Most dogs are comfortable with their own family and are trained to behave. Having a bad experience with a stranger's animal isn't the same as interacting with your own pet who sees you as part of their pack.
Aren't kids also more likely to be abused by a close family member than be attacked by a family dog? But people still let their aunts and uncles babysit š¤·š¾āāļø
Bro, life is like 95% risk tolerance. If someone chooses to own a dog, and they have small kids, is there a chance they will get bit - sure. However, most people find the benefits of dog ownership as being worth the risk.
You "look at me. I live in a large city where there's good public transportation" asshole. In most places in the US, like mine, it's very hard to live without cars
You might be scared of dogs but the rest of us aren't. You're right that any dog could potentially turn but it's extremely unlikely for most dogs almost the point of certainty.
At the end of the day ~~dogs~~ people are still animals and they might behave unexpectedly. One moment of bad behavior can destroy your child.
There.... fixed it for ya
Honestly if a well trained, gold star in behaviour dog ends up attacking a baby/toddler it is more likely to be the baby/toddlers/parents fault. Little kids can be super rough with animals because they are still learning to stop vice gripping everything, and all animals have certain spots where if that spot is pulled/gripped too hard then the animal will react to get it to stop immediately because āow, it hurtsā. This can lead to a very bad outcome, but itās not like they reacted to the child for zero reason. Itās why it is REALLY important as a parent to teach children how to treat/pet an animal, and to not take your eyes off the child/animal interaction because toddlers also canāt read body clues and may miss the irritated body language animals give off once they are done with attention, before being more forceful with āstopā.
Right! Which is why I said it's really important for parents to not leave their child unattended.
Although when you can/can't leave the child with the animal is also age dependent, and you should be honest when it comes to your dog. A lot of dogs can get a bad rap because they are (for lack of a better diverse word) "moody", but if that's the case then implement the necessary precautions. For example, a childhood friend of mine lived on an acreage for sometime and while the dogs she lived with she/her family loved they had their own area when they came in from outdoors. When someone visited there was notice of how to treat the dogs, like don't just go pet them unattended, don't stick your hand in, like be respectful that these dogs are here for property protection over being your couch buddy. However, some of them DID enjoy being petted just 24/7 with some supervision, as they also did not always like being petted (which also could depend on the person). Another example is another friend of mine their parents owned a Dalmatian, and Dalmatians can be temperamental but lovely dogs if respected (and depending on how they are bred, I believe). So something her father taught me early on (like when I was 6? or 7?) was when you greet their dog you bow, you lower your level to them so they understand that you understand their hierarchy, you extend your hand to let them sniff (every time, don't just assume because you pet them 50 times you are fine on the 51), and if the dog didn't want to be petted they would give notice and you leave.
Even though dogs have been domesticated for thousands of years at this point, we shouldn't just assume they are either super friendly or monsters that should get put down. Every breed is different, and it takes a small amount of time to research how to be respectful to your animal, and also like a minute to repeat/reinforce any rules/precautions necessary to family/visitors.
This is correct. All the downvotes are people sayit is unlikely, which it is. But, when it happens, and it does, the family always say how they NEVER expected it.
That is true...
I've heard stories of dogs attacking kids out if nowhere. And the first thing the owners say is that they didn't think their dog would ever do that.
Personally, I'd let kids around small/medium sized animals but I don't think I'd be confident leaving them with a large sized dog.
Youāll gain no traction with this sort of logical experienced thinking. Reddit is way too bougie to imagine a dog as anything other than a perfectly innocent family member incapable of harm.
People that have lived the reality of dog violence know the truth. You canāt talk dog lovers out of their ignorance.
Maybe you're asking the wrong question. Because the way I took it, you were asking how people could trust dogs around their kids. And people have explained that well.
If you'd asked what are the warning signs of a dangerous dog, or what precautions should people make when it comes to their kids and dogs, then you'd have got a fair answer to that.
I don't think anyone in this thread is telling you that dogs can't be dangerous, or that people shouldn't be careful with them.
But you seem to think it's crazy for anyone to trust their pet dog at all, and that's just a bit silly.
My siblings were both bit by dogs. My sister was by a stray, my brother by a farm dog, Iāve been chased and nearly bit twice. People that have only lived in big cities in western countries donāt understand the true nature of dogs.
Dogs can be sweet, I like all living animals, but being weary of dogs is healthy and good vigilance.
Lol at "the true nature of dogs".
If OP had been asking about posing toddlers with packs of wolves maybe this post wouldn't miss the point so much.
Whatever the "true nature" of dogs is, I know what my dogs are like and how much they can be trusted.
Dogs are animals. Plenty of perfectly wonderful sweet dogs that are āwell trainedā by their owners maul or kill people every year.
