Question:

We have a dog who bit our 1yr old when he pulled at some newspapers the dog was laying on. It wasn’t serious, it healed completly within a week, but it WAS on the face – we were very concerned. She has always been sort a a "jealous" type, shouldering our other dog out of the way for petting etc., although she was just fine with the baby until he started pulling up and walking. I think it was because she saw him as challenging her dominance. Young child=puppy to her, I guess. I assumed that when our son is bigger than she is (about 40lbs) then we could be pretty confident that she would not challenge him anymore – but that is quite a ways off. So, we decided to find her a home with no young children. The home she was to go to has fallen through, and so we have ended up having her for about a month since the incident happened. She has always been very good with our son, and now recently licking his face when he cries, sitting for treats from him and jumping off any furniture when he approaches. Now I am wondering if the dominance issue has been resolved much earlier than I had anticipated. Help!

Response:

Try this on for size:   She sees the baby as a "puppy" and was trying to give it a little doggy lesson.  My bitch puts up with soooo much, but when a puppy starts giving her too much trouble, she will snap as a warning to back off. She has never done this to a person.  In fact she was here prior to my 3 yo daughter.  She will look at me if she begins to feel disturbed and I get the baby out of the way.  My daughter now has some pretty good dog smarts for her age, but she forgets easily.  I have to remind both of them to "be nice". Until your dog stops viewing your baby as "someone who doesn’t have any manners", she may continue to do this. Pam – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – >We have a dog who bit our 1yr old when he pulled at some newspapers the dog >was laying on. It wasn’t serious, it healed completly within a week, but it >WAS on the face – we were very concerned. She has always been sort a a

Response:

Excellent post, PJ. j;~)

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Try this on for size:   She sees the baby as a "puppy" and was trying to > give it a little doggy lesson.  My bitch puts up with soooo much, but when a > puppy starts giving her too much trouble, she will snap as a warning to back > off. > She has never done this to a person.  In fact she was here prior to my 3 yo > daughter.  She will look at me if she begins to feel disturbed and I get the > baby out of the way.  My daughter now has some pretty good dog smarts for > her age, but she forgets easily.  I have to remind both of them to "be > nice". > Until your dog stops viewing your baby as "someone who doesn’t have any > manners", she may continue to do this. > Pam >We have a dog who bit our 1yr old when he pulled at some newspapers the dog >was laying on. It wasn’t serious, it healed completly within a week, but it >WAS on the face – we were very concerned. She has always been sort a a

Response:

Hello Tim, Dominance has nothing to do with dog behavior problems in most cases. Most dog bites are out of fear, not dominance. The new child crawling around made her uneasy, until she got used to it. I’d keep a close eye on her and use the techniques in the WEDTM to make sure you have no further problems. We’re talking about three hours work, and you will have the best she can give you. Jerry.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> We have a dog who bit our 1yr old when he pulled at some newspapers the dog > was laying on. It wasn’t serious, it healed completly within a week, but it > WAS on the face – we were very concerned. She has always been sort a a > "jealous" type, shouldering our other dog out of the way for petting etc., > although she was just fine with the baby until he started pulling up and > walking. I think it was because she saw him as challenging her dominance. > Young child=puppy to her, I guess. I assumed that when our son is bigger > than she is (about 40lbs) then we could be pretty confident that she would > not challenge him anymore – but that is quite a ways off. So, we decided to > find her a home with no young children. > The home she was to go to has fallen through, and so we have ended up having > her for about a month since the incident happened. She has always been very > good with our son, and now recently licking his face when he cries, sitting > for treats from him and jumping off any furniture when he approaches. Now I > am wondering if the dominance issue has been resolved much earlier than I > had anticipated. Help!

Response:

Thank you much, kind sir.  Pam – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – >Excellent post, PJ. j;~)

Response:

