A video that looks at both sides of dog bites

[Soubriquet]

Please do watch this. And if you have children, teach them how to read the signs of a dog who doesn’t want to be messed around with.

As an adult, learn the signs yourself and intervene as soon as you spot the dog starting to show signs

And never leave a dog and child alone together

link

Great post and great video. Every child should be taught dog body language and how to interact safely with dogs, it’s a life skill just like swimming.

Bump up

Surely the first important thing is that adults learn how to read body language, train their pet properly and not allow children to treat a living animal like a toy.
Agree small children should never be left alone with even the most gentle animal

Sorry to come back and be a pain in the arse here but this thread has been praying on my mind since I read it.
“Both sides of dog bites”
Hmmmmmmmm
I don’t really think there’s two sides to a dog biting a child.
I love dogs, but a badly trained dog is a loose canon.
In all the horror stories of a dog attacking a child (in some cases fatal) who’s to blame?
The dog?
When will people realise that pets are not toys. If you own a pet you have a huge responsibility to ensure that it has a good life, and that will come about if you train your animal to behave in an appropriate manner at all times.
Op, on reflection, I now see your post as a frightening example of people who deem it fit to allow untrained dogs in the vicinity of a young child and then shake your head when a tragedy occurs

As someone who has 2 sets of scars from dogs belonging to my grandparents I am highly offended by this.
At 4yo my gp doberman bit my face. I was alone with the dog, who was only 8 months old, and I did nothing. I remember the event vividly.
My scars are still visible. My gp refused to do anything, their dogs were more important.
Christmas day when I was 18, I took my 7yo cousin to gp house. Their alsation attacked me on the driveway. I screamed at my cousin to run and curled up in a ball to protect my face. I now have scars on my back as well.
Dog died naturally last year, my gp chose to not have me or my dcs in their house as I will never let any dog belonging to them near us.

I like it tbh. I think as well as you train a dog, it can happen. It’s like saying a perfectly behaved child can’t hit out. Of course they can

I agree it's important to train your children on how to behave around dogs, but sometimes dogs attack without reason or warning. I have scars that are testament to that. Was simply walking along a street and was attacked. Has happened to me twice but only once was serious.

Best thing to do if you have kids with you is avoid dogs all together.

I think the left side of the bite and the right side of the bite would need similar treatment, in general.

To clarify I am now 33

Hi @Gonnagetflamed

I think I got off lighter than you did, although I do still have permanent scars. The title of this thread aggravated me too but, whilst some victims didn't do anything to provoke the attack, other attacks are preventable. Fully appreciate it's a touchy subject but anything aimed at reducing the prevalence of dog bites is positive.

The responses to this thread demonstrate perfectly why we have the wrong approach to this problem.

It is impossible to avoid dogs altogether. It is as counterproductive as hoping all pools/lakes are filled in, all beaches/rivers are walled out and all boats avoided. All it means is that the day your DC comes across its first dog it is more likely to be scared and completely ignorant. It takes training and repetition for a child to learn not to run from an playful dog.

Preventing dog bites I see not about attributing blame. Saying the DC did something to provoke the bite is a causal claim, not a moral one. It’s not the same as saying the DC deserved to be bitten. If a toddler bites at nursery we don’t look to see which of the two toddlers, bitee or bitter, was at moral fault, we manage the situation to ensure no one gets bitten again. Learning to read doggy language allows you to communicate with a being that is warning you it is feeling uncomfortable.

Most bites happen because of a preventable series of events. Understand the events and you can prevent them.

Rules for DCs:

• no hugging, kissing, falling on, picking up dogs.
• no disturbing dogs when eating or sleeping.
• no pulling toys away from dogs, wait for the dog to drop the item.
• if a dog runs up to you, fold your arms and turn your back. No running, no screaming.
• to greet a dog ask the owner, ask the dog.
• always allow a dog to move away from a situation.

