To think if your child winds up a restrained dog

[rpickett]

it's their own fault if they get bit?
I'm so pissed off, just been and walked my 7mth old puppy and one mother has wound me right up.

I was walking on the grass (which was a small strip nex to a pavement) and stopped to pick up after the dog went toilet, which isn't the easiest task at 8 mths pregnant with the bending, and this girl about 7 years old came bounding up to my dog an jumping in front of him trying to wind him up and play with him, she scared my dog and his tail went down and his heckles went up so I took a tighter hld of the lea whilst trying to tie up the doggy bag, while the mother just laughed and was yapping on about how her daughter has got him all excited, passed comment on how he didn't want to play and tried to walk off but no the daughter was still trying to wind the dog up while the mother was just laughing, practically walkin next to me so on the grass so I couldn't move out of the way and get passed.

If my dog had of gone for the girl I would be the one in the wrong (he didn't go for her but why take that risk) am I BU to think this mother needs parenting lessons if she thinks it's funny to allow her daughter to go upto strange dogs and wind them up?

BTW my puppy is great usually with kids, my two toddlers included but jumping in front of him waving your arms in his face is not the way to make friends.

Spiritedaway I completly agree with you, however ANY dog can and will bite if they feel threatned regardless of how well trained they are, my puppy has done puppy classes and is well socialised but I would still be cautious regardless, If another human invaded your personal space jumping around hands in front of your face would you just stand there and take it or would you warn the person to move out of the way?

I'm with the op.....my dog is on a lead.....why do people think it's ok for their children to approach my dog......aren't there enough 'dog bites child' stories in the papers to make these idiots stop and think.......when i tell these people that my dog doesn't really like children they get defensive and say 'well it shouldn't be out then should it'.......FK off and leave my dog alone..........teach YOURchildren not to approach strangers dogs....

Hmm this is a tricky one as I agree that children should wait until the owner says the dog is safe.

Though in this instance the fact that you were heavily pg would make the mum assume that your dog was safe otherwise you wouldnt have it with impending baby.

Agree that non-dog owners would just see a dog in the public park and assume it was ok.

You should have said something really. I can see why you got wound up though. Maybe it was the fact that you were heavily pg and everythings a struggle - you have to pick up poo and look after and walk a puppy not to mention the toddlers.

Dogs run up to my dcs all the time in the park and you cant start shouting or even look aggrieved or you get labelled a doghater which I am not - hard to know what to do - you lose whatever you do...

If you can't trust your dog not to be confident and not fear bite then muzzle it. Maybe if someone backs a dog into a corner and goes to kick it or waves a stick at it...yeah, any dog would be threatened but if you can't walk your dog through a crowd of kids coming out of school and your dog remain unfazed then you should muzzle it. Or take the risk, and i mean the risk to your dog. Bottom line is, whatever your view, if your dog bites it may be destroyed. Right or wrong.

I came out of school the other day to find 2 children hitting my little puppy with sticks parents just stood there!!
They werent hitting him hard more like teasing him, but still!! His a very gentle puppy too, we also have a young lady follow us home shouting "puppy" and trying to pull him, his still in training.
So no YANBU

And for people who maybe don't know dogs, never assume that because you see a dog with kids from it's own family then it will be ok with your kids. The most dangerous dogs are usually those who heavily guard their own family and are extremely reliable with their own family but very mistrustful of outsiders.Obviously such a dog shouldn't be lose in public. Dogs are pack animals and many breeds will not tolerate interaction with someone from outside their pack, child or adult.

Good grief,Spirited,didn't you read what I wrote earlier? I was taking a sick dog to the vet and was pounced on by a screeching child waving its arms around - quite off putting for a human let alone a dog feeling poorly and in pain. I do muzzle ours and keep them on a lead and STILL get the poking toddlers. I'm well aware that a bite or a snap, no matter if provoked could be a death sentence so we go out of our way to exercise as much as possible away from children, keep on lead, keep muzzled and generally be the reponsible owner that all parents seem to want us doggy folk to be. Personally my idea of Hell would be to go anywhere near a crowd of kids at school leaving time, but in the same way parents teach road safety and stranger danger, they should teach kids what to do when approaching dogs, horses and if rural, cows and other livestock. That's part of the job, surely. I in return will do my absolute utmost to ensure our beautiful dogs are kept under close control, I worm them and scoop the poop,muzzle in public, and exercise away from kids where possible. That seems fair to me.

I'd be well pissed off about someone hitting your pup with sticks...hope your pup wasn't too scared as to spoil his temperament. The stupid thing is everyone rushes up to a pup but it is a cute puppy that will bite your nose(or the kids nose) that's stuck too close to it.

When i was a kid, '70's..if someone came home and said a dog had bit them the parents response would be "what were you doing to the dog? You daft bloody bugger. Hell's Bells!.. And other classic swear words of the era that were ok to use in front of children"

scuttle sorry i may not have read your post.My pc is crawling. You are obviously an extremely responsible dog owner and have my permission to poke my toddler in the eye should she approach your pets. What breed are your dogs? Are they ok now?

