Dogs with Babies/Toddlers
Discussion
I have potentially a very worrying problem. We have a 2 1/2 year old pointer cross that we have had for a year and a half (we got her from a rescue home). We also have an 11 month old baby. Our baby is now getting very mobile which presents a problem.
Our dog is normally very calm but nervous. I know this sounds a bit contradictory but what i mean is she is not boisterous or barky yet she scares quite easily (must have been treated very badly in the past). Now the baby is exceptionally interested in the dog and now that she is mobile she continually follows her around trying to pet her.
Normally the dog tolerates this attention as she enjoys being petted by us however the other day, while being pestered by the baby, she growled at her and an jumped up. This afternoon apparently she snapped at her but did not bight. Is this the end for the dog? what can we do?
Our dog is normally very calm but nervous. I know this sounds a bit contradictory but what i mean is she is not boisterous or barky yet she scares quite easily (must have been treated very badly in the past). Now the baby is exceptionally interested in the dog and now that she is mobile she continually follows her around trying to pet her.
Normally the dog tolerates this attention as she enjoys being petted by us however the other day, while being pestered by the baby, she growled at her and an jumped up. This afternoon apparently she snapped at her but did not bight. Is this the end for the dog? what can we do?
My Springer has never bitten ever , but he is quite grumpy around my Grand daughter, who is now six, if she starts to pester him. He has never been keen on excessive attention from her since he was a pup. He still warns her away if she tries to take his toys or treats away from him.
My Grandson who is not yet 3 very rarely pesters the Dog and as a result the dog never reacts to him other than a friendly wag of the tail to greet him.
It may go against the grain on PH but there is no way I would consider getting rid of the dog . The few times he's snarled at her have been when she's trod on his tail or stood on him or wound him up trying to take his toys / treats away. I know there's a slim chance he would bite if really provoked but I really doubt it. I have wound him up in a similar way with his toys / treats to see if he would snap and although some of the noises he makes sound really menacing he's never bitten.
I've seen too many new parents get rid of the faithful family pet at the first sign of a growl.
Most dogs instinctively know a child is fragile and on the whole will let them do pretty much anything before they turn nasty .
My Grandson who is not yet 3 very rarely pesters the Dog and as a result the dog never reacts to him other than a friendly wag of the tail to greet him.
It may go against the grain on PH but there is no way I would consider getting rid of the dog . The few times he's snarled at her have been when she's trod on his tail or stood on him or wound him up trying to take his toys / treats away. I know there's a slim chance he would bite if really provoked but I really doubt it. I have wound him up in a similar way with his toys / treats to see if he would snap and although some of the noises he makes sound really menacing he's never bitten.
I've seen too many new parents get rid of the faithful family pet at the first sign of a growl.
Most dogs instinctively know a child is fragile and on the whole will let them do pretty much anything before they turn nasty .
Many dogs are not comfortable around children as they act in an unpredictable manner, make funny noises and jerky movements. Also they are often at the same height, so even more scary. As your dog seems nervous, it's likely that she is scared.
The dog has probably given out signals that she is unhappy before upping the warnings to growl and snap. Often they are subtle to us humans and you have to watch out for them very closely. In her mind she has told your child she is uncomfortable and asked her to leave her alone. The signs were not heeded so she had to increase the warning signs so has now growled and snapped.
Signs of a nervous dog: http://www.bluecross.org.uk/1958-2792/Nervous-dogs...
Introducing a dog to the family: http://www.bluecross.org.uk/1958-2789/Introducing-...
Be safe with dogs: http://www.bluecross.org.uk/1958-2850/Be-safe-with...
Lots of good stuff about dog body language in the above and how to deal with things. Whatever you do, do not tell the dog off for growling or snapping. These are the warning signs. The last thing you want is a dog that does not give out warning signs.
In the meantime, I suggest that the situation is managed and the baby is not allowed to go near the dog until she is able to do so in a manner that does not scare the dog.
The dog has probably given out signals that she is unhappy before upping the warnings to growl and snap. Often they are subtle to us humans and you have to watch out for them very closely. In her mind she has told your child she is uncomfortable and asked her to leave her alone. The signs were not heeded so she had to increase the warning signs so has now growled and snapped.
Signs of a nervous dog: http://www.bluecross.org.uk/1958-2792/Nervous-dogs...
Introducing a dog to the family: http://www.bluecross.org.uk/1958-2789/Introducing-...
Be safe with dogs: http://www.bluecross.org.uk/1958-2850/Be-safe-with...
Lots of good stuff about dog body language in the above and how to deal with things. Whatever you do, do not tell the dog off for growling or snapping. These are the warning signs. The last thing you want is a dog that does not give out warning signs.