We should ask why is the dog behaving as it is, in some cases it is because it is aggressive or in pain or unmanageable by its current owners, but let’s ask this question because we have prevented a bite not because a DC has been bitten.

in the video we can see the dog's unhappy, wary expression, but i think there needs to be more shown of this.

good video though.

Attackers rarely happen without warning from the dog. It's just too many human think a dog is being cute when its saying "I'm distressed, take this kid away from me its scaring me".

I don't have dogs. I've never had dogs. I have limited experience of dogs. I wouldn't have a clue.

If you have a dog you should be monitoring it and intervene when necessary. You should spend time teaching children who come to your house how to interact properly.

The onus is on you.

well in the video the dog was the child's play mate.

I can't see the video, but I don't think it hurts to teach kids how to interact with animals in general. It's not about placing blame it's about stopping people from getting bitten.

Personally I teach my kids not to mess with the dogs at all. They are very small children. I also will leave them alone together, if the dog is asleep on the sofa and the kids are watching the TV, then I'll nip out of the room. Obviously a risk assessment but one I am comfortable with.

I know there's the whole line of thought that 'any dog can bite', which they can but I do think it makes a difference what breed you have. I would feel less comfortable if I had a bull, mastiff or guard dog type breed than my own dogs. I'm not saying they are nasty or horrible dogs but they are bread to fight / protect and to do some damage when needed. If those instincts come out in the wrong way, that's when you have problems.

All dog owners should realise that not all children can be taught to behave appropriately when a dog is close to them. Some children and adults may not have the understanding and self control not to grab at one that comes close by or hit out or scream at one that has invaded their space. They should remember that any person they meet could be this person.
They should not let their dog run up close to people, sniff them and jump around them or up at their wheelchair and use platitudes like " he is only being friendly " to justify their inconsiderate behaviour.

Again posters are attributing blame, it is YOUR dog, YOUR responsibility, don’t let YOUR dog do this, etc. Dogs can be as unpredictable as DCs. Some dogs are owned by responsible people who do their best with socialisation and training but still things can go wrong.

Don’t think about who is to blame morally, think about preventing bite attacks.

The constant here is people. Some people don’t teach children how to respect animals properly; some people don’t train dogs fully.

YANBU to raise awareness, but it should also be common sense. I don’t even like to see toddlers chasing pigeons; I think it sends an incorrect message that animals are playthings and a lack of care for living creatures. And pigeons are a drop in the bucket compared to dogs!

Yet the "both sides of racism" video didn't get too much support ...

Don’t think about who is to blame morally, think about preventing bite attacks.

I have no knowledge of dogs. Beyond "don't approach a dog without owner's permission" I don't have a clue how to prevent a dog biting.

I believe the dog owner has the responsibility to prevent attack, not the lay person.

ahhhhh, you could have prewarned it was a FB link.

MilkTwoSugarsFirst yes of course owners should be responsible for their dogs but isn’t it better to say this after you have AVOIDED being bitten than after you have been bitten?

I have a small dog who looks like an ewok. She's bloody cute but she's only a puppy and is still being taught how to behave nicely. She is also recovering from a broken leg and is always on a lead. While on the lead we are working on her recall and manners.

The number of people who allow their children to grab at my dog because she's small and cute is rediculous. I'm now the mean harridan who won't let their children play with the cute fluffy doggy and who shouts at parents to keep their kids away. Not because she'll bite or hurt them but because she has the right to have her walk without being pulled at.

So yes, people need to teach their children how to behave around dogs just as I teach my child and dog to behave.

Don’t think about who is to blame morally, think about preventing bite attacks.

I prevent attacks by not owning a dog and telling my children not to touch or approach dogs we come across.
We rarely come across dogs in homes we visit. So if my children come across a dog it tends to be when we're outside with its owner. If that dog bites my children then I most certainly will blame the owner for letting their dog come near enough to bite them.

As for turning away and not running or screaming when a dog runs up to you. Ridiculous to expect every child to have that amount of self control and bravery. Most adults couldn't if a lion ran up to them and that's how it feels as a scared child.