To ask dog owners to be extra vigilant around younger children?

[ponderingthisthing]

At the weekend, we were out in the meadows and having our family photos taken by a professional photographer.

A dog came near us and started jumping on the DC, who are 2 and 4. DH tried to fend it off until the owner came and dragged the dog away with some difficulty. By this time both children were extremely scared and upset and were screaming and crying. The owner may have muttered a quiet "sorry" before leaving quickly. No genuine apology or word to check if DC were OK, even though they were obviously extremely disturbed at that point with tears flooding down their faces. She just didn't seem to care.

For us though, it really put a damper on things and unsurprisingly the photography session did not go well. Both children felt unsafe following this (there were other dogs around, many not on lead) and clung to us.

It's not the first time that it's happened, DD was already afraid of dogs due to similar episodes in the past. We try to reassure her that dogs don't normally harm people and that she should just behave normally around them, but I wonder if we should also think more now about safety. Just yesterday, I came across a photo on social media of a little girl who was mauled in the face by a dog. Of course no physical harm came of this episode involving DC, thank goodness, and the dog was probably just over excited. However, the incident is making me feel somewhat uneasy about taking DC to places where dogs can run free.

AIBU to ask that dog owners be extra vigilant with small children around? And obviously, if the dogs are likely to jump up at people, to keep them on lead around small children in public places?

I don’t like dogs being off lead either and I have two dogs. I nearly always walk at an on-lead country park because otherwise I can’t relax. Every single doggy encounter is a minefield: is dog friendly, is owner going to put dog on lead, is owner friendly, will my bonkers dog start yapping. Get a deterrent spray to give you more confidence….you buy them from the police website. I’ve never had to use mine but I like knowing it’s in my bag.

It can be quite stressful when little children come running towards my dogs too as bonkers dog is easily spooked and other dog loves children and sometimes jumps up.

It really depends on a number of factors. How big were the dogs, how old, and how much did they jump on the children.

A young small puppy that comes and hops around is very different to a grown up doberman that pins the child down.

In the first instance, it's good to teach the child to recognise that the dog is just overexcited and not dangerous. In the second instance, the owner needs to be reported.

Young dogs, just like young children will sometimes wander a but too enthusiastically.

In any case, the dog disturbed what you were doing and it's very sad that the owner couldn't see it to really apologise.

I have a giant breed dog. He has exceptional recall, he is so friendly and never ever jumps.

But I don't let him off lead with people around, mainly because....the slobber! He would cover a small child in slobber 😳

He would also accidentally knock over small children because despite being 4 the oaf doesn't know where it's arse is or what it's doing!

He gets excercised off lead on empty beaches, or empty fields. Not that he's a fan of being athletic he's happy to just plod along on the lead to be honest.

I cant stand people who just let their dogs run up to people or other dogs. The amount of small terriers and spaniels that just come bounding over, and I just think "if my dog starts to play he's gonna crush your 4lb terrier with one paw!"

Yanbu. There are too many irresponsible dog owners unfortunately that think their precious dog would never hurt anyone... how many stories are there where a dog that never hurt anyone suddenly turned on a child? So I worry about DD near dogs (I worry about me near dogs too tbh)

Dogs don’t have rights to be let off the lead
Didn't take long for that comment! Dogs do have rights to be off the lead in areas where....they are indeed legally entitled to be.

Our local park is shared equally between children and dogs and amazingly, it all works very well. Dogs stay away from kids and kids away from dogs.

You need to be more aware of your surroundings.

If there were lots of dogs off lead then you chose a popular dog walking field and the inevitable happened.

I 100% agree with you. My son is already frightened of dogs from when a cousin’s dog snapped at him as a child and not long ago we were walking down the street when an off lead Alsatian came bounding up to us. It was waggy and I assumed meant no harm so I said to my son keep calm and let’s keep walking. As we passed it the dog jumped up behind my son and put its paws on his shoulders so he turned and it’s head was right there! Poor kid. He screamed and people waiting at the bus stop nearby were yelling at the owner to put it on a lead. I just thought why on earth wouldn’t you leash your dog on a busy street. Bloody annoying!

YANBU
I'm confident around dogs having grown up with large breeds, but having had umpteen experiences like this, my children are very reticent around dogs at best and just phobic at worst. With ASD, DS1 now has no interest in the positives of dogs. DS2 wants to like dogs and gradually makes progress and every incident of this nature puts him back again. I've tried really hard to encourage my children to stand still, calmly and quietly and occasionally get as far as asking owners if they can stroke them, but progress is very fragile.

Last year DS2 was standing still catching a pokemon in the woods when a small dog charged up, ignored my attempts to intercept (bent down and offered hand for a sniff) and jumped up putting its paws in DS's abdomen winding him. He was upset then the "owner" blamed us for having the audacity to take a child into the woods 300m from home 🙄It clearly was not the "owner's" respinsibility because the woods are apparently there for walking dogs, and being a puppy, the dog was beyond reproach.
The committee that manages the woods disagrees with this viewpoint and now has signage up requesting all dogs to be on a lead to protect ground nesting birds.

Most dogs and owners are fine, but the significant minority of entitled furbaby owners who think that the world is their for their furbaby's convenience ruin public spaces for everyone else including the responsible owners.

My DD is terrified of dogs. She's 3. This is firstly due to a fog running at her, jumping up her and knocking her to the floor when she was 18months at a local resevior. She was just walking along. Owner didn't even acknowledge us, let alone apologise. Did was screaming in fear.

It has since happened again on 3 further occasions, we've never got an apology. Got a 'hes friendly', ' he won't hurt you' twice.