It’s not size, it’s attitude and behavior.  You can train your dog to respect your one year old and, just as important, you can train your one year old to respect your dog.  If you want more tips on how, email me.  However, no one year old can be left alone with a dog or even close enough to grab something away from under it without your being right there to stop it.  They can too easily trip and fall, pull tails not knowing it hurts, etc. and cause huge problems for dog and baby.  There is a lot of hope in the situation.  Don’t rehome the dog, but work on training the puppy and the child to live harmoniously together. Paula – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > We have a dog who bit our 1yr old when he pulled at some newspapers the dog > was laying on. It wasn’t serious, it healed completly within a week, but it > WAS on the face – we were very concerned. She has always been sort a a > "jealous" type, shouldering our other dog out of the way for petting etc., > although she was just fine with the baby until he started pulling up and > walking. I think it was because she saw him as challenging her dominance. > Young child=puppy to her, I guess. I assumed that when our son is bigger > than she is (about 40lbs) then we could be pretty confident that she would > not challenge him anymore – but that is quite a ways off. So, we decided to > find her a home with no young children. > The home she was to go to has fallen through, and so we have ended up having > her for about a month since the incident happened. She has always been very > good with our son, and now recently licking his face when he cries, sitting > for treats from him and jumping off any furniture when he approaches. Now I > am wondering if the dominance issue has been resolved much earlier than I > had anticipated. Help!

Response:

Dogs don’t see children as people, they smell different, sound different, act different etc. As your child grows, his smell changes, everything changes. So be aware now but also in the future as your child grows.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> We have a dog who bit our 1yr old when he pulled at some newspapers the dog > was laying on. It wasn’t serious, it healed completly within a week, but it > WAS on the face – we were very concerned. She has always been sort a a > "jealous" type, shouldering our other dog out of the way for petting etc., > although she was just fine with the baby until he started pulling up and > walking. I think it was because she saw him as challenging her dominance. > Young child=puppy to her, I guess. I assumed that when our son is bigger > than she is (about 40lbs) then we could be pretty confident that she would > not challenge him anymore – but that is quite a ways off. So, we decided to > find her a home with no young children. > The home she was to go to has fallen through, and so we have ended up having > her for about a month since the incident happened. She has always been very > good with our son, and now recently licking his face when he cries, sitting > for treats from him and jumping off any furniture when he approaches. Now I > am wondering if the dominance issue has been resolved much earlier than I > had anticipated. Help!

Response:

First I have to say that giving away a dog that bit a child opens you to incredible law suites should this dog bite another child, EVEN if you disclosed it.  So it is good the placement fell through as you need to work with this dog or have it evaluated before placing. Second, I love my dogs, but I never gave them access to my child at that age. Period.   So it really is not the dogs fault, but the humans here and I hope you will work with the dog so that you can SAFELY keep her. Here are a ton of basic links to read that might help you to understand the dynamics and how to have a SAFE household for dogs and children. Dr P’s Dog Training: Dogs and kids http://www.vin.com/WebLink.plx?BT=2&URL=http://www.uwsp.edu/acad/psyc… Kids and Dogs: Safety First http://www.canismajor.com/dog/kidsdog1.html Kids and Dogs: A common Sense Approach http://www.canismajor.com/dog/kidsdog2.html Children and Dogs http://www.ddfl.com/children.html Fact Sheet Library: Children and Dogs http://www.paws.org/shelter/resources/library/dogs&children.htm

Response:

> We have a dog who bit our 1yr old when he pulled at some newspapers the dog > was laying on. It wasn’t serious, it healed completly within a week, but it > WAS on the face – we were very concerned.

Well, you are idiots. You were not conserned enough. Check out some of the bites on the following page-http://www.plasticsurgery4u.com/procedure_folder/lip_recon_folder/lip_r econ_dogbite.html These were not real big bites either- probably not more flesh was removed than a little piece of bacon. This could very easily be your baby.

Response:

Hello vagabondi,

> It’s not size, it’s attitude and behavior.  You can train your dog to > respect your one year old and, just as important, you can train your > one year old to respect your dog.  If you want more tips on how, > email me.

Why don’t you just post your INFORMATION here, so we all may BENEFIT from your wisdom and experience??? You just got started with dogs a few months ago, isn’t that correct? You’ve learned a lot from our Gang Of Thugs… > However, no one year old can be left alone with a dog or even close > enough to grab something away from under it without your being > right there to stop it.  They can too easily trip and fall, pull tails not > knowing it hurts, etc. and cause huge problems for dog and baby.

Well, you certainly do sound like you know all about children and what they can’t do. > There is a lot of hope in the situation.  Don’t rehome the dog, > but work on training the puppy and the child to live harmoniously > together.

