How do you politely ask friends to crate their dogs when your kids are there?!?!?

[Anonymous]

I have been through this with a close family member and a pit bull that barked at me whenever I moved. My 3 year old daughter was also cornered by the dog. No one came to my defense, and no one made the dog behave. My cousin said she would not tell the dog no, because it was the dog's home and it needed to feel welcome. WTF? My own father was there and he ended up chewing me out over the whole thing. I left, and have never been back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I like my dog better than your children and she is quite probably better behaved. No, I don't crate my dog for your children.

Says the childless woman who is bitter because she can't have kids.

Did you really go there?

I agree. That is a pretty low blow.

[Anonymous]

Don't bring the kids over. Invite them over to your place.

[Anonymous]

I am a dog owner and mommy to an almost 7 month old. I know our dog is super super friendly but when children are around other than ours, I make sure the dogs stays away from them. Sometimes I put her out on the deck or give her a treat in another room. Children that are not raised around animals can be rough and I don't want my dog hurt and I would never want a friend or child to feel uncomfortable in our home.

If this is a good friend, just say you are nervous about your child being around the dog because he/she is not used to it. I would never be offended if someone was uncomfortable around our dog.

If you still feel uncomfortable I would recommend avoiding get togethers at their house until your son gets a little older.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a married dog owner with no kids. Some could say our dog is our kid until we have one of our own. But we aren't stupid. We realize that, just as no one loves your kid like you do, no one loves your dog like you do either. Thus, we put our dog in another room, or outside, or baby gate her in the kitchen or stairwell when a good number of people come over--service people, older family members, people who are allergic (if I really like them I will vaccuum for them too!), people who don't like dogs. The dog can deal with not being the center of attention for a few hours.

That said, we also tend to do things like not serve food we know people are allergic to, or make sure we have the kind of beverage someone will like (i.e. red wine, white wine, beer, etc. Because wa are considerate. People who wont put their dog away probably are assholes in gneeral. Although I will admit that i someone insulted my dog while asking for me to lock her up, depending on how insulting they were, I might letthe dog jump on the a few times just for spite.

What a lunatic.

[Anonymous]

OP, just sidestep invitations to their house and make plans to meet them out or at your house. If they were not sensitive to your discomfort when you were there before, they will not be sensitive the next time either. So even if they agree to put the dog somewhere away from your kids, you cannot be sure they won't let the dog out after an hour or put the dog in a room your kid needs to walk through to get to the bathroom or some other passive-aggressive thing that only people who value animals over humans would think is OK.

[Anonymous]

I don't tell people what to do in their homes. It's rude. If you aren't comfortable there, invite them to yours.

[Anonymous]

Our dog would go crazy if we tried to crate him or lock him in another room. So while I'd be sympathetic and feel awful about it, if you were my friend we'd just have to hang out elsewhere. We have a good friend who is allergic to our dog, and unfortunately we either BBQ and sit outside here, or go to their house. However, I would not be offended if you asked (though I have a super sweet dog who is great with kids, and I was afraid of dogs as a kid -- the pit bull owners may be overly sensitive about the breed).

[Anonymous]

Dog bites. My brother was bit on the lip when about 8 by a terrier mix [black about 30 lbs]. It was at a friends house and there was no ongoing interaction. The family had all girls .

At tot playgroup the biggest problem household as one with a small poodle who jumped up to their faces . It bit one on the arm.

I have known 2 wonderful labs with adult only households-easy to train and well behaved. Both never went through the horrendous puppy phase. Both hated kids despite well supervised intros and watching all interactions by owners.

You just don't know.

[Anonymous]

No matter how well trained or behaved your dog is, a dog cannot be completely trusted, ever. That's just the nature of dogs. They're not rational creatures. NEVER leave a baby or small child alone with a dog. And if it makes you uncomfortable to take your children to a friend's house where the dog is allowed to run free, then (1) don't visit the house or (2) make sure your friends crate the dog or put it outside.

[Anonymous]

Ummm. I do trust my dogs with my kids. I feel no need to constantly supervise them. The dog will simply move away from a persistently annoying child, or lick them til the kid quits.

However, I don't in general trust children. Most of them have no manners. Many of them bite, and offer unpredictable acts of aggression. They're rather poorly trained......

[Anonymous]

Just be honest and say you're uncomfortable having your kids around their dog. Maybe also say your kids aren't used to being around dogs so you're afraid they'll bother the dog.
I have a dog. She's not a pitbull but she is high energy and can jump on people. I wouldn't be offended if they asked me to put her in another room (I don't crate her).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Asking them to crate is a bit specific. At the next invitation, why not just say that you'd love to come but are concerned about the kids and the dog being together, is there a way we could keep them separate? Then they can decide if they want to put the dog outside, in another room, or say no.

This.

Definitely this one. And don't mention breed as a reason for concern, it just offends/angers dog owners, regardless of breed.

[Anonymous]

I have a dog - lab. And I have no problem if someone asks me to close her up. I try to ask - at the beginning of the visit - but sometimes I forget.

[Anonymous]

The real issue is that your friends who are not married and don't have kids invite people who are married with kids over, are they nuts?

geez