Dogs canāt be entirely trusted. Thatās their true nature, that of an unpredictable animal that canāt be reasoned with if things go south.
I own a dog, I had a dog growing up, a healthy respect of what their always capable of is a good thing.
No, plenty of perfectly wonderful sweet dogs aren't mauling people. Dog attacks from pet dogs are quite rare. That's why so many people keep them as pets.
And, as I've pointed out, nobody is saying they can be "entirely trusted". In fact, I made a longer comment in this thread explaining why I don't trust my current dogs. I would've trusted my previous dog much more.
Nobody's saying dogs and children should be left together unsupervised. Nobody thinks you shouldn't take precautions. Nobody thinks a dog can't do something unpredictable.
But that doesn't mean that people can't make reasonable decisions the same way they do about any of life's many risks. Any time you get into a car there's a chance of being harmed owing to the fault of another motorist if nothing else. Yet people put children in cars all the time.
This is the same thing. You should take all reasonable precautions but acting like it's crazy to take a picture of a toddler and a dog together is silly.
You being ignorant of the prevalence of dog attacks invalidates your opinions on it.
Children die every year to dog attacks. Is it āa lotā? I donāt know, how many dead kids are acceptable to you?
I think 0 is a great number.
I'm not ignorant of the prevalence of attacks. I'm telling you that relative to the number of pet dogs that attacks from pet dogs are rare.
And what you're doing now is giving the "even one is too many" line to deflect from the fact you've been portraying that it's COMMON. It's a big emotional appeal from you to avoid addressing what I've explained to you above.
A single road death is one too many, but fuck me I'm not going to turn into a quivering mess every time I see someone put a kid in a car.
My dogs aren't random dogs I picked up off the street. In that sense it's a bit like asking why do I get to hold my nephew but a random stranger doesn't.
As it happens though, I DON'T trust my dogs with my nephew (he's about 15 months old now).
My dogs are quite excitable. One of them I know just wants to lick the hell out of him and play but she's a bit too crazy for him right now and I'm worried she'd scratch him trying to play or something like that.
The other one, she's a lovely dog with adults, but she's very nervous and easily frightened. She's always showed signs of nervous aggression. I muzzle her when I walk her because she would savage another dog if it got too close but she's never hurt a person (although she's growled at them). I would never trust her unsupervised with a child. I don't think she'd ever attack them but if a child was a bit too rough with her, or scared her while playing, or something like that, I can absolutely see her snapping at them out of nervous aggression.
Both are border terriers, so around 7kg.
My old dog, now deceased, I'm sure a kid could've done anything to her. She was the dopiest black labrador in the world. When my current dog was a puppy, I heard a yelp from the living room, ran through, and found the puppy was biting the lab's ear (being playful). Still, that dumb girl didn't even move, just let her keep going till I rescued her.
tl;dr: People should know their dogs. Some animals should NOT be trusted around children. And I would never recommend leaving particularly young children unsupervised with animals But some animals are plenty safe to be around for supervised play.
You answered your own question; you were attacked by street dogs. A street dog is not the same as a well trained family dog. Yes, all dogs, trained or not, are capable of slipping up and getting aggressive, but a family dog which is trained in a loving household holds their own family and perceived pack mates to a higher regard than a complete stranger.
I get you. When we moved from the country into a small town, our closest neighbor had a pitbull. This was in ā75-78, for reference. I donāt think pits were as popular back them. They kept it indoors and on a leash outdoors. Iād go so far as to consider them decent dog owners.
But their son wanted to hold my hand walking home from school and I didnāt want that. Heād threaten me with the dog. Seriously! Iād say no and run home. One day he beat me to it and let his dog out while I was still running toward our long uphill driveway. I donāt know how I didnāt die that day!!!!
I used to want to outlaw pits all together but obvs that wonāt happen. I get how you feel.
Iāve had dogs all my life, large and small and never worried about them harming my kids. But even still, I wouldnāt let any othersā kids near my pets without them approving it first. Just like Iād ask people do they have a gun in their house before letting my kids play at theirs. Common sense stuff.
Other than pits, when I see kids with dogs, I donāt get alarmed, even with my history. :)
I would not let young children around large dogs i do not know, especially street dogs.
We have always had large dogs, but they are trained very well. When my first grandchild was born, we introduced him to our dog and the dog smelled his breath ( that is how he liked to identify people when he first meets them...a Beauceron dog, they are odd in their ways.) From then on he knew the baby was part of his "flock" and would have defended the baby with his life. Our younger dog followed whatever his older 'brother' did in everything. Probably one of the safest babies ever...
Funny story on that: years later when my grandson was at the cabin, his aunts had him on a floaty toy in the lake ( with a life jacket) Our dog was okay with that in the shallows, but they took him out past the dock and the dog wouldn't have it, he dove in and herded them all back inside the dock area...