She now flinches whenever we pass dogs in the street or anywhere as she thinks they will jump and knock her over :(

Older DD is also scared of dogs as she's witnessed this happening to her little sister

YANBU I hate off lead dogs that aren't under control. It's a shame that it ruined your photo shoot, I do also have to agree with @SamphirethePogoingStickerist that whilst it's shit and owners should be more responsible, the majority aren't, and I think you have to factor that in when choosing locations for something like this, or at least be prepared for it to happen and have a plan to deal with it when it inevitably does.
Maybe if there way a way to deal with this type of owner then incidents like this would start to be seen as socially unacceptable and people can go about their day without fear of being harassed by dogs and their crappy owners.
I say this as a dog owner who's dog is not allowed to approach people.

Let me get this straight. Several of the dog owners are equating their dog being approached by children, to children being approached by dogs.

What are the chances of a small child mauling the dog? Biting it? Scratching it? Seriously injuring it? Which is more vulnerable in these encounters, the dog or the child?

There was a child killed by two dogs some years ago. As the child was being fatally attacked, the owner ran up, shouting that they were friendly dogs.

That's what I think about every time a dog owner shouts that at me.

Yep! Much as some people need to be more aware of their dog, body language etc we, as a society, seem to have forgotten how to live alongside pets.

Dogs need to be better controlled, as and when necessary

Kids need to be better controlled, as and when necessary.

Everyone needs to take their share of the responsibility.

As @vivainsomnia has said, we too have a local fenced in park space that is used by many for off lead dog walking. We, dog owners, police each others dogs and parents keep their kids in check too. We all talk to each other and avoid any unpleasantness.

We have another on lead park, with designated kids areas. Also used by everyone with very little issue.

But some moan about dog poo, dog poo bags, me included. As a dog owner I hate it and join in the monthly picking days.

Others moan about the amount of tissue, wipes etc thrown on the floor. Me included. As a dog owner I am only to aware of how quickly that can cause expensive and often fatal issues for a dog. We pick those to.

All it takes is thought...

Dog owners also need to be aware of their surroundings. They have a legal obligation to keep their dog under control.

There are a lot of owners falling foul of "makes someone worried that it might injure them"

If your kids were scared already, then why go to a place with heaps of unleashed dogs?....

I have a 3 year old. It is my job as a parent to be vigilant of things around him and not rely on strangers.

Nobody child or adult should approach any unknown dog.

You don't know the dogs temperament, you don't know if it likes children.

Children make noise and jerky movements, they also sometimes pet from behind startling the dog. Dogs can react to this, even the mild friendly ones if startled, and they only have their mouths to communicate unhappines, sometimes a snarl or worst a bite.

Children should be taught, never approach a unknown dog. If you want interact with someone else's dog, ask the owner who can then advise.

Obviously though a loose dog, with poor recall jumping up at people is also unacceptable and risk is still there.

But if everyone a)controlled their dog and b) people didn't approach unknown dogs the world would be a calmer place.

I think that's a misunderstanding @baglavender

If a child approaches my dog and I keep my dog close and tell the child not to bother my dog I often get ignored. What I am trying to do is to prevent a small child irritating my dog into a reaction, being hurt, even if just being bowled over by him as he moves.

I don't think the kid will necessarily hurt my dog, though he has been kicked by a 5ish year old, kid just lashed out as he walked past. I just want parents to take their part in keeping small kids and my dog at a respectful distance. I do that with a short lead and being vigilant...

That eliminates the majority of outdoor public spaces.

Even spaces where dogs should be on a lead or even not permitted can't guarentee that owners won't oblige.

I have a dinky elderly dog who I walk off lead. She's not interested in other people, children or the majority of dogs but as a matter of courtesy I put her on the lead when passing children and unknown dogs. Because she's small and cute looking though children and adults think she is fair game to stroke without checking first. She wouldn't nip anybody but she doesn't particularly enjoy the attention so if asked I tend to say "no she's old and grumpy" I think there needs to be a lot more thought on both sides tbh.

Responsible dog owners already do this. Irresponsible ones don't aand won't regardless how many posts there are on MN!

Dogs without proper training should be on leads and children should be properly trained to behave around dogs - not approach without permission and not be hysterical if a dog approaches them.

If people did this everything would be fine.

Im reminded of a time a small child ran up to my Uncles giant breed, was told the dog doesn’t really play and to please leave it alone…small child totally ignored instructions, parent didn’t recall small child, dog turned it arse on the child (he thought he was much too good for playing!), child got knocked flying and banged its head. Parent kicked off, when it was entirely their fault!

What are the chances of a small child mauling the dog? Biting it? Scratching it? Seriously injuring it? Which is more vulnerable in these encounters, the dog or the child?
Small children mauled by a stranger og in the park is an extremely rare occurrence. Young children injuring small dogs is also a very rare occurrence although not so rare.

A few weeks ago, a little girl who asked if she could pet a puppy took it up before anyone could react, and dropped it when it wiggled out. Poor puppy got a broken leg. It was horrible to hear it cry. Poor girl was so upset.

YANBU. My 3 yo DS was jumped on by a dog a couple of times a few weeks ago when we were out walking. The owner didn’t apologise at all, just laughed it off. My DS was thankfully ok and its lucky it didn’t knock him over really, if he were a bit smaller it would have done.

I think dogs should be on a lead at all times.

Quite. This is the 4th thread now on dogs, in a short space of time, with the same old comments. It's as obvious as saying parents should responsibly supervise their children. There are though, always drama llama responses.

People trying to balance the argument by saying their dog has been upset by a young child is ridiculous. Clearly that is wrong, but it's doesn't make a dog jumping on a child any less wrong. Start a thread about keeping young children away from dogs to discuss that issue.

I don't care if anyone's dog is just being friendly, or won't hurt me, or tear my Sweaty Betty running tights, or will stop chasing me if I stop running - the dog should be under control.