Reply to Dog biting child: What to do?

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[quote=Anonymous]These posts are disturbing in so many respects.  I have dogs and children, and both need to learn manners and proper behavior and the only one who is able to teach both of them is the parent.  You can not trust a dog not to be a dog or a child not to be a child.  A child will pull ears, sit on them, hit them with toys etc.  This is normal and they will learn to stop.  Most dogs are incredibly tolerant, but a rescue will definitely need more training and watching as you never know what human behavior could trigger a memory of a bad previous situation.

If you are not able to keep constant watch on both of them, either wait until your children are older, or get a puppy whose behavior and environment can be fostered from the start.

1) if a dog bites a child it is neither the fault of the child nor the dog - it is the PARENT!
2) if a dog growls at a child, it does not mean the dog is aggressive, it is a warning to you as the parent. You want a dog to growl as it is telling you that something is happening that is not right. You do not want a dog not do give you warning and just bite. People associate growling with aggression (which of course it can be), but normally it is their way of telling you to stop (pulling ears, pinching nipples, pulling tails, sitting on chest, etc.).  
3) young children must ALWAYS be watched around animals.  They are animals and children are children.  Let's be realistic and again, the PARENT has to keep constant watch and never leave them alone together.

These posts drive me nuts.  Too many people get dogs and expect them to behave and think like people without really teaching them through proper training and positive reinforcement how to behave. More often than not, the dog looses out as naturally, the child ultimately needs to be protected.  But again, all of this is manageable if the PARENT is constantly diligent.

Use your judgement and protect your child, but your dog will probably be fine if you teach both of them how to behave and keep the child away from the dog.  Takes work, but I have done it multiple times with dogs that outweigh my kids by 40 pounds. [/quote]

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