changed at that time? What set all this off? Did the kids get put of school? Did you change something else in your household? Summer vacations and a lack of routines can wreck havoc on a puppy. Good luck. __________________ Don't get your knickers in a knot. Nothing is solved and it just makes you walk funny.

08-26-2013, 06:22 AM	#7
kjc I♥PeekTinkySaph&Finny Donating Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Baltimore, Maryland Posts: 18,866	I would separate the dog from the kids to start. I don't allow dogs that bite to be near kids. I'm fine with the oldest walking him, under your supervision. Basically, a dog at the end of a tie-out with kids playing out of his reach is teasing him (unintentional) and could be a major part of his issues, IMHO. Training him to not be aggressive: You need to interrupt his pattern before he gets excited. Once he gets to that point, it's no longer a training issue, but a bite/injury prevention issue, ie: getting him *back* under control. Nothing is learned and this behavior will be repeated. Normal child behavior can get many dogs excited. Stomping feet, jumping, running, loud voices, etc are all triggers. My Tink came from a home with 6 kids under the age of 12 years. She had also learned to bite, especially when playing with toys. She learned if she bites the hand holding the toy, she gets the toy. I had to retrain her how to play with toys, bite inhibition, and I had to get her to 'bond' with me. Once that was done, I let one child play for a very short time, and absolutely no teasing. It took 4-5 months of just me working with her, and then teaching the kids how to play and not tease her. During the initial part of her training, I did not allow kids near her. __________________ Kat Chloe Lizzy PeekABooTinkerbell SapphireInfinity

08-26-2013, 10:57 AM	#13
kjc I♥PeekTinkySaph&Finny Donating Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Baltimore, Maryland Posts: 18,866	IMHO, I think the puppy just wants to play with the kids, but when the tie-out stops him but not them, he's getting frustrated and trying to hang on to their clothes so they won't run away from him. Not a healthy situation for anyone including the pup. This is why many times homes with young children are not appropriate for yorkies, because if this problem cannot be fixed, the pup will need a new home or possibly end up in a shelter or PTS for biting. My Tink had 3 different homes before mine, was on Death Row at the shelter, and she was a handful to retrain at 2.5 years old. And she's a larger Yorkie, with big teeth. She's not perfect now, but we have come to an understanding. __________________ Kat Chloe Lizzy PeekABooTinkerbell SapphireInfinity Last edited by kjc; 08-26-2013 at 10:58 AM.

08-26-2013, 02:34 AM	#4
Cichowm1 YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: WNY Posts: 3	Yes, So the trainer did have us do daily training sessions with him. Sit ,stay come, Fetch. They also said do not let him on furniture anymore. Also he was neutered a few months ago. The biggest thing is my 6. Year old and ten year old get nervous when he is nipping and that gets him going. We do walk him every day too , but my oldest will do it 2x a week and we do it the rest. The one thing I read was having a separate time out crate for him when he's bad. What do you think. Also how much time should we work with him a day on the sit stay , down and off commands?... He knows them and does them very good every time now as it is.

08-26-2013, 05:44 AM	#5
Magnus Donating YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Northern VA Posts: 3,192	Other than the basic commands of sit, stay, etc. What did the trainer suggest on how to handle aggression? Is the puppy nipping at anyone else other than kids? Magnus is calm and good with kids for the most part. But certain things do set him off. When I'm outside, I try to keep a lookout for whatever might get him going and try my best to avoid it. He's food driven so that make things easier. Just from your post, the trainer didn't seem to do much for the aggression other than to keep the puppy off the furniture. Maybe you should find another trainer who can specifically help you with this? If this is only with kids, something is causing him to react that way so finding out what that is would be the key. Good luck... I hope you find a solution.

08-26-2013, 07:01 AM	#8
Magnus Donating YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Northern VA Posts: 3,192	Since the OP didn't post any description as to precisely when these bites/aggression took place (ex. the child was running across the room). I was actually thinking perhaps her puppy was in the mind set that kids are below him in the ranking. More details would always be helpful.

08-26-2013, 07:33 AM	#9
theporkieyorkie YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: dearborn heights Posts: 1,148	It sounds like the dog has a strong prey drive...and is chased the kid onto the table just like my dogs tree squirrels. It also sounds like the dog is feeding off the children's energy. Some dogs can't handle excitement...they will redirect the energy into aggression .My older dog can't handle other dogs playing...he will try to get aggressive. He would probably do the same thing around kids as well...we call him the "fun police" because he gets upset if anyone's having too much fun. The above people have some great advice. I think you are going to have to exercise all of the pent up energy out of him and then work with your children. And like others said, you are probably going to need to teach your children to act calm around the dog and not react to him. No reaction='s No fun picking on the kids. A lot of times, if you give a dog something to chase, he's going to chase it. Your kids need to start looking more dominant than prey-like. They need to start ignoring him when he gets excited, and you probably need to remove him from the room/situation if he starts to act out...until he calms down again. I would say, right now, the dog definitely thinks he is alpha over the kids and he's being a bully.

08-26-2013, 07:42 AM	#11
Animed BANNED! Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: Eye Posts: 4	As others have said, fear can be a big trigger for aggression in dogs and it also sounds like your Yorkie may be trying to exert some dominance over the kids. Training seems like a good idea as he's obviously getting a tad out of control judging from your post!

08-26-2013, 10:03 AM	#12
luvlee YT Addict Join Date: May 2012 Location: secaucus, nj Posts: 483	My female yorkie used to nip at my 12 y/o son. I quickly realized that our Lucy viewed my youngest son as beneath her in the pack order - with my daughter and myself at the top. Whenever I'd call my son to dinner or to do his homework, my Lucy would start barking at him - as if to tell my son: "Do as WE say!" At first, I thought it was cute & tolerated the behavior. Very quickly, it escalated to jumping & nipping at my son (nearly catching his privates on occasion - ouch!!) So, we began a plan that whenever Lucy barked at my son, my daughter and me would reprimand her and use a touch on the side of the neck to immediately stop the behavior. Then, we had my son also reprimand her with touch also. Lucy now knows her place. We stop the behavior as soon as it begins now so it doesn't escalate. Good luck.

08-26-2013, 11:55 AM	#14
Hrossen11 YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Central california Posts: 799	It reminds of cattle dogs, they are using their teeth and body to direct. My puppy did this when we first got him and it took us a few months to stop him. My kids had to learn to walk when around the pup, I also had my oldest carry a can filled with pennies and shake it any time my pup began to chase her. It redirected his line of thought, you could also use a squirt bottle. My pup was only a few months old so the teeth didn't do anything. He just got super excited and wanted to play the only way he knew how, his teeth and chase. This however, is a bad habit that needs to be corrected before it gets any worse. Do not have the children playing any where near the pup, he has not learned hoe to play with them yet and their energy just instigates the problem. Have a playpen set up where pup can see the kids but can't get to them. While pup is in playpen, have the kids drop Cheerios into it so he associates them with treats. At kids and your meal times put pup in playpen, while you eat lets him know the kids are not equal to him but above him, feed the pup meal after family has eaten. The bottom of the pack eats last.

08-26-2013, 01:17 PM	#15
Cichowm1 YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: Aug 2013 Location: WNY Posts: 3	It's hard. The dog was fine with me today. Vogt excited as the kids came home so I had them pet him from behind the gate he settled. Then he went nuts again. Put him in the crate. Let him out and he kept going nuts. Let him outside in his leash. My son came up to him while going to the garden to let and relax him and it just jumped up and bit him hard in the leg... I really can't tell my kids anymore to work with him. They are 6 and up there safety is more important