We learned lots of dog tips for parents in a recent dog training class that took us to downtown Portland, where we exposed our puppy, Hudson, to all the hustle and bustle of two bridges, a crowded market, and a park. During the class, dog lover Michael knelt down and put his face in front of the face of a dog he had never met.

That’s a huge no-no for kids, says Mark Dunlop, owner of “Leader of the Pack,” a dog training program. In fact, he learned this lesson as a child who put his face in front of a dog’s face and got nipped, he says.

In this video, Dunlop gives great tips about how to keep kids safe around dogs:

Dunlop explains how to introduce children to dogs, and warns parents about how important it is to keep an eye on kids who are meeting strange dogs. Even the nicest dogs sometimes will bite when kids startle them by sticking their faces in front of the dogs’ noses!

Meanwhile, Michael, the young co-author of “Bash and Lucy Fetch Confidence,” learned his lesson. He won’t stick his face in front of a strange dog’s nose again, he promises. That’s a good thing, because Michael is scheduled to appear at a dog event next week to promote his book, which is about to be released!

Parents, we hope you heed our dog tips AND watch the video trailer for our book!

And if you have dog tips for parents, please send them our way!