That’s why you’re supposed to give us some ADVICE, not HOPE. > Paula

Go ahead, there’s a lot of people here who need help with their dogs and kids. Give us your BEST information that you’ve offered by email to the original poster. Nobody will complain that you’re taking up too much bandwidth… Just give us all the wisdom you can spare about this common and life threatening problem… Remember that day you shared that hilariously funny story about the guy whose dog was starving because he wasn’t bright enough to figure out that the dry food is different from the canned food, even though it’s got the same name, and he couldn’t figure out why his dog wouldn’t eat???  We laughed, and laughed, and laughed, at his stupidity, as you walked off leaving him with the grocery clerk to smarten him up… Do you s’pose his dog has had a decent meal YET? "Thus we should beware of clinging to vulgar opinions, and judge things by reason’s way, not by popular say." Montaigne "Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent." Salvor Hardin "If you cannot convince them, confuse them." H.S. Truman. DRAINING THE SWAMP, AND RELOCATING THE GATORS… j;~) "CUSTOM WILL RECONCILE PEOPLE TO ANY ATROCITY." G.B. Shaw. "I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and most obvious truth if it would oblige them to admit the falsity of conclusions which they have delighted in explaining to colleagues, proudly taught to others, and which they have woven, thread by thread, into the fabric of their lives."                                              Leo Tolstoy Is it any wonder that the following sig file has generated more complaints to my personal email than any other controversial post I have made to date, bar none?:                                             caveat If you have to do things to your dog to train him, that you would rather not have to do, then you shouldn’t be doing them. If you have a dog trainer that tells you to jerk your dog around, choke him, pinch his ears, or twist his toes, shock, shake, slap, scold, hit, or punish him in any manner, that corrections are appropriate, that the dog won’t think of you as the punisher, or that corrections are not harmful, or if they can’t train your dog to do what you want, look for a trainer that knows Howe. Sincerely, Jerry Howe, Wits’ End Dog Training http://www.doggydoright.com Nature, to be mastered, must be obeyed.                       -Francis Bacon- There are terrible people who, instead of solving a problem, bungle it and make it more difficult for all who come after.  Who ever can’t hit the nail on the head should, please, not hit at all.                      -Nietzsche- The abilities to think, rationalize and solve problems are learned qualities. The Wits’ End Dog Training Method challenges the learning centers in the dogs brain. These centers, once challenged, develop and continue to grow exponentially, to make him smarter. The Wits’ End Dog Training method capitalizes on praising split seconds of canine thought, strategy, and timing, not mindless hours of forced repetition, constant corrections, and scolding.                   -Jerry Howe-

Response:

Hello debradwnso,

> First I have to say that giving away a dog that bit a child opens you > to incredible law suites should this dog bite another child, EVEN if > you disclosed it.

Oh yeah? Where did you get your law degree? > So it is good the placement fell through as you need to work with > this dog or have it evaluated before placing.

Oh yeah? Who’s gonna ”evaluate” the dog? YOU? You a dog trainin legal beagle? > Second, I love my dogs, but I never gave them access to my child at > that age. Period.

Of course not. That’s because you operate from the gut level, out of fear, like a scared little furry creature in the woods… > So it really is not the dogs fault, but the humans here and I hope > you will work with the dog so that you can SAFELY keep her.

Oh good! You’ve learned HOWE to use GUILT as well as FEAR… Mazzel tove… > Here are a ton of basic links to read that might help you to > understand the dynamics and how to have a SAFE household for > dogs and children.

There’s a lot of crummy links on some of these sites. Take them with a large dose of salt… Rinse and spit. Jerry. > Dr P’s Dog Training: Dogs and kids

http://www.vin.com/WebLink.plx?BT=2&URL=http://www.uwsp.edu/acad/psyc h/dog > /lib-prob.htm%23kid > Kids and Dogs: Safety First > http://www.canismajor.com/dog/kidsdog1.html > Kids and Dogs: A common Sense Approach > http://www.canismajor.com/dog/kidsdog2.html > Children and Dogs > http://www.ddfl.com/children.html > Fact Sheet Library: Children and Dogs > http://www.paws.org/shelter/resources/library/dogs&children.htm

