to think this guy was fucking stupid!

[HairyFrotter]

I was at a free music festival type thing yesterday and was standing in a small tent with dd listening to one of the acts. Next to us was a man with a dog - I'm a bit rubbish with breeds but it looked like an alsatian. I noticed there was a baby toddling round - looked about 1 and at first I didn't think there was anyone with them but then I noticed a man (who I assume was the dad but could have been uncle/friend etc) who it became apparent was looking after the child.
The toddler toddled over to the alsatian and was looking at it for a while. He then started picking up the dogs paws repeatedly in a manner that seemed to me (no expert I admit) to be pissing the dog off. The toddler then started poking the dog in the face. It caught it in the eye quite a few times and a couple of times put his pointed finger right in the dogs mouth. The dog was just shaking its head to get the child off him and the owner had hold of its collar by this time and was looking nervously at the 'father' waiting for him to intervene. I was on the verge of saying something when the 'father' finally decided enough was enough and came and picked the child up but he had let it taunt the animal for a good few minutes (for a whole song!). The reason I didn't say anything is because I know nothing about dogs and as it was under control I doubt the child was in danger.
AIBU though to think that the man with the child should still have stopped them from poking the dog?

I think that the dog's owner rather than "looking nervously at the "father" waiting for him to intervene" should have either called over or walked over and asked the man to remove the child. I do understand that this could have gone horribly wrong if the 'father' was the type who knew his child's rights and those rights extended to tormenting a dog.

YANBU.

What an ignorant man.

YANBU, but the dog owner was also a tosser for not removing his dog from the situation too...

Yes, the child WAS in danger.. if it could poke the dog in the eye, then unless this dog was muzzled, it could have snapped back at the kid.

The person responsible for looking after the child was also a tosser who shouldnt be allowed to have a child in his care.

I did think that about the owner too but the music was pretty loud and he was kind of restraining the dog. I suppose he could have taken the dog over to the 'dad' to say something. Or just walked away.

Definitely NBU.

Nor would you have been unreasonable to boot offending child and parent up the arses. I would have gone fucking ballistic if I saw a child being allowed to pull a dog around like that, for both their sakes.

(But btw, it's German Shepherd Dog, not Alsatian! :o )

What an odd question

I should have said something I know in hindsight but I was kind of should I/shouldn't I/surely he's going to move the child now. To be fair to the dog owner we were at the side of the stage with the tent wall behind it - the tent was pretty packed so he could only have really taken a step sideways to move away.

Are german shepherds usually so placid DBF?

YANBU - and I wish you'd given the kid's father a huge kick up the arse.
Inevitably people who endanger their DCs and other people's dogs in this way surmise that the dog must be 'dangerous' if they get a bollocking from owners themselves... So it would have been great for you, as an onlooker to have pulled the fool up on this!

In my experience, most frequently, yes, Hairy BUT I really really hate to generalise. As with any dog it's far more about the way a dog has been socialised, trained and treated than the breed.

My own younger one would let a child ride on his back (though I bloody wouldn't let it happen!), my elder would be scared of most DC (and strangers in general). The very vast majority I've met in rescue, those I've fostered etc have been biddable, loyal and even tempered but that said the only dog I cannot get near and who has real anger management problems (!) in rescue is... a GSD.

Dogs are like us really, all kinds of temperements.

OK Tchootnika now I know I wouldn't have been overeacting to say something. I dithered too much basically I was thinking should I pick the child up myself or say something and if so what.
Thanks for the info dbf - I guess the dog must have been used to kids or something. I can't believe it let the child put its finger down its throat. But still not fair on the dog even if it doesn't retaliate.

Did you really watch long enough for the child to poke the dog?????????
You should have been in there like a shot!

UWNU to have removed the child I have a labrador, which apparantly makes her a child magnet and fair game.

She is a fantastic dog, and I don't think I will ever have such a laid back animal again, but I have had to be short to the point of rude to some parents over the years who have let their children go up to her without supervision. As her owner it is my job to keep her out of harms way, so both the guardian and the GSD owner were being dickheads iMO.