To instinctively protect my child

[Dailymailpretendreporter]

I was in the children's enclosure a couple of weeks ago with my wife, 9mo dd along with 4 nephews and nieces having a family play day out. A number of the children (including my nephews and nieces) were playing with a dog that one of the other parents had brought in.

My wife and I were distracted for a moment talking about her end of mat leave and dd wanders over to the other children. The next moment my wife screams and I hear dd crying and trying to run/waddle back towards us as fast as her little legs can carry her because the dog was chasing her and nipping at her clothes. I react by jumping up, shouting and chasing the dog out of the enclosure.

The dog owner has now been going around telling everyone that'll listen that her £5000 'harmless' dog needs to see a doggy psychiatrist and her son was traumatised. Apparently she'll be recovering the costs from us in due course.

[SweetieDrops]

Doggy psychiatrist .

She is a nutjob. She's lucky the 'harmless' dog didn't bite your DD and have to be destroyed. You did nothing wrong.

[OfaFrenchmind2]

I think she was lucky you did not dropkick her mutt out of the enclosure. No dog is ever worth a child possible injury.

[flanjabelle]

I thought you were going to say you booted the dog away from your child. Wow yanbu, what a twat.

[TheWitTank]

She's a loon. Aside from the talk of trauma and dog psychiatrists, who the fuck spends £5000 on a dog?! I don't think you have anything to worry about with her recovering her "costs".

[LurkingHusband]

There's only one response ...

"Oh do fuck off"

[TheWitTank]

But wow, she's doing well walking/waddling at 9 months! Hope she was okay after a cuddle.

[CantWaitForWarmWeather]

What costs??! oh dear...

A dog shouldn't be in a children's enclosure. That's what fields are for. Stupid woman.

[QuietTiger]

Let her try and recover the costs from you. She'll have difficulty explaining to the court why her out of control dog was in the position to chase and nip a child. She's bloody lucky that further action wasn't taken about her dog acting inappropriately.

And I say that as someone who has 4 dogs.

[TiggerPiggerPoohBumWee]

Dog owner is a lunatic.

But you left a 9 month old baby to play with a strange dog while you chatted elsewhere? Are you out of your mind?

You wouldn't be unreasonable to "instinctively protect your child", if you had done so, but you hadn't. Good job your 9 month superbaby can out run a dog isn't it?

[KondosSecretJunkRoom]

I thought the OP was going to save his dd and let his nephew and nieces defend themselves

Anyway, YANBU. She need's to keep it on a lead, the dog's a liability. The next kid might not be as lucky as your dd.

[Niloufes]

Ignore the owner, you didn't physically harm the dog and they will find it very difficult to prove that you mentally scarred it in some way. I think you are pretty safe and I would have done the same thing.

[Clandestino]

The dog owner has now been going around telling everyone that'll listen that her £5000 'harmless' dog needs to see a doggy psychiatrist and her son was traumatised. Apparently she'll be recovering the costs from us in due course.

She's a lunatic talking through her hole.

[igglepiggleisanarsehole]

Not unreasonable at all, you did what anyone with half a brain would do. I don't care how much an owner trusts their dog, she shouldn't reasonably expect everyone else to.

[Iliveinalighthousewiththeghost]

A doggy psychiatrist. Is she on glue.
Do dog psychiatrists even exist. There's not going to be much conversation, is there. Well I wouldn't imagine, anyway.
Her dog was nipping at a little baby, Yes it might have been playing, but it's still a bloody fright. So her dog needs therapy because I assume you shouted at it. Well she should learn to control it. A dog near children can be like a lethal weapon.

[Whatamuckingfuddle]

A nine month old that outran a dog without falling/being knocked over while being chased could probably drop kick the dog out of the children's enclosure themself

[hazelangell]

Tell her the only thing you'll be willing to fork out for is a muzzle, but that the dog will have to purchase it's own

[Alexa444]

Odfod. Yes I'm sure it needed therapy after being told off and chased away. Perhaps she should be considering some obedience training rather than therapy. I love dogs and never used a lead with mine, she spent many an afternoon playing with kids at the park and she would have never behaved like that. Know how much she cost? A tenner from my dad's mate. Accidental litter. Cost is irrelevant. Her dog was out of control and she is at fault. Fucking therapy, give me strength.

[Iliveinalighthousewiththeghost]

With the best will in the world. You can't supervise them 24/7.

[FlyingElbows]

Oh this reminds me of an episode of Judge Rinder. Very similar situation with totally in the wrong dog owner claiming the dog needed therapy! It was agreed that therapy was indeed needed but it wasn't the dog that needed it!!

[KondosSecretJunkRoom]

As an aside, your 9mo can run?? Even if part waddling, that's very impressive.

[zoemaguire]

With a walking 9mo, you kind of do need to supervise them pretty much every minute they are awake, yes, and certainly when they are playing with a dog...

[Alexa444]

CandP you aren't wrong but bear in mind the dog shouldn't have been in there in the first place. It was the children's play area, not an open park.