In the meantime, I suggest that the situation is managed and the baby is not allowed to go near the dog until she is able to do so in a manner that does not scare the dog.
Carlos Harper said:
Is this the end for the dog? what can we do?
The dog appears to be exhibiting fear aggression - no reason why it's the end of the dog, more it's the start of your increased requirements to both understand and train/control the pooch and/or train control the child how to behave around the dog.....Fear aggression is hard to deal with but it takes time and patience and can be dealt with. Do not tell the dog off, it is warning the child that it is unhappy.
My dog was being wound up by one of the kids and she growled, we all said to the child to be careful and to come back over, which was ignored.
Daph growled, snapped and just very gently held the childs wrist in he mouth until he pulled his hand away. No marked skin, no tears, no drama just a polite "will you please just f
k off".
It's entirely dog specific, and yours sounds like a good'un too, so it's in no way 'the end of' at all.
Daph growled, snapped and just very gently held the childs wrist in he mouth until he pulled his hand away. No marked skin, no tears, no drama just a polite "will you please just f
k off".It's entirely dog specific, and yours sounds like a good'un too, so it's in no way 'the end of' at all.
blambert said:
It's entirely dog specific, and yours sounds like a good'un too, so it's in no way 'the end of' at all.
I think you're probably right. The problem is that the baby doesn't understand the warning signals and we could never forgive the dog if she harmed the baby. This has got my wife very worried and she is becoming more and more set on the idea of rehoming.Please please please seek professional help ask your vets if they know someone training and meds may both be needed.
Fear aggression can be treated but your dog may accidentally bite your child in fear and this would be terrible all round, fear aggression can escualate, do not allow the above contact to occur again, it's not fair on your dog (and it's not your childs fault), she doesn't want to bite but as I said she may do accidentally.
Good luck, hope they can settle together
Fear aggression can be treated but your dog may accidentally bite your child in fear and this would be terrible all round, fear aggression can escualate, do not allow the above contact to occur again, it's not fair on your dog (and it's not your childs fault), she doesn't want to bite but as I said she may do accidentally.
Good luck, hope they can settle together
Carlos Harper said:
I think you're probably right. The problem is that the baby doesn't understand the warning signals and we could never forgive the dog if she harmed the baby. This has got my wife very worried and she is becoming more and more set on the idea of rehoming.
Is it really that difficult to supervise the child and dog when they are in the same room and keep the child away from pestering the dog . You could keep the dog / child apart by keeping a baby gate between the rooms they are in . Lots and lots of options before considering re-homing. Unless you / your wife really doesn't want the dog and are looking for an excuse to get rid , in which case the dog will be better off without you.
R60EST said:
Carlos Harper said:
I think you're probably right. The problem is that the baby doesn't understand the warning signals and we could never forgive the dog if she harmed the baby. This has got my wife very worried and she is becoming more and more set on the idea of rehoming.
Is it really that difficult to supervise the child and dog when they are in the same room and keep the child away from pestering the dog . You could keep the dog / child apart by keeping a baby gate between the rooms they are in . Lots and lots of options before considering re-homing. Unless you / your wife really doesn't want the dog and are looking for an excuse to get rid , in which case the dog will be better off without you.
but if I felt he wasn't coping I would seek proper advice, not fair to put either baby or dog in a forced/ vulnerable situation, th eidea of rehoming would be to awful to contemplate to me but at the same time if I was in their shoes I'd have to consider the safest option for both dog and child
dog 
Carlos I see this delicate situation frequently.
You need professional guidance at this stage.
Seek a behaviourist experienced in dealing in such matters:
www.cfba.co.uk
www.apbc.co.uk
Your first step is to try and address the behaviour in the home with experienced help, your next (if it proves unsuccessful) is to consider removing the dog from the home.
Good luck.
Nick
You need professional guidance at this stage.
Seek a behaviourist experienced in dealing in such matters:
www.cfba.co.uk
www.apbc.co.uk
Your first step is to try and address the behaviour in the home with experienced help, your next (if it proves unsuccessful) is to consider removing the dog from the home.
Good luck.
Nick
I had a similar problem when my son was born-I had 2 Jack Russells.In the end I decided that I wasn't prepared to take the risk of the baby and the dogs living together but I didn't want to let the dogs go unless i knew they were going to a good home with somebody i knew.
In the end my mum took the dogs(along with the 2 JR's she had herself so she had 4 in total!)
I felt awful and maybe nothing would of happened but I would never have forgiven myself if the baby would have been harmed-it wasn't worth the risk.
In the end my mum took the dogs(along with the 2 JR's she had herself so she had 4 in total!)
I felt awful and maybe nothing would of happened but I would never have forgiven myself if the baby would have been harmed-it wasn't worth the risk.
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