"Thus we should beware of clinging to vulgar opinions, and judge things by reason’s way, not by popular say." Montaigne "Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent." Salvor Hardin "If you cannot convince them, confuse them." H.S. Truman. DRAINING THE SWAMP, AND RELOCATING THE GATORS… j;~) "CUSTOM WILL RECONCILE PEOPLE TO ANY ATROCITY." G.B. Shaw. "I know that most men, including those at ease with problems of the greatest complexity, can seldom accept even the simplest and most obvious truth if it would oblige them to admit the falsity of conclusions which they have delighted in explaining to colleagues, proudly taught to others, and which they have woven, thread by thread, into the fabric of their lives."                                              Leo Tolstoy Is it any wonder that the following sig file has generated more complaints to my personal email than any other controversial post I have made to date, bar none?:                                             caveat If you have to do things to your dog to train him, that you would rather not have to do, then you shouldn’t be doing them. If you have a dog trainer that tells you to jerk your dog around, choke him, pinch his ears, or twist his toes, shock, shake, slap, scold, hit, or punish him in any manner, that corrections are appropriate, that the dog won’t think of you as the punisher, or that corrections are not harmful, or if they can’t train your dog to do what you want, look for a trainer that knows Howe. Sincerely, Jerry Howe, Wits’ End Dog Training http://www.doggydoright.com Nature, to be mastered, must be obeyed.                       -Francis Bacon- There are terrible people who, instead of solving a problem, bungle it and make it more difficult for all who come after.  Who ever can’t hit the nail on the head should, please, not hit at all.                      -Nietzsche- The abilities to think, rationalize and solve problems are learned qualities. The Wits’ End Dog Training Method challenges the learning centers in the dogs brain. These centers, once challenged, develop and continue to grow exponentially, to make him smarter. The Wits’ End Dog Training method capitalizes on praising split seconds of canine thought, strategy, and timing, not mindless hours of forced repetition, constant corrections, and scolding.                   -Jerry Howe-

Response:

>It’s not size, it’s attitude and behavior.  You can train your dog to respect >your one year old and, just as important, you can train your one year old to >respect your dog.  If you want more tips on how, email me.  However, no one year >old can be left alone with a dog or even close enough to grab something away >from under it without your being right there to stop it.  They can too easily >trip and fall, pull tails not knowing it hurts, etc. and cause huge problems for >dog and baby.  There is a lot of hope in the situation.  Don’t rehome the dog, >but work on training the puppy and the child to live harmoniously together. >Paula

I would disagree about the ages.  I don’t believe a dog should be alone with a child any more than a child should be alone in a swimming pool.  Too much can happen and the consequences are too grave.  Common sense should dictate, but common sense isn’t really all that common, eh? Dogs make lousy babysitters. Abe

Response:

Yeah, but there’s nothing like a Dane or Mastiff to lend and ear for the child to grasp to learn to stand and walk… j;~)

>It’s not size, it’s attitude and behavior.  You can train your dog to respect >your one year old and, just as important, you can train your one year old to >respect your dog.  If you want more tips on how, email me.

However, no one year – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->old can be left alone with a dog or even close enough to grab something away >from under it without your being right there to stop it.  They can too easily >trip and fall, pull tails not knowing it hurts, etc. and cause huge problems for >dog and baby.  There is a lot of hope in the situation.  Don’t rehome the dog, >but work on training the puppy and the child to live harmoniously together. >Paula > I would disagree about the ages.  I don’t believe a dog should be > alone with a child any more than a child should be alone in a swimming > pool.  Too much can happen and the consequences are too grave. Common > sense should dictate, but common sense isn’t really all that common, > eh? > Dogs make lousy babysitters. > Abe

Response:

I think the camel bite was the worst, ya think they had him put to sleep??? Steve Got questions?  Get answers over the phone at Keen.com. Up to 100 minutes free! http://www.keen.com

Response:

Camels are outside the scope of this newsgroup. In any event,  I didn’t see it.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> I think the camel bite was the worst, ya think they had him put > to sleep??? > Steve > Got questions?  Get answers over the phone at Keen.com. > Up to 100 minutes free! > http://www.keen.com

Response:

Perhaps so, Jerry, but there are people here that can’t keep the dog out of the garbage, can’t even get the food bowl away from the dog, can’t keep the dog from killing the cats/birds/fish even.  They can’t even walk down the damn street without causing danger to somebody. Why would you trust a kid to the tender mercies of a dog that was jerked, scolded, tossed into a crate, pronged, or shocked? I think such dogs should be kept away from kids that might wish to play with them. Abe – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->Yeah, but there’s nothing like a Dane or Mastiff to lend and ear for >the child to grasp to learn to stand and walk… j;~) > >It’s not size, it’s attitude and behavior.  You can train your dog >to respect > >your one year old and, just as important, you can train your one >year old to > >respect your dog.  If you want more tips on how, email me. >However, no one year > >old can be left alone with a dog or even close enough to grab >something away > >from under it without your being right there to stop it.  They can >too easily > >trip and fall, pull tails not knowing it hurts, etc. and cause >huge problems for > >dog and baby.  There is a lot of hope in the situation.  Don’t >rehome the dog, > >but work on training the puppy and the child to live harmoniously >together. > >Paula > I would disagree about the ages.  I don’t believe a dog should be > alone with a child any more than a child should be alone in a >swimming > pool.  Too much can happen and the consequences are too grave. >Common > sense should dictate, but common sense isn’t really all that >common, > eh? > Dogs make lousy babysitters. > Abe

