Get Rufus
Rufus reacts to your child's pace, not the other way around. Slow movements and a soft voice make the meeting safe for child and dog alike. The steps below show how fetching him can unfold.
♂Playing with the dog
A child bends down to play with a small brown dog standing on its hind legs.
About this visual support
An animal never quite does what you expect. Rufus might startle, wag wildly or turn away, and that very unpredictability is what makes fetching him exciting and sometimes a little hard. A child who means well can still move too fast and frighten the dog by accident.
Visual support lets the child see the whole meeting in advance: approach calmly, hold out a hand, wait for Rufus to sniff, and only then stroke him. With the order shown in pictures, the child does not have to guess, and it becomes easier to hold back the quick movements that otherwise take over.
One concrete tip is to add a card for pausing and counting to three before reaching toward the dog. That small break gives Rufus time to feel safe. If you want to put the whole moment together with both pictures and a gentle reminder, the Routined app lets you arrange the steps in the order that suits your own dog.