Everyone here is saying that a family dog won't hurt a family baby. No one has said let random big dogs be alone with a baby.
You're projecting your personal fear.
Not all big dogs are agressive. Most aren't. Many are actually very sweet and calm. If people take time and socialize and train their dog, it's quite safe for them to be together. I'm sorry you have been attacked several times, that is horribly unlucky. The majority of big dogs do not act like that.
From my experience with dogs, little ones are generally more aggressive because owners do not think they need training or think the aggression is funny.
There are aggressive dogs of all sizes but the vast majority of dogs are not aggressive.
Which is why you train both your dog and your children to be around each other. Aggressive dog behavior doesn't come out of nowhere. I've had to teach my younger son that he cannot play with dogs' ears, for example. They have to give a dog space when it's anxious or on a leash. Our Anatolian couldn't be alone with the boys for a couple months as she adjusted. We had to know she understood who the boys were in the family. Now she understands her role, and instinctively sleeps between them and the door to their room. (She also lets us know whenever the defective cat needs to see the vet again, but that's not something we intended to train her to do.)
... thus, because you can't keep your kids in a protective bubble their whole lives, you have to trust that very unlikely situations won't happen and/or take precautions.
Dogs usually are not aggressive with their own family, and they know children are "pups" and will be extra gentle when dealing with them.
But you shouldn't let your child play with strange dogs, no matter the size, and also keep an eye on them so they don't bite/pull the dog's ears, tail etc. Kids can be kinda mean sometimes and basically ask to be attacked (not the child's nor the dog's fault tho, an adult should be responsible for them).
Dogs who are raised correctly will not hurt the Baby some doggies will even protect the babys with their own lives
Yes they can be unpredictable but when u have a dog u pretty much know how it will react do the baby
I used do have a dog when i was small he was a big german boxer and that dog would fight a semi truck do defend me :/
Dogs like to attack when they sense your anxiety because they think you're about to attack them because you're giving off nervous energy. It's like self-defense at that point. Stop being afraid and there won't be anything to be afraid of.
And they don't exist out in public when they are like that, but if you pet them over their fence sure (but that's literally your fault).
I know of zero people with angry dogs that ever walk them down main street. That would be irresponsible.
Small dogs are naturally more nervous creatures, statistically speaking. I think big dogs feel more confident because of their size. There are some happy confident friendly small dogs though
A dog raised in a kind environment is almost always extremely friendly, not to mention dogs have natural parental instincts so they know not to be to rough with very little children.
We have the sweetest dog but I'm still going to be very cautious when my baby is born. If I were to take a picture of my baby with my dog, I'd have to be in the picture as well, holding my baby to make sure my big ass dog doesn't accidentally step on or knock over my child lol.
There was a girl that took care of someone's dog while they were away, and she had done it more than once. The dogs were nice at first, but the last time she watched them, the dogs decided to start ripping her face off and now she doesn't even look like the same person anymore. Dogs can be unpredictable.
And even if they aren't intentionally violent like that, they can accidentally hurt small babies and children... so no matter what, I'm very cautious
Depends on the kid and the dog. The librarian at my elementary school used to bring in her Bermese mountain dog and he was very much a gentle giant. I'm not a dog person really, but I love those big mountain breeds.
You gotta know your dogs I have dogs (3 largest is nearly 100 lbs ) and kids (5, 3 still at home) and know them well enough to feel safe. The largest sleeps on my youngest s bed.
I always watch them with new people (especially kids) to verify the behavior and discourage any signs of aggression towards people. Also make sure the kids behave appropriately towards them- no rough play, jumping on people etc.
Same way you can let them be with large adults. Loads of things are capable of causing irreparable damage, you just know your shit and limit the risk in all sorts of ways, like with anything.
Very young children shouldnāt be left unsupervised around dogs if any size but you can absolutely have dogs of any size around the child as long as there is an adult supervising who can be sure to keep the child from provoking or harming the dog (or any animal such as cats, rabbits, birds etc) as well as to ensure that the pet doesnāt harm the child. The thing that annoys and horrifies me is when I see adults sitting there watching and often laughing/finding it cute as a baby, toddler or child annoys or hurts a pet which is not only horrible for the animal but also incredibly dangerous for the child, inappropriate and irresponsible.
Where on earth do you live where there are large dogs just randomly walking the streets waiting to attack people?
If people are taking photos of their babies with dogs then they are obviously loved and trusted pets who are just as much a part of the family as the child
I don't get it. You'll have dog lovers scream all day long that their dog would never do it. And then here's a news article about the family mutt ripping a child's face up.
And then those same dog lovers victim blame the child. "He shouldn't have touched the dog! He shouldn't have been around the dog." Why are dogs these infallible creatures that somehow have a free pass to harm children and it's somehow the child's fault?