Response:

>Perhaps so, Jerry

and another one of jerry’s alter-ego’s goes into the killfile .. the sad part (truly) of this one is he’s talking to himself on usenet .. in another thread i found it truly disturbing that pj butterfield (pam) is actually cyber-flirting with jerry .. that is so icky she deserves the killfile too .. *PLONK* *PLONK*

Response:

Bye! But that’s not me. I do not post anonymously. And, there’s going to be lots more Honest Abes and intelligent trainers giving advice here. I suggest you find that flat rock our other losers are laying under, and find someplace where hurting dogs to train them is acceptable. Go to john richardson’s or dena pace’s email lists, they won’t care what you want to teach, as long as it doesn’t involve NOT hurting dogs, because THAT’S WHAT MAKES THEM DANGEROUS. j;~)

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->Perhaps so, Jerry > and another one of jerry’s alter-ego’s goes into the killfile .. the sad > part (truly) of this one is he’s talking to himself on usenet .. in another > thread i found it truly disturbing that pj butterfield (pam) is actually > cyber-flirting with jerry .. that is so icky she deserves the killfile too > .. > *PLONK* > *PLONK*

Response:

Hello Abe,

> Perhaps so, Jerry, but there are people here that can’t keep the dog > out of the garbage, can’t even get the food bowl away from the dog, > can’t keep the dog from killing the cats/birds/fish even.  They can’t > even walk down the damn street without causing danger to > somebody.

That’s why I’m trying to teach them how to handle and train their dogs. > Why would you trust a kid to the tender mercies of a dog that was > jerked, scolded, tossed into a crate, pronged, or shocked?

Well, I certainly wouldn’t… those are the ones that will go nuts over anything. All they need to do is THINK of an instance in the past when they’ve been abused, and they’ll flash back to the time they were being hurt, and just go crazy attacking in self defence, not even knowing there is nothing to fear this time around… > I think such dogs should be kept away from kids that might wish to > play with them.

NO! They should be kept away from ”trainers” who want to HURT them in the first place. j;~) – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Abe >Yeah, but there’s nothing like a Dane or Mastiff to lend and ear for >the child to grasp to learn to stand and walk… j;~) >> >It’s not size, it’s attitude and behavior.  You can train your dog >to respect >> >your one year old and, just as important, you can train your one >year old to >> >respect your dog.  If you want more tips on how, email me. >However, no one year >> >old can be left alone with a dog or even close enough to grab >something away >> >from under it without your being right there to stop it.  They can >too easily >> >trip and fall, pull tails not knowing it hurts, etc. and cause >huge problems for >> >dog and baby.  There is a lot of hope in the situation.  Don’t >rehome the dog, >> >but work on training the puppy and the child to live harmoniously >together. >> >Paula >> I would disagree about the ages.  I don’t believe a dog should be >> alone with a child any more than a child should be alone in a >swimming >> pool.  Too much can happen and the consequences are too grave. >Common >> sense should dictate, but common sense isn’t really all that >common, >> eh? >> Dogs make lousy babysitters. >> Abe

Response:

>NO! They should be kept away from ”trainers” who want to HURT them >in the first place. j;~)

YES, YES, YES!!!!  Unless you can come up with a very long list of trainers that can read and understand howe to train dogs in a way that will 100% guarantee that the dog won’t decide to play rough with a little kid, you have to have someone around kids and dogs ALL THE TIME!!! I don’t think you have such a list.  In fact, I don’t think you can name 5 in the entire USofA.  Much less one or two in the driving distance of this dear lady and her dear kid.   But I will change my recommendation to:   Keep your kids and your dogs under adult supervision unless they have all been trained by Jerry Howe or Marylin Rammell….maybe the old Canis too, but not demonchild666.  Never leave a child around someone named demonchild666….ever. Abe

Response:

> Bye! But that’s not me.

