Reply to Dog bit toddler -- should I be more worried?

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[quote=Anonymous]Hi OP. Only you really know the situation, but from what you describe, I think the replies like 19:46 are an over-reaction.

I would step up your supervision of the dog and the baby, and start putting an end to any rough play or chasing (15 months is young, but not too young to start laying down some rules about how to interact with the dog). If you're not actively engaged with the baby (i.e., if you're running around trying to get other stuff done) it sounds like it's safer to keep the dog in another room until your little one gets older and they are both a little more dependable.

That said, this is not necessarily a reason to freak out. I had one incident like the one you describe where my dog nipped at our baby. I was in the bathroom (with the door open, but not paying close attention) with the dog lying between me and my little one. Up to that point, the dog (a lab mix) had always been super tolerant of baby antics. I think the baby tried to crawl over him to get to me, and the dog jumped up and nipped at him. I quickly let the dog know that wasn't acceptable, and four years and two toddlers later he has never done anything remotely like that again and remains a beloved part of our family.

I think it's natural for dogs to react like that (look at how dogs play with each other) and at least for mine, the baby was a new kind of entity that - until he saw my response to that incident - I don't think he quite understood how to treat with regard to the pecking order of things. If the dog had been aggressive in any way (there's a big difference between a defensive nip and going after someone/something) I'd feel totally differently - and that's where only you can judge what really happened - but if it's the former, I'd step up the supervision but not necessarily be very concerned.[/quote]

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