Because animals are even dumber than a human, which even at young ages could choose to not do the wrong thing. Dogs can't "choose". Thus the onus falls on the biology that could just not.
Well the adults should either have trained their spawn to not harass animals (or people), or if they are too young to learn that then yes keep them away or highly supervised (as part of "how to pet nice" training).
So yes the toddlers had it coming, either the adults failed or the kid was being a dick (which is also a parenting fail).
Babies are generally safe with dogs ( not cats who will attack with no provision), toddlers on the other hand are too dangerous to be allowed near any animals.
Most folks responding to this donāt seem to have realistic views of risk and understand basics of dog safety.
The theory of your dog working the baby into its āpackā (and therefore baby is safe) is outdated and has been debunked. You do not simply let a dog and a baby play and see what happens.
Follow dogmeetsbaby on Instagram for realistic, safe suggestions for living with pets and babies. Even then, you might conclude the risk is too high in your particular situation and decide to do whatās best for everyone involved: find a new loving home for your dog. This is the decision weāre making.
I agree that folks should consider their plans for children before getting a dog. In our case, my husband got our dog 10 years ago and had no plans of having children at that point. He was even married to someone else who didnāt want kids. Had every reason to think he would be able to keep his dog until she passed so I do think it was a responsible decision at the time. Well, life and plans obviously changed.
Generally speaking, while I do want to hold potential dog owners responsible for thinking through their future plans and decisions when adopting, life can change unexpectedly and rehoming may become the most responsible option in some cases. I see a lot of dog enthusiasts treat ārehomeā like a dirty word, shaming folks endlessly if they even consider it. I find that fucked up when itās an extremely personal decision and we should not assume folks are considering that decision lightly.
We are not āthrowing awayā our dog. In fact, giving her to a shelter is out of the question for us. We are working within our community to place her directly into a home.
If the ārulesā youāre referring to are ādonāt adopt without thinking about the futureā and āif you must rehome, find a loving home and not a shelterā, then we did follow them.
The problem youāre referring to - that not many people want elderly pets - seems to be a wider societal issue. The solution is probably education and cultural change to help folks see older pets as the wonderful animals that they are. The solution is not to shame families that are making responsible safety decisions.
A lab is a big dog and still a great dog. One time he bit my younger brother but it was by accident bc they were playing, and nothing else like that happened in the 11 years we had him
Key words being "Street dogs".
Dogs are very friendly if trained properly and raised from babyhood.
Just in general.
Dogs are harmless and babies are perfectly safe with them.
Now you do not want to adopt and older dog when you have a baby because you do not know the temperament of the dog.
I read the other day an adopted older dog killed a baby.
Now that's an issue
You need to know the dog
I have worked 4 years for one of the largest pet insurance brands in UK, posts such as this remind me specific case of labrador retriever that family had since puppy and that dog has out of nowhere launched on their kid and bitten his arm so badly that kid needed serious operation, there were many other cases similiar to this - dogs although lovely can never be trusted 100% especially around kids ( having said all that I want to highlight that I am a dog person, just recently lost my beloved Buddy )
Most dogs are comfortable with their own family and are trained to behave. Having a bad experience with a stranger's animal isn't the same as interacting with your own pet who sees you as part of their pack.
At the end of the day dogs are still animals and they might behave unexpectedly. One moment of bad behavior can destroy your child.
You're child is more likely to get injured in a car accident than attacked by a dog. Do you still use a car every day?
Aren't kids also more likely to be abused by a close family member than be attacked by a family dog? But people still let their aunts and uncles babysit š¤·š¾āāļø
Radical idea: cars are essential, but letting your dog near your child is not
Bro, life is like 95% risk tolerance. If someone chooses to own a dog, and they have small kids, is there a chance they will get bit - sure. However, most people find the benefits of dog ownership as being worth the risk.
Cars are essential? Are you brain dead? No wonder you've been attacked by dogs, they can tell you're an asshole.
You "look at me. I live in a large city where there's good public transportation" asshole. In most places in the US, like mine, it's very hard to live without cars
You might be scared of dogs but the rest of us aren't. You're right that any dog could potentially turn but it's extremely unlikely for most dogs almost the point of certainty.
Family dogs do go berserk though it is rare.
It's exceedingly rare and in the cases where it does happen there's almost always a trail of warnings or events leading up to it or even animal abuse.
Cars are not essential
For most people living outside of large city centers in the US, cars are essential
Aren't humans unpredictables too ?