I think both nick hope and honest abe are you, Jerry.  I do not post anonymously. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> And, there’s going to be lots more Honest Abes and intelligent > trainers giving advice here. I suggest you find that flat rock our > other losers are laying under, and find someplace where hurting dogs > to train them is acceptable. Go to john richardson’s or dena pace’s > email lists, they won’t care what you want to teach, as long as it > doesn’t involve NOT hurting dogs, because THAT’S WHAT MAKES THEM > DANGEROUS. j;~) > >Perhaps so, Jerry > and another one of jerry’s alter-ego’s goes into the killfile .. > the sad > part (truly) of this one is he’s talking to himself on usenet .. in > another > thread i found it truly disturbing that pj butterfield (pam) is > actually > cyber-flirting with jerry .. that is so icky she deserves the > killfile too > .. > *PLONK* > *PLONK*

Response:

>and another one of jerry’s alter-ego’s goes into the killfile .. the sad >part (truly) of this one is he’s talking to himself on usenet .. in another >thread i found it truly disturbing that pj butterfield (pam) is actually >cyber-flirting with jerry .. that is so icky she deserves the killfile too >.. >*PLONK* >*PLONK*

OH, I’m sooooo sorry, sweety.  Did I leave you out of that?  Well, to tell the truth (I am Honest Abe , after all) if you lost about 35 pounds, shaved all that hair off your ass and did something about those butt pimples,  maybe you’d have a chance at real amour….NOT!!! Ask your husband if he is still awake. Abe

Response:

What kind of an idiot are you elaine? Why should I want anyone to think that anyone other than me is making you and your pals here look like a bunch of chumps??? I don’t post anonymously, and I figured that you’d at least have the brains to understand that. Jerry.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Bye! But that’s not me. > I think both nick hope and honest abe are you, Jerry. >  I do not post anonymously. > And, there’s going to be lots more Honest Abes and intelligent > trainers giving advice here. I suggest you find that flat rock our > other losers are laying under, and find someplace where hurting dogs > to train them is acceptable. Go to john richardson’s or dena pace’s > email lists, they won’t care what you want to teach, as long as it > doesn’t involve NOT hurting dogs, because THAT’S WHAT MAKES THEM > DANGEROUS. j;~) > > >Perhaps so, Jerry > > and another one of jerry’s alter-ego’s goes into the killfile .. > the sad > > part (truly) of this one is he’s talking to himself on usenet .. in > another > > thread i found it truly disturbing that pj butterfield (pam) is > actually > > cyber-flirting with jerry .. that is so icky she deserves the > killfile too > > .. > > *PLONK* > > *PLONK*

Response:

> I don’t believe a dog should be >alone with a child any more than a child should be alone in a swimming >pool.  

Everyone says this, but reality is that it is impossible to keep an eye on both child and dog at all times. We would like to think we could, but not in the real world. Typical scenario: You are watching TV in one part of the house and the child is watching cartoons in another room. The dog is "supposedly last time you checked" in his bed in yet another room. Then the dogs decides to  get up and lie down in the middle of the hall. Then here comes Jr (child) running around the corner, startles the dog, and accidently trips on the dogs leg…OPPS! This could lead to a dog bite. Does that mean that the owner is careless and doesn’t care? Not likely, just reality, one can try to keep an eye on things MOST of the time, but impossible to do it all the time. In general we need to look at reality when talking about this (NO, I am not an expert in either field!). It just seems that every other post I see on dog and kids, it is the kids fault, and the dog should be given a second chance, etc. I am not saying that isn’t the case sometimes, BUT, a dog is a dog, and a child is a human being. One needs to prioritize

Response:

>Typical scenario: You are watching TV in one part of the house and the child >is >watching cartoons in another room. The dog is "supposedly last time you >checked" in his bed in yet another room.

****** Not a typical scenario around here – the dogs prefer to be wherever I am! Then the dogs decides to  get up and >lie down in the middle of the hall. Then here comes Jr (child) running around >the corner, startles the dog, and accidently trips on the dogs leg…OPPS! >This >could lead to a dog bite.

****** True, but my dogs have been landed on and not moved a muscle. Janet Boss Best Friends Dog Obedience "Nice Manners for the Family Pet" "Second-hand dogs AREN’T second-rate" see Lucy at:   http://www.flyball.com/nsl/

Response: