Is it ever OK to have a dog in the same house as a small child ?

[invision]

I constantly read about attacks that leave babies & toddlers scarred for life or worse.

Why would anyone risk their childs wellbeing like that ?

Of course you can have a dog in the same house as a child -you just never leave a small child and a dog unattended, that's all.

Of course you can, what a ridiculous question. If it was a regular occurrence it wouldn't even make the news.

What do you think people who have a dog before they have a child should do ?

Seriously?
Of course I do. I even have a large dog in the same house as children I childmind!

You train the dog and the child/ren how to behave. You monitor the behaviour of both and act accordingly. You don't leave child and dog together unattended.

Common sense!

Of course you can.

I imagine it's a MASSIVE pain in the arse having to make sure they are never left together unsupervised though.

You can't keep your eye on them for every second of every day, and it only takes a second to maim for life.

I say its a simple choice, child or dog.

Well, I have managed to keep my two children safe from mutilation by our small dog, so I guess that just sometimes it's OK.

I've got a dog AND 3 young children, including a 5 month old baby.

I don't feel I'm "risking my childs wellbeing" at all as I am a responsible parent and a responsible dog owner.

For me this means not leaving dog and baby together unsupervised, making sure my dog is well trained and teaching my children how to respect and care for our pet properly.

Yes Mappa...the clue is in the word sometimes.

Any dog owner knows even the best behaved dog has off days, just like people.

Every parent knows babies make odd noises, toddlers grab, poke and pull things they shouldn't.

Why would anyone gamble with their childs welfare?

I do think it depends on the type of dog and probably the type of child as well. You don't have to 'keep your eye on them every second of every day' as long as they're not alone together. So a small child being left to play in a playroom etc would be fine but I wouldn't leave a dog in there with them - the dog can be in another room or separated using a stairgate etc.

I think children benefit a lot from having animals around when they are little and as long as common sense is used then there is very little risk.

invision, you are talking crap -of course people can be careful. What a strange attitude you have.

As others have said it's all right as long as the two never are left together. I was getting, 'your not keeping the cat?!? are you?!?' when I was first pregnant. I asked why. Cat's sleep on babies heads (so it's not just dogs people worry about)
I grew up with both cats and dogs in my house and both were never allowed to be with babies alone.
If you let your pets know to stay away, and you don't leave the babies down low/unprotected even when you're walking out of the room for 'a moment' then the likelihood of an incident is very low.
There are many things that can harm children in the house, education on the issues/hazards makes it possible to protect everyone involved from misfortune.

I was being sarcastic.

Because the risk is incrediably minimal if it is managed properly.

I have two dogs and two dc. My children are well aware of how to treat the dogs and how to respect their space. Equally the dogs have been trained to give the children space. Dog1 can be aggressive at time (fear based aggression) and so has been trained to stay off the furniture during day times when the dc are up. He is also not allowed in the living room unless I am with him. Neither dog is left alone with the children.

Both dogs have 'safe spaces' they can got to if they are fed up, the children know to stay away from these places and let the dogs have their space.

My dogs are walked and trained regularly to prevent them becoming bored or fustrated.

I can bet my last penny that the dogs you have read about were not treat like this. Infact in most cases it is not the family dog who attacks but the aunts/uncles/grandparents dog who has not ben properly socialised with small children and the children have been left to do as they please with the dog. A dog who has been climbed on, tugged at and tormented regularly by children is eventually going to get fed up and snap at the children or worse.

Cars cause more damage each year than dogs do, we don't class cars as an automatic danger though.

Presumably. DB and myself were both brought up in a house with dogs. My nephew and niece ditto. And my children have spent plenty of time with my parents dog from when their were babies.

So clearly my parents and my brother and SIL and myself are all happy to gamble with our children welfare. There you go... I thought we were quite good parents but you learn something new every day.

I do not believe that anyone can have their eyes on their child/dog for every second, and that is all it takes.

Older children fine, and I agree there are benefits of having a pet, but not worth the potential risk when the child is very young.

OP - do you ever take your children out in the car? Why would you gamble with your child's welfare by exposing them to the risk of a car crashing into you?

Unless you wrap your children up in cotton wool there are risks in every day life. I agree with other posters - you need to be aware of the risk and minimise it by being responsible parents and responsible dog owners.

Bebe - I got that about cats sleeping on babies' heads too, as I had two cats.

What nonsense! My cats hated the baby!

invision -try reading some of the posts before you continue with your broken record argument.

TBH I don't think that anyone in my family watched the baby/dog combo like hawks either. Dogs were just such a normal part of our lives it didn't occur to anyone as as worry.