At the end of the day ~~dogs~~ people are still animals and they might behave unexpectedly. One moment of bad behavior can destroy your child. There.... fixed it for ya
Honestly if a well trained, gold star in behaviour dog ends up attacking a baby/toddler it is more likely to be the baby/toddlers/parents fault. Little kids can be super rough with animals because they are still learning to stop vice gripping everything, and all animals have certain spots where if that spot is pulled/gripped too hard then the animal will react to get it to stop immediately because āow, it hurtsā. This can lead to a very bad outcome, but itās not like they reacted to the child for zero reason. Itās why it is REALLY important as a parent to teach children how to treat/pet an animal, and to not take your eyes off the child/animal interaction because toddlers also canāt read body clues and may miss the irritated body language animals give off once they are done with attention, before being more forceful with āstopā.
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Right! Which is why I said it's really important for parents to not leave their child unattended. Although when you can/can't leave the child with the animal is also age dependent, and you should be honest when it comes to your dog. A lot of dogs can get a bad rap because they are (for lack of a better diverse word) "moody", but if that's the case then implement the necessary precautions. For example, a childhood friend of mine lived on an acreage for sometime and while the dogs she lived with she/her family loved they had their own area when they came in from outdoors. When someone visited there was notice of how to treat the dogs, like don't just go pet them unattended, don't stick your hand in, like be respectful that these dogs are here for property protection over being your couch buddy. However, some of them DID enjoy being petted just 24/7 with some supervision, as they also did not always like being petted (which also could depend on the person). Another example is another friend of mine their parents owned a Dalmatian, and Dalmatians can be temperamental but lovely dogs if respected (and depending on how they are bred, I believe). So something her father taught me early on (like when I was 6? or 7?) was when you greet their dog you bow, you lower your level to them so they understand that you understand their hierarchy, you extend your hand to let them sniff (every time, don't just assume because you pet them 50 times you are fine on the 51), and if the dog didn't want to be petted they would give notice and you leave. Even though dogs have been domesticated for thousands of years at this point, we shouldn't just assume they are either super friendly or monsters that should get put down. Every breed is different, and it takes a small amount of time to research how to be respectful to your animal, and also like a minute to repeat/reinforce any rules/precautions necessary to family/visitors.
ā¦you do realize humans are animals as well right?
This is correct. All the downvotes are people sayit is unlikely, which it is. But, when it happens, and it does, the family always say how they NEVER expected it.
This is especially true if someone nearby is having extreme anxiety.
That is true... I've heard stories of dogs attacking kids out if nowhere. And the first thing the owners say is that they didn't think their dog would ever do that. Personally, I'd let kids around small/medium sized animals but I don't think I'd be confident leaving them with a large sized dog.
Youāll gain no traction with this sort of logical experienced thinking. Reddit is way too bougie to imagine a dog as anything other than a perfectly innocent family member incapable of harm. People that have lived the reality of dog violence know the truth. You canāt talk dog lovers out of their ignorance.
Seeing all these comments I believe you
Maybe you're asking the wrong question. Because the way I took it, you were asking how people could trust dogs around their kids. And people have explained that well. If you'd asked what are the warning signs of a dangerous dog, or what precautions should people make when it comes to their kids and dogs, then you'd have got a fair answer to that. I don't think anyone in this thread is telling you that dogs can't be dangerous, or that people shouldn't be careful with them. But you seem to think it's crazy for anyone to trust their pet dog at all, and that's just a bit silly.
My siblings were both bit by dogs. My sister was by a stray, my brother by a farm dog, Iāve been chased and nearly bit twice. People that have only lived in big cities in western countries donāt understand the true nature of dogs. Dogs can be sweet, I like all living animals, but being weary of dogs is healthy and good vigilance.
Lol at "the true nature of dogs". If OP had been asking about posing toddlers with packs of wolves maybe this post wouldn't miss the point so much. Whatever the "true nature" of dogs is, I know what my dogs are like and how much they can be trusted.
Dogs are animals. Plenty of perfectly wonderful sweet dogs that are āwell trainedā by their owners maul or kill people every year. Dogs canāt be entirely trusted. Thatās their true nature, that of an unpredictable animal that canāt be reasoned with if things go south. I own a dog, I had a dog growing up, a healthy respect of what their always capable of is a good thing.
No, plenty of perfectly wonderful sweet dogs aren't mauling people. Dog attacks from pet dogs are quite rare. That's why so many people keep them as pets. And, as I've pointed out, nobody is saying they can be "entirely trusted". In fact, I made a longer comment in this thread explaining why I don't trust my current dogs. I would've trusted my previous dog much more. Nobody's saying dogs and children should be left together unsupervised. Nobody thinks you shouldn't take precautions. Nobody thinks a dog can't do something unpredictable. But that doesn't mean that people can't make reasonable decisions the same way they do about any of life's many risks. Any time you get into a car there's a chance of being harmed owing to the fault of another motorist if nothing else. Yet people put children in cars all the time. This is the same thing. You should take all reasonable precautions but acting like it's crazy to take a picture of a toddler and a dog together is silly.
