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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think learning how to behave around dogs should be part of the national curriculum

665 replies

Itsadogsworld · 15/11/2021 21:58

I think schools should teach children how to behave around dogs, canine body language and so on. I think it would significantly reduce the number of children that end up in A&E each year due to dogs bites. I’ve seen some dreadful behaviour in my local park where children will run up to my dog and one child was continually trying to bear hug her own dog. Children clearly aren’t being taught this at home so I think they should include it in schools. I welcome your thoughts on this.

OP posts:
rrhuth · 16/11/2021 21:11

@AllThingsServeTheBeam

Yes, they are just captives. I feel sorry for them.

XenoBitch · 16/11/2021 21:12

@rrhuth

Dogs do not think like that. They live in the moment.

Precisely, they are not 'happy', that is just something their human owners project onto them.

Dogs just are, and they are bred and kept for the gratfication of humans.

It sounds like you don't have a dog, and that is ok. Or maybe you have had a bad experience with one. My life is enriched by having one, and I would hate to think someone would want to deprive me of that tbh.
lankyesme · 16/11/2021 21:12

Nope, parents job all the way.

rrhuth · 16/11/2021 21:14

@XenoBitch

I had dogs as a child and loved them very much. But I would not now feel able to keep a captive animal simply for my own gratification.

I thought about a pet recently, and when it came to it - it did not sit right with me.

AllThingsServeTheBeam · 16/11/2021 21:14

[quote rrhuth]@AllThingsServeTheBeam

Yes, they are just captives. I feel sorry for them.[/quote]
They are sentient beings and they do have emotions maybe not the exact same emotions as humans but I can tell you that my dog is happy when he is out camping with us and chasing his ball in his absolute element and when he is unhappy and scared which is most evenings at the moment as he doesn't like fireworks. They do feel happy. It just might be a different sort of happy than you. When DP or the kids get in he is happy. You can tell he is filled with an emotion like happiness when they come in. He isn't just 'being'

HistoryKitty · 16/11/2021 21:26

There are 12.5 million dogs in the UK

I think there around 12.5 million children in the UK as well, which sorry, isn't really relevant just an interesting observation.

XenoBitch · 16/11/2021 21:28

[quote rrhuth]@XenoBitch

I had dogs as a child and loved them very much. But I would not now feel able to keep a captive animal simply for my own gratification.

I thought about a pet recently, and when it came to it - it did not sit right with me.[/quote]
I am sorry you feel that way. But your feelings are valid.

JudgeJ · 16/11/2021 22:06

@Itsadogsworld

I think schools should teach children how to behave around dogs, canine body language and so on. I think it would significantly reduce the number of children that end up in A&E each year due to dogs bites. I’ve seen some dreadful behaviour in my local park where children will run up to my dog and one child was continually trying to bear hug her own dog. Children clearly aren’t being taught this at home so I think they should include it in schools. I welcome your thoughts on this.
Why not go straight from the delivery room and dump them off at school if parents can't take any responsibility for their sprogs? Would your addition to the National Curriculum also include teaching children how to keep their dogs from being a pest to others?
liveforsummer · 16/11/2021 22:19

Can't believe how many PP's think it's a dog owners job to ensure their dog will tolerate a child running up and grabbing/bear hugging/restraining them. People need to teach their dc respect around dogs (and also to listen to their owners) my little terrier is very cute but quite nervous of strangers. She's been socialised and trained incredibly well, especially given she was born a couple of months prior to the first lockdown. I'm sure she'd never bite anyone but I never want to take that chance and she does bark if uncomfortable so when kids ask to pet her I always say 'no, sorry she's not friendly' (not true, she's incredibly friendly but it's the most straightforward thing to say) they ignore and advance nearly every time. I end up positioning myself in front of the dog to block them and parents rarely correct them. Not a schools job though.

liveforsummer · 17/11/2021 06:28

Think about what you are saying. If a badly behaved child ran up and hit a strange adult on the back of the leg would it be ok for that stranger to turn round and attack the child? If that happened we would rightly think that adult should be locked up. Children (even badly behaved ones) have the right not to be attacked by dogs. Dogs who might lash out and hurt children (even if provoked) should not be out on the streets.

But a dog isn't equivalent to an adult. No the adult shouldn't and wouldn't attack unless they really picked the wrong adult, but If a child ran up and hit a strange child on the back then I'd say they'd be highly likely to be walloped back. I suppose still not the child's fault though - dc who are likely to run up to anyone/thing and hit or grab should of course be closely supervised by their parents at all times. I also agree any dog that's likely to approach anyone - Or one that might dislike being approached or be frightened if grabbed, should be on a lead in public areas.

Vapeyvapevape · 17/11/2021 06:34

Children should be taught how to behave around dogs and dogs should be trained properly so that they are not a danger to anyone.

liveforsummer · 17/11/2021 06:41

And what's so awful about a child bear-hugging her own dog, if the dog doesn't mind? Many like that sort of thing, especially larger breeds from small children.

