HAPPY BARKDAY!!!
to my pupper, Starbuck. She's a whole 2 years old today.
Whee!
Now I'd like to talk about something more serious. Dogs & kids.
When all of the stars align and the wind blows just right, that's a perfect match. I always had dogs while I was growing up and having them around for my own kid is very important to me.
But...
But but but...dogs have all of those teeth (yes, even the little ones). And kids have a habit of being loud and rambunctious and rather unpredictable. What should be a loving partnership in romping and mischief can turn horribly, terribly wrong in an instant.
And everyone suffers when that happens. So it's best to take some steps to make sure it doesn't happen. Spay & Neuter Kansas City shared this great infographic on their Facebook page:
Again, even small dogs have sharp teeth, so don't assume it's safe to leave your young child alone with your puppy or chihuahua. Dog bites can happen very suddenly, and while some dogs give very obvious cues, others have quite subtle signals.
We almost had to return our beautiful girl up there to the shelter because she snapped at our son. We were all sitting in the room talking together while he was petting her. We were actively watching him. And we were all rather shocked when she snapped. Had she truly wanted to bite him, there was nothing we could have done in that moment to stop it...and the damage could have been quite severe.
Luckily, we became more educated about anxious dogs and subtle body cues and with training (some for the dog, most for the kid) we were able to keep both of them happy and intact and now they are buddies.
Notice I said "in the moment" above? Because there actually are many steps we could have taken to prevent it from reaching that point, had we realized how stressed Starbuck was.
An organization called Stop the 77 is dedicated to helping people do just that.
Since 77% of bites come from a dog your kids may know and love — how do you protect them? By teaching them. And by keeping your kids safe, you're keeping dogs safe too.Often we imagine that dogs will growl or bare their teeth before a snap. And some do...but others, like our Bucky-girl, don't. Just before the snap, her ears were back a bit, but not flat to her head. She was looking down and away. And her brows were tense.
That was it. That was her saying "I'm not comfortable with this situation." But we were not educated enough to see it. Now that I've learned a bit more and I know her better, I can tell pretty easily when she's stressed out. But it has taken a lot of time and attention to do so.
Once a dog has bitten someone, the outlook for that animal is not pleasant. It's much better for everyone involved if the bite is prevented. Check out the resources above and share, share, share! Let's keep our two- and four-legged family members safe.