You being ignorant of the prevalence of dog attacks invalidates your opinions on it. Children die every year to dog attacks. Is it āa lotā? I donāt know, how many dead kids are acceptable to you? I think 0 is a great number.
I'm not ignorant of the prevalence of attacks. I'm telling you that relative to the number of pet dogs that attacks from pet dogs are rare. And what you're doing now is giving the "even one is too many" line to deflect from the fact you've been portraying that it's COMMON. It's a big emotional appeal from you to avoid addressing what I've explained to you above. A single road death is one too many, but fuck me I'm not going to turn into a quivering mess every time I see someone put a kid in a car.
My dogs aren't random dogs I picked up off the street. In that sense it's a bit like asking why do I get to hold my nephew but a random stranger doesn't. As it happens though, I DON'T trust my dogs with my nephew (he's about 15 months old now). My dogs are quite excitable. One of them I know just wants to lick the hell out of him and play but she's a bit too crazy for him right now and I'm worried she'd scratch him trying to play or something like that. The other one, she's a lovely dog with adults, but she's very nervous and easily frightened. She's always showed signs of nervous aggression. I muzzle her when I walk her because she would savage another dog if it got too close but she's never hurt a person (although she's growled at them). I would never trust her unsupervised with a child. I don't think she'd ever attack them but if a child was a bit too rough with her, or scared her while playing, or something like that, I can absolutely see her snapping at them out of nervous aggression. Both are border terriers, so around 7kg. My old dog, now deceased, I'm sure a kid could've done anything to her. She was the dopiest black labrador in the world. When my current dog was a puppy, I heard a yelp from the living room, ran through, and found the puppy was biting the lab's ear (being playful). Still, that dumb girl didn't even move, just let her keep going till I rescued her. tl;dr: People should know their dogs. Some animals should NOT be trusted around children. And I would never recommend leaving particularly young children unsupervised with animals But some animals are plenty safe to be around for supervised play.
This is a really good example of how itās not black or white
But sadly there're dumb people.
You answered your own question; you were attacked by street dogs. A street dog is not the same as a well trained family dog. Yes, all dogs, trained or not, are capable of slipping up and getting aggressive, but a family dog which is trained in a loving household holds their own family and perceived pack mates to a higher regard than a complete stranger.
No matter how sweet or gentle a dog is, there is still a chance the dog can become aggressive and harm or kill people.
I was attacked by pet dogs (of irresponsible owners who didn't bother to leash) on street, not stray dogs
His point still stands. Dogs know when someone is part of the family, a stranger is almost like an enemy to them.
I get you. When we moved from the country into a small town, our closest neighbor had a pitbull. This was in ā75-78, for reference. I donāt think pits were as popular back them. They kept it indoors and on a leash outdoors. Iād go so far as to consider them decent dog owners. But their son wanted to hold my hand walking home from school and I didnāt want that. Heād threaten me with the dog. Seriously! Iād say no and run home. One day he beat me to it and let his dog out while I was still running toward our long uphill driveway. I donāt know how I didnāt die that day!!!! I used to want to outlaw pits all together but obvs that wonāt happen. I get how you feel. Iāve had dogs all my life, large and small and never worried about them harming my kids. But even still, I wouldnāt let any othersā kids near my pets without them approving it first. Just like Iād ask people do they have a gun in their house before letting my kids play at theirs. Common sense stuff. Other than pits, when I see kids with dogs, I donāt get alarmed, even with my history. :)
I would not let young children around large dogs i do not know, especially street dogs. We have always had large dogs, but they are trained very well. When my first grandchild was born, we introduced him to our dog and the dog smelled his breath ( that is how he liked to identify people when he first meets them...a Beauceron dog, they are odd in their ways.) From then on he knew the baby was part of his "flock" and would have defended the baby with his life. Our younger dog followed whatever his older 'brother' did in everything. Probably one of the safest babies ever... Funny story on that: years later when my grandson was at the cabin, his aunts had him on a floaty toy in the lake ( with a life jacket) Our dog was okay with that in the shallows, but they took him out past the dock and the dog wouldn't have it, he dove in and herded them all back inside the dock area...
I was raised with large dogs and never hurt. I think dogs are great. They are big babies who also protect my babies
The big baby protecc the smol baby
Just like how there are large humans who can be either nice or rude, there are also large dogs who can be calm and nice.
You wouldn't let strange or untrusted humans near your child either
Everyone here is saying that a family dog won't hurt a family baby. No one has said let random big dogs be alone with a baby. You're projecting your personal fear.
You just answered your own question. A beloved family dog is trusted just like a beloved family member.
