To ask if anyone else’s dog does this

[MrsMillhouse]

When DS5 is getting ready to go to bed, DD(dog) puts herself to bed at the same time. This has been going on for months. At home it’s in separate adjacent rooms, or she lies outside his bedroom door. On holiday atm and she is lying on the floor at the side of the bed.

DS tries to be friends with DDog but as soon as he touches her toys she just walks away from them. And she has never shown any interest in playing with him (or other children). She has never been aggressive either; she just isn’t interested in children at all: never jumps on them or anything and usually takes herself to upstairs when they visit.
Is this normal dog behavior ?

My dog doesn’t have much interest in my DS to be honest. Unless my son has a treat for him, he’ll pretty much ignore him.

That said, when my dog has his precious bone, he will choose to lie RIGHT next to my DS to chew it, about as close as he can get, so it’s not a case of him not trusting him or disliking him etc

I think they just see their place in the family to protect them or keep an eye on them sometimes. Not all dogs are interested or know what to do with kids

My dog is two, and nervous of children..just avoids them!
DD2 has recently had a baby, and we were a little concerned that she might be scared or jealous as she loves DD2 who lives nearby and walks with us most days.
Instead, apart from wanting to lick him, she has decided the baby is her family. If DD2 stops on our walks to feed him, my dog plonks herself next to DD2 and won't move until she has finished. If another dog appears ours blocks the pram with her body... she doesn't seem interested in the baby except to make sure strangers don't get too close.

Obviously we monitor her every move, but she has just decided that that smal tiny human must be protected!

Ours is more bonded to me and DH than the children but often takes herself off to the bottom of whatever bed one of the DDs is in in the evenings instead of staying downstairs with us. I was quite insulted the first couple of times she did it

Nothing of use to add, just wanted to say all these ^ are lovely and one of the many reasons I love animals.

My old dog wasn't remotely interested in DD. But loved DSS. But if anyone came to the house she would follow them very closely (with extreme friendliness) and always be between them and the baby until they left and she'd go back to ignoring her!

One of my dogs doesn't like playing with the children. She's not a lover of toys anyway so doesn't play with toys anyway, but generally she keeps her distance from the children. When the children go to bed she likes to sleep near them though. Not close enough for them to touch her, but just by the foot of the bed.

My other dog on the other hand, constantly sits on the children for cuddles

It’s just so weird that she isn’t affectionate to my son, and shows no interest in playing with him etc, but still wants to be near him at bed time instead of downstairs with the adults (who she is always seeking affection from)

Isn't it a kind of protection instinct?
She maybe considers your son as a family "valuable" rather than a play mate.
That might change as your son grows up.

@FastFood. You might be right: It may be that she thinks that’s her role to protect him.

My dog isn't really interested in my kids (unless they are eating as they sneak her food by "dropping it accidentally") but every night when I say it's bedtime she jumps up, goes out for a wee, comes in and waits for me and then goes upstairs with me and while I go into the bathroom will walk into my sons room first and just go up to his bed and look at him and then into my teen daughters room and do the same before coming into my room and getting onto her bed to sleep.

I didn't notice it for a while as I was in the bathroom but once I spotted her doing it I noticed it's something she does every single night.