The number one activity that bonds dogs and children is their love for play. Here are some fun games that both can enjoy and use to establish a strong, friendly relationship for years.

1. Hide and Seek. Both dogs and children love to play hide and seek. And dogs seemingly know the rules by some sort of magic! No training is needed to play this game at all. All that’s needed is a curious canine that understands the “stay” command and child who’s crafty at finding great places to hide. With a treat in hand, a child calls out to the dog and then rewards him with a tasty prize after she’s found.
2. Treasure Hunt. In this game, your child commands the dog to stay, and then (somewhat) hides a treat or dog toy nearby within the dog’s sight. When given the “Go get it” command, the dog will run toward the treat or toy.
3. Fetch. You can bring out the natural chaser in your dog with this game. But it’s not always easy to grasp in the beginning. Some dogs can be rather stubborn or dense when it comes to playing fetch, and instead of chasing and retrieving a thrown item, it may cock its head at as if it were questioning the purpose behind throwing things around. The dog will therefore need to learn the “fetch” and “drop” command. After the dog chases and brings back the thrown toy, it should drop the item in front of the child and get lots of loving praise for doing so. Under no circumstance should the child try to get the item from the dog’s mouth. This could invite biting. The child should throw something else instead so that the dog will drop whatever is in its mouth in order to retrieve the second item.
4. Kickball. A child may enjoy playing a game of kickball with a dog since the reality isn’t as dramatic as you’re probably imagining. Instead of kicking a rolling ball back to the child, the dog actually pushes the ball back with its nose. And it’s fun!