Roared at a child today...

[fackingsnowballz]

Questioning now whether I may have overreacted or not...

I’ve namechanged as I don’t want it linked to previous posts.

Interested to get opinions and a bit too scared to try AIBU..

So, I have a dog approaching old age, she is partially sighted but no one would know that to look at her.

I took her out for a walk today, she was on lead and a child, I’d estimate maybe 7, ran towards her and the parents called the child back.
I carried on walking and the child ran at my dog again, this time with a handful of snow and tried to get at her mouth.

I assumed the child was maybe trying to feed her snow and carried on walking away only to have said child follow us again and then quite violently hit her with the snow.
It got her shoulder but I think the child was aiming for her face.

Well, I screamed at the child not to dare do that to her and the mum came running over and grabbed her child.
I was absolutely frothing but she didn’t say anything and neither did I, just walked off absolutely raging.

But a small part of me is wondering if I did overreact a bit?
As in throwing snowballs, I suppose, is quite a normal thing for a child to do.
The child isn’t to know she is partially sighted.
Not the child’s fault if parents can’t control/haven’t taught polite behaviour etc

But then I think the child was more than old enough to know better!
Of course you don’t go throwing snow at random dogs.
And you certainly don’t smash it into them at close range..
She is getting on and doesn’t have full vision.
What if she had panicked?
Snapped even then I’d be blamed for having an out of control dog despite her being on lead and walking away.

What would you have done?

I think your response was absolutely fine. There's a place for this kind of aggressive, forceful method of communicating safety information when a child hasn't grasped it by other means. Hopefully, you've saved her from the next dog biting her face off.

The child needs to learn to show respect. Something very similar happened to my oldie whereby a child was repeatedly told not to approach him then spitefully ran over and slapped him across the face, knocking him over. The mother then said the child had already been bitten in a similar incident and she wanted to build up his confidence again with a gentle dog. My youngest rescue cannot abide any child - sometimes, I know exactly how he feels.

You screaming at them could have traumatised them. They could remember that for a long time. I hope you're ashamed of yourself. What you did was wrong. And although it's understandable it was unnacceptable. If you came across them again I hope you apologise genuinely.

@1950s1 don't be so ridiculous, the OP has nothing to apologise for or be ashamed of. I really hope the child does remember it for a long time. Hopefully it will make them and their irresponsible parents think, and realise they are not the most important people in the world.

@SundaySleep

You sound like a right nasty piece of work OP. It was a CHILD.

A child that was repeatedly trying to physically bother a dog on a lead.

A child that had already ignored it's parent

In short - a child that was not under its owner's control.

I'd have shouted, roared and probably sworn!

Had my dog reacted the consequences would have been more dire - for the child as well as the dog!

As MNers are wont to say - keep your bloody dogs kids under control.

The parents need to teach their child to respect animals. You did nothing wrong. I would have done the same and then said as much to her mother.

Kid needed to learn, and hopefully she did today. Better that she is “traumatised” by being yelled at than by having her face bitten off by a less placid animal. OP, you did that kid a favour, though neither she or her ineffectual parents will see it that way.

YANBU at all

Don't engage with 1950s1. Her posting style is always confrontational and contrary, and has no real debating element, merely continual repeats of original opinion.

@1950s1 so you think it’s ok to harass a blind, old dog?

My dgs is 8. He would never behave like this, he’s been brought up to respect animals. I think you we’re very controlled in the circumstances op.

I think you did overreact. Could you not have spoken normally / firmly to the kid? I mean, you restrained yourself from "roaring" at the mum when she came over. Just "walked off absolutely raging". Why not take it up with her?

Can't stand people who shout and scream.

"Vile brat", "entitled little shit", "deserved to be bitten" - these comments show really unpleasant people.

You did right. Brat needs to learn thats not ok.

"Vile brat", "entitled little shit", "deserved to be bitten" - these comments show really unpleasant people.. Lets see...

162 posts

6 comments about the child being a brat or children in general being brats (it was 3 directed ath the child, 3 general comments)

1 general "little shits" comment

2 deserves to be bitten / fed to the dog comments - one obviosuly in jest.