YANBU

I am constantly horrified by how many people shove their toddlers in my labrador puppy's face without asking - even unstrapping them from buggies to do so! I have started to say "Please dont do that. Hes only a puppy and isnt used to strange people". Actually hes the friendliest dog I ever had but still, a puppy, on a lead, trying to have a quiet walk.

Labrador puppies are just toddler magnets.They are also the most likely breed to "mouth" hands...just tell them he's half pit and then see how fast they strap em back in.

YAnbu

Spirited, thanks We have three gorgeous greyhounds, aged 12,10 and 6. The 6 year old went to the vet and is now a wounded warrior with a poorly shoulder but will recover with rest and anti inflammatories. They are generally excellent with people but are keen on chasing squirrels/small furries hence muzzles - although the 6 year old is v nervous around strange men (had been beaten before we had him ). Because of this I am cautious, since he can misinterpret sudden movements and children are of course supremely unpredictable!

mines a labradoddle and OMG I cant ever walk without someone stopping me

Massive yabu.

I think as a dog owner you should assume other people do not know how your dog behaves with other people.

Most folk assume labs are friendly whatever. Clearly this is not the case.

The dog is your responsibility. Whether you are pg or picking up crap or not. You should have said clearly and loudly, "Sorry, my dog's not happy. It may bite." because you are the one who knows your dog and what its boundaries are.

I for one am totally sick of dog owners expecting people to kowtow and tiptoes around their animals. If your dog is likely to bite at all, then it should be muzzled.

People are like 50,000 times more important than dogs. Muzzle your dogs and speak up if you think your dog is feeling threatened or move away. It's your responsibility to make sure your dog doesn't bite a child. Stop passing the buck onto people who are not dog savvy and who shouldn't need to have to worry about whether a dog is going to bite their children.

Waving arms indeed. Like it's a crime. That's what kids do. Get used to it and get your dog used to it if it wants to live among human beings.

Grim, The child is the parent's responsibility! The parent should have told the child loudly and clearly 'You need to stay away from dogs that we don't know until you have asked the owner if it's ok for you to approach it.'

The parent knows the child, and knows if it is just jrying to be friendly and stroke the dog, or if it's trying to wind it up.

I as a dog owner and a parent, am sick of people thinking that my dog is public property when we are minding our own businees and the dog is on a lead being well controlled.

Your child is actually not more important to me than my dog. My dog is my responsibility to protect, your child is yours. If you think your child may not be safe around dogs, keep them close to you, and teach them not to approach dogs they don't know without asking. It's that simple. It's not my job to educate your child. It is my job to stop my dog biting your child, fair enough, but why would you expect a puppy going through training to behave perfectly all the time? You don't expect the same of your toddler.

Dogs bit when they are threatened, that's what dogs do. Get used to it and teach your children how to stay safe if it wants to live among other people or animals, that have got as much right to be hare as you do.

Curlymama well said I didn't have the energy to bother last night.

ITS GRIM parents should stop their kids from behaving like idiots round dogs - a childs behaviour is not a dog owners reponsibility!

I wanted to post too but it was getting very late by then so I didn't. I was really surprised by the tone I thought I could see in Grim's post.

The dog awareness "seminar" for children is a really good idea and should be implemented; it's an issue of concern just like the public safety campaigns and so forth that RoSPA and the Police undertake. We see fit to educate children to respect such things as railway tracks, reservoirs, rivers and other hazards of ordinary life, why not help to reduce the number of incidents of fearful experiences or actual bites that children go through? It can only be of benefit to children and to dogs.

To say that dog owners expect others to kowtow to and tiptoe around their animals is a rather silly exaggeration. Dog owners do expect people to be sensible around their pets and this is not unreasonable. They should also take responsibility for full and proper training of their dogs, and imo also ensure that they themselves are trained in dog handling, to ensure the dog's training isn't wasted.

I don't expect schools to teach my child every aspect of living in society; that is my job. But I would really appreciate it if they would support my effort with the safety campaigns I remember from my own school days.

Sorry, Grim, but I think it is your responsibility as a parent to make your child as sensible in society as possible. Dogs are as a part of our today's society as traffic is - you wouldn't not bother to teach your child road safety, would you?

YANBU - At 7 I'd expect the child to know better and certainly the parent should. I remember getting told as a child that if a dog bit me not to come running to my parents as I'd have done something to deserve it. I think thats about right TBH. I've had this problem with people running up to my dog too, including when he was covered in stitches and trying to hide behind me :( I told them to fuck off go away several times (politely at first! Then not so politely when they didn't get the hint) before they finally flounced off. Its up to the parents to make sure their child isn't being a pain in the ass IMO.

YANBU.... the child's mother was a bit of an eejit. I am very hot on teaching DC how to interact respectfully with dogs, including being attentive to the signals dogs are giving off. I consider it one of life's essential life skills that I must teach them, how to assess when a dog is scared or upset and shouldn't be approached. It's a shame when people fail to take advantage of that opportunity.

YANBU