Instantly, most people think “cute”, right?
I think “dangerous!”… but it doesn’t have to be.
Did you know, 50% of children are bitten by a dog by the time they’re just 12 years old?
What makes it worse, is that 77% of these dog bites are from a family or friend’s dog. Not a stranger’s dog.
Most likely to be bitten by dogs are boys between 5 and 7 years old, dog bites have doubled in the last 15 years, and last year, over 1700 children in the UK were admitted to hospital due to dog bites.
I don’t state these facts to scare you. But it is important that people know how common this is.
What can we do to help?
There’s three targets here: the dog, the children, and the parents.
CHILDREN
This is what a child is thinking about their dog.
“He’s my best friend,
I love him so much, and he loves it when I kiss his nose!
We play dress up together, yesterday we played pirates!
He tries to give me kisses when I hug him!
When I get sleepy, I sometimes use him as a pillow and when I’m awake, he lets me sit on him! Mum and dad laugh at me and say he’s my pony!
And then one day, out of nowhere, he bit me!”
At the same time, your dog is thinking:
“My whole life changed when the tiny human was born. I got less attention, less walks, less cuddles.
When she grew up a bit, she started giving me more attention, and I thought we could be best friends!
But then she got in my face.
She put clothes on me and the hat scared me.
When she puts her arms around my neck, I lick my lips to tell her I don’t like it, but she ignores me.
I turn my face away and put my ears back when she disrupts my sleep by putting her head on my belly. It hurts my breathing, but mum and dad don’t notice my stress signals.
The worse is when she sits on me. She’s excited and jumps up and down and this hurts me so much, I try to tell her with my eyes, my face, my whole body…
I just couldn’t take anymore, I was scared and I was in pain….”
All children are just having fun. They don’t mean to hurt or scare your dog. And this is why it’s so important that we teach them from the very beginning about dog behaviour and how to interact with their dog, as well as other dogs.
Teach children these rules:
No shouting, hitting, chasing or teasing
No throwing things
No bossing the dog around
No dressing up the dog
Never sit on or ride a dog
Never take anything from the dog
Avoid getting in their face and instead, stroke their body
Avoid playing with unfamiliar or loud / scary toys near the dog
Never approach a dog when they’re eating or sleeping or chewing
Teach children appropriate games:
Swapsies (same as fetch, but they ONLY swap toys, never take a toy out the dog’s mouth)
Recall races
Hide and seek
Training fun tricks, such as spin or jump
Flirt pole
PARENTS
I remember being a child and getting bitten by a cat. My parents response was “what did you do to get bitten?”
Not, ‘what did the cat do’ or ‘why was the cat so aggressive’. I believe that this was really common until recently.
Most of the time, children get bitten because of something they do (although this is in no way their fault). In my cat situation, I approached the cat and went to stroke, much too young and unaware to realise that the cat didn’t want to be stroked.
More recently, parents seem to be resistant to dogs communicating. Not all parents, but many seem to see a grumble or a growl as aggressive, not a warning. In reality, dogs are just trying to communicate in their own way.
Kids aren’t gentle, they don’t have personal space, and young children are unpredictable in their movements and noises!
It is 100% a parent’s responsibility to teach children how to behave around dogs, and how to read dog behaviour. There is no harm or shame at all in reaching out for a behaviourist’s assistance if you feel like you or your kids could do with some extra support!
If anyone needs time out, don’t be afraid to ask! Doggy day care, dog walkers, and dog sitters can be really helpful to get the dog out from under your feet for a while, or if money is tight, ask family, friends, or neighbours for some help.
DOG
Your dog doesn’t know any better until you teach them, so teach them!
Let them have their own space, such as a crate, or their own room in the house. This should be a great place to be and can be used when the dog needs space, when the kids need space, or when the parents need a break. It can also be used when there is too much going on in the house (it’s tea time and the kids are home from school and Fred is crying AND Claire needs to go to karate lesson AND mum forgot to put cheese on the shopping list AND Dad will be late from work…).
Teach a relaxed stay so you can occupy the kids, and ensure your dog is getting plenty of mental and physical exercise.
Use lots of enrichment to help with entertainment for your dog without you having to be giving focused attention. Lickimats are nice and calming whilst you change the baby’s nappy, or a Kong is long lasting and tasty whilst you put the kids to bed. A puzzle is enriching and mentally stimulating whilst you sort everyone’s breakfast out.
Komen