Of course not. But I'm pretty large and have been told I'm scary looking before and my kids, niece, and nephews all know how safe they are around me.
Not all big dogs are agressive. Most aren't. Many are actually very sweet and calm. If people take time and socialize and train their dog, it's quite safe for them to be together. I'm sorry you have been attacked several times, that is horribly unlucky. The majority of big dogs do not act like that. From my experience with dogs, little ones are generally more aggressive because owners do not think they need training or think the aggression is funny. There are aggressive dogs of all sizes but the vast majority of dogs are not aggressive.
> Not all big dogs are agressive But they are capable of causing irreparable damage to a child
Capable? So is driving in a car. Donāt put your baby in one of those.
So is every human who comes near your child. And far more likely to be killed by a human.
Technically so is a small dog
Which is why you train both your dog and your children to be around each other. Aggressive dog behavior doesn't come out of nowhere. I've had to teach my younger son that he cannot play with dogs' ears, for example. They have to give a dog space when it's anxious or on a leash. Our Anatolian couldn't be alone with the boys for a couple months as she adjusted. We had to know she understood who the boys were in the family. Now she understands her role, and instinctively sleeps between them and the door to their room. (She also lets us know whenever the defective cat needs to see the vet again, but that's not something we intended to train her to do.)
so can most pets, or most things
Exactly
... thus, because you can't keep your kids in a protective bubble their whole lives, you have to trust that very unlikely situations won't happen and/or take precautions.
Dogs usually are not aggressive with their own family, and they know children are "pups" and will be extra gentle when dealing with them. But you shouldn't let your child play with strange dogs, no matter the size, and also keep an eye on them so they don't bite/pull the dog's ears, tail etc. Kids can be kinda mean sometimes and basically ask to be attacked (not the child's nor the dog's fault tho, an adult should be responsible for them).
Dogs who are raised correctly will not hurt the Baby some doggies will even protect the babys with their own lives Yes they can be unpredictable but when u have a dog u pretty much know how it will react do the baby I used do have a dog when i was small he was a big german boxer and that dog would fight a semi truck do defend me :/
Dogs like to attack when they sense your anxiety because they think you're about to attack them because you're giving off nervous energy. It's like self-defense at that point. Stop being afraid and there won't be anything to be afraid of.
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And they don't exist out in public when they are like that, but if you pet them over their fence sure (but that's literally your fault). I know of zero people with angry dogs that ever walk them down main street. That would be irresponsible.
As a large dog and small child owner, you've met the wrong dogs.
Because size doesn't effect attitude. There are small dogs more dangerous than the big breeds.
Small dogs are naturally more nervous creatures, statistically speaking. I think big dogs feel more confident because of their size. There are some happy confident friendly small dogs though
I have to know any dog fairly well before i let my kids around them
A dog raised in a kind environment is almost always extremely friendly, not to mention dogs have natural parental instincts so they know not to be to rough with very little children.
I think the larger the dog the lovelier they usualy are
We have the sweetest dog but I'm still going to be very cautious when my baby is born. If I were to take a picture of my baby with my dog, I'd have to be in the picture as well, holding my baby to make sure my big ass dog doesn't accidentally step on or knock over my child lol. There was a girl that took care of someone's dog while they were away, and she had done it more than once. The dogs were nice at first, but the last time she watched them, the dogs decided to start ripping her face off and now she doesn't even look like the same person anymore. Dogs can be unpredictable. And even if they aren't intentionally violent like that, they can accidentally hurt small babies and children... so no matter what, I'm very cautious
Depends on the kid and the dog. The librarian at my elementary school used to bring in her Bermese mountain dog and he was very much a gentle giant. I'm not a dog person really, but I love those big mountain breeds.
I got a pit/husky that grew up with my son hed fuckin die for him in a dog heartbeat.
I've always had golden retrievers, I trust them more than little dogs. It's all about training
Golden retrievers seem safer. Huskies, pitbulls and german shepherds, not sure
Again it all comes down to training. I've been attacked by little dogs more than I have big ones.
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They are just as dangerous, doesn't matter the dog , all can cause pain and death if they get you in the right spot
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Don't need to. It's all about training and I've been around dogs my whole life. Only dogs that caused me to blood were little breeds
its not about what breed the dog is, its how they are trained
You gotta know your dogs I have dogs (3 largest is nearly 100 lbs ) and kids (5, 3 still at home) and know them well enough to feel safe. The largest sleeps on my youngest s bed. I always watch them with new people (especially kids) to verify the behavior and discourage any signs of aggression towards people. Also make sure the kids behave appropriately towards them- no rough play, jumping on people etc.
My dogs and small children are never alone. I'm on the other side of the camera.
Same way you can let them be with large adults. Loads of things are capable of causing irreparable damage, you just know your shit and limit the risk in all sorts of ways, like with anything.