Alarmist no dogs will like being near higher. Some are just incredibly tolerant and their stress signs subtle

But could I teach lessons on how to behave around cats instead? That sounds like an awesome afternoon!

Cats manage that themselves 😆

The dog is captive, it is being kept for human gratification.

Wasn't the domestication of dogs historically a very mutually beneficial thing? I'm certain my dog would far rather be singled under the covers at my feet and being fed a quality balanced diet than shivering in a cave and wondering where to catch her next meal anyway!

liveforsummer · 17/11/2021 06:42

Alarmist no dogs will like being near higher.

No idea where that came from - meant to say 'almost no dogs like being bear hugged'

Pixxie7 · 17/11/2021 06:55

Don’t you think teachers have enough to do.

TSSDNCOP · 17/11/2021 07:35

lessons on railway safety, stranger danger, power stations, playing with matches/fireworks etc. We were shown terrifying things to hammer the message home.

I had those lessons, they originated in the 70's. I distinctly recall the salient detail that was common. Children were playing alone and in no instance were any adults present.
Today with online safety, parents are given the information too, so the difference being parents are expected to pick up slack in educating their kids.

In the cases we've discussed here with dogs

Hesma · 17/11/2021 07:40

Parental responsibility like learning manners or how to wipe your bum. Schools have enough on their plate, you are totally ridiculous. My DC know how to behave around dogs because I taught them, it’s not rocket science

speakout · 17/11/2021 07:44

I had those lessons, they originated in the 70's. I distinctly recall the salient detail that was common. Children were playing alone and in no instance were any adults present.

I agree- I was a "street runner" from the age of 3 or 4.
Injuries caused by lack of supervision were very common- and education was needed.

The idea of "stranger danger" hasn't been taught for decades- it is a dangersous message.
Most attacks on children are carried out by someone they know or a family member.
Implicit in the stranger danger message is the idea that people kids know are safe- which isn;t the case.
The whole educational approach has changed on this one with more focus on body safety, secrets, sharing concerns etc. Stranger danger has not been the best accepted approach for 20 years.

LolaSmiles · 17/11/2021 10:44

A question for all the people who think it's unreasonable for parents to teach their children not to approach unknown dogs because (to paraphrase) 'humans come first, children are more important than dogs, if my child gets bitten then it's the dog owner's fault, in court the owner would be responsible', why on earth would you allow your child to put themselves into a potentially dangerous situation?

As a parent I have a duty of care to my DC and love them dearly. I'm also a responsible dog owner and know that not all dogs want to be engaged with strangers. Because I love them and don't want them to come to harm, I teach DC not to approach unknown dogs. I'd be negligent and an idiot to allow my DC to run up to assorted unknown animals on the grounds that if they get bitten it's technically the dog owner's fault. Surely a responsible parent would want to avoid their child being in the situation in the first place?

Or do you all allow your children to run into roads, and on the edge of reservoirs, or be curious on river banks as well in the name of being children and a bit inquisitive?

saraclara · 17/11/2021 10:55

My FIL used to walk straight out over zebra crossings without looking or even if a car was almost on top of him "because they have to stop".

He seemed to have no concept that the law didn't empower the driver with a kind of magic that could make their car grind to a halt in a fraction of a second.

This thread reminds me of him.

UndertonesOfCake · 17/11/2021 10:57

YANBU in principle, but in reality, school teaching time is limited - and if everything people say should be taught in schools was included, we wouldn't leave school until we were about 30.

What would you remove from the curriculum to make way for this proposal?

MysteryFog60 · 17/11/2021 10:59

There are many irresponsible dog owners around and it's got worse since all the lockdown dogs have been bought. People have bought dogs and they don't realise the responsibility that comes with them.

UndertonesOfCake · 17/11/2021 11:03

[quote rrhuth]@AllThingsServeTheBeam

Yes, they are just captives. I feel sorry for them.[/quote]
I keep trying to set my dog free from captivity every day at the park.

He just keeps following me home though.

Perhaps he has Stockholm syndrome?

Sidehustle99 · 17/11/2021 11:03

So you think it's the child's fault if they end up in A&E?

No it's the owners fault 100%

No dog with aggressive behavioural problems should ever be around children.

LolaSmiles · 17/11/2021 11:04

Saraclara
There was a thread along those lines ages ago. People were genuinely arguing that they should walk out into the road because if they get hit then it's the driver's fault.

I always thought it was stupidity in action. What use is being right if you're dead or severely injured?

Same on this thread. What sort of parent would allow their child to charge up to unknown animals, risk being attacked or bitten and then sit in A&E when their poor child is badly injured and genuinely think to themselves that they're a brilliant and responsible parent?

AllThingsServeTheBeam · 17/11/2021 11:05

@Sidehustle99

So you think it's the child's fault if they end up in A&E?

No it's the owners fault 100%

No dog with aggressive behavioural problems should ever be around children.

If the child has ran up to a stranger's dog and hurt it or hugged it without permission?