All in all 9 of 162 comments. Only half of which were directly about the child in the OP, the other half general comments about childish behaviour in general.

Not so vile after all!

Oh, add another 'direct 'brat' for Shaniac! Still not that many!

Could you not have spoken normally / firmly to the kid?
I could, but would it have made a difference?
At least the child might not do it again to someone else?
You’d hope !

I mean, you restrained yourself from "roaring" at the mum when she came over. Just "walked off absolutely raging". Why not take it up with her?
I didn’t see the point, she’d called the child back once so knew it was unacceptable for them to be following us.
It was clear as day I was really pissed so she knew I was angry about what had happened and will, I hope, not let anything similar happen again.

If she had said something to me I was that angry I would have definitely given her a Royal verbal bollocking but as it was, she was silent, I’m not the sort of person to continue hammering people, id shouted at the child, she wasn’t talking, i thought it best to leave it and walk away.

I have an older dog and I would have not only roared at the child but also the parents !

When I was young, I was bitten hard by a fox terrier - didn’t cause lasting damage but that was probably luck. He was a somewhat elderly, sweet, impeccably behaved dog who belonged to family friends and knew me well from holidays we had had at their farm. But I surprised him when he was sitting looking at the garden, I walked up on the grass behind him (so probably quietly) and patted him, and in shock he turned and bit me. Obviously there was sympathy for my pain but there was no doubt among my parents and their friends, and me and my siblings, that it was entirely my fault for behaving in an unpredictable and surprising way to an animal with sharp teeth.

I reckon you’ve likely saved the child an injury or very nasty shock in future - she’ll think twice next time. She was lucky your dog didn’t snap around at her in surprise or hurt.

YWNBU op. That child came to your dog, who was on a lead, three times, escalating their behaviour each time. I would have probably shouted at the child too.

Ok - I’m someone who doesn’t like dogs and who is always of the “humans trump dogs” mindset. But I think you were well within your rights here. The child was going to hurt your dog. You acted to stop that. You didn’t swear. You didn’t threaten. You weren’t abusive. You raised your voice as a preventative measure. The dog could have bitten the child. The mother should have had the child under better care/control. I don’t think you’ve done anything wrong; if that were my kid, I’d apologise to you. And I’m not a dog lover.

Blimey having read some responses I need to be locked up ! I once took a stick off a child who whilst waiting outside the school for DC.he tried to hit my dog with it.

Words were said too. Lock me up and throw away the key !

You did nothing wrong at all. You gave a horrid brat what they richly deserved. Who cares if said horrid brat is traumatised by it? Maybe they will think twice about trying to abuse an animal the next time the opportunity presents itself.

I once had to tell the mother of a toddler in no uncertain terms to remove him from my labrador, who was just walking nicely beside me on his lead at the time. The toddler had run up behind us on a narrow path, seized my labrador’s tail and was hanging onto it with a vice like grip. It was hurting my dog and all the silly, wishy washy mother could do was plead gently “Oh darling, doggy might not like that!” I shouted at her “Remove him immediately, or I cannot guarantee “doggy’s” continued good behaviour” whilst having to hold my poor labrador in a headlock so that he couldn’t whirl round and tackle the child, who was causing him a lot of pain. She looked horrified, but did retrieve her child. If she didn’t like me for shouting at her, I couldn’t give a shit. I was being a responsible dog owner trying to ensure that the painful provocation from her child did not result in child being bitten.

No def not , the only person who should feel bad in this the parent of the child who has not taught child to behave or if child maybe doesn't understand , isn't keeping a close enough eye on them , especially as it happened a couple if times so they had time to intervene.

it takes a village. Of course it was ok to shout at the child.

The vocal poster who thinks the op handled it badly because they shouted and may of upset the child , a dog biting would be a lot worse , and children have to learn that bad behaviour has consequences and they will be shouted at many times in life.
Also the childs parent had plenty of times to intervene and chose not to so they need to take responsibility.
If my dog bounded up to a child and the parent shouted at him , that would be on me for not having control.

I’d have done the same, and had words with the parents given the opportunity

I think you were very restrained to not have shouted at the parents particularly as they didn't apologise! How dare that child actually try to hurt your dog and the parents not be absolutely mortified and grovelling to you!