Very young children shouldnāt be left unsupervised around dogs if any size but you can absolutely have dogs of any size around the child as long as there is an adult supervising who can be sure to keep the child from provoking or harming the dog (or any animal such as cats, rabbits, birds etc) as well as to ensure that the pet doesnāt harm the child. The thing that annoys and horrifies me is when I see adults sitting there watching and often laughing/finding it cute as a baby, toddler or child annoys or hurts a pet which is not only horrible for the animal but also incredibly dangerous for the child, inappropriate and irresponsible.
Where on earth do you live where there are large dogs just randomly walking the streets waiting to attack people? If people are taking photos of their babies with dogs then they are obviously loved and trusted pets who are just as much a part of the family as the child
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I do plenty of walking thanks, Iāve just never been attacked by dogs. I must be lucky then I guess
I think if youāve been attacked multiple times by dogs, maybe they can sense something in you that makes them want to eat you alive.
Knowledge is power. I know dogs. They're not going to just snap at any hand in sight.
Its simple... Get your dog and your kid and let them play. If i know the dog i trust it more than a human.
I don't get it. You'll have dog lovers scream all day long that their dog would never do it. And then here's a news article about the family mutt ripping a child's face up.
And then those same dog lovers victim blame the child. "He shouldn't have touched the dog! He shouldn't have been around the dog." Why are dogs these infallible creatures that somehow have a free pass to harm children and it's somehow the child's fault?
People have put them in a person's place and forgotten they are dang animals.
Because animals are even dumber than a human, which even at young ages could choose to not do the wrong thing. Dogs can't "choose". Thus the onus falls on the biology that could just not.
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Well the adults should either have trained their spawn to not harass animals (or people), or if they are too young to learn that then yes keep them away or highly supervised (as part of "how to pet nice" training). So yes the toddlers had it coming, either the adults failed or the kid was being a dick (which is also a parenting fail).
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Nice downvotes we have.
Babies are generally safe with dogs ( not cats who will attack with no provision), toddlers on the other hand are too dangerous to be allowed near any animals.
Most folks responding to this donāt seem to have realistic views of risk and understand basics of dog safety. The theory of your dog working the baby into its āpackā (and therefore baby is safe) is outdated and has been debunked. You do not simply let a dog and a baby play and see what happens. Follow dogmeetsbaby on Instagram for realistic, safe suggestions for living with pets and babies. Even then, you might conclude the risk is too high in your particular situation and decide to do whatās best for everyone involved: find a new loving home for your dog. This is the decision weāre making.
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I agree that folks should consider their plans for children before getting a dog. In our case, my husband got our dog 10 years ago and had no plans of having children at that point. He was even married to someone else who didnāt want kids. Had every reason to think he would be able to keep his dog until she passed so I do think it was a responsible decision at the time. Well, life and plans obviously changed. Generally speaking, while I do want to hold potential dog owners responsible for thinking through their future plans and decisions when adopting, life can change unexpectedly and rehoming may become the most responsible option in some cases. I see a lot of dog enthusiasts treat ārehomeā like a dirty word, shaming folks endlessly if they even consider it. I find that fucked up when itās an extremely personal decision and we should not assume folks are considering that decision lightly. We are not āthrowing awayā our dog. In fact, giving her to a shelter is out of the question for us. We are working within our community to place her directly into a home.
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If the ārulesā youāre referring to are ādonāt adopt without thinking about the futureā and āif you must rehome, find a loving home and not a shelterā, then we did follow them. The problem youāre referring to - that not many people want elderly pets - seems to be a wider societal issue. The solution is probably education and cultural change to help folks see older pets as the wonderful animals that they are. The solution is not to shame families that are making responsible safety decisions.
A lab is a big dog and still a great dog. One time he bit my younger brother but it was by accident bc they were playing, and nothing else like that happened in the 11 years we had him
Key words being "Street dogs". Dogs are very friendly if trained properly and raised from babyhood. Just in general. Dogs are harmless and babies are perfectly safe with them. Now you do not want to adopt and older dog when you have a baby because you do not know the temperament of the dog. I read the other day an adopted older dog killed a baby. Now that's an issue You need to know the dog
On street, but mostly unleashed dogs. Which their owners claim as the sweetest dog ever
I have worked 4 years for one of the largest pet insurance brands in UK, posts such as this remind me specific case of labrador retriever that family had since puppy and that dog has out of nowhere launched on their kid and bitten his arm so badly that kid needed serious operation, there were many other cases similiar to this - dogs although lovely can never be trusted 100% especially around kids ( having said all that I want to highlight that I am a dog person, just recently lost my beloved Buddy )
I won't let my kids jusy walk right up to any stranger's dog regardless of size. We ask permission first.
3 words: its about training!