Family Dogs that Bite Kids
It saddens me more than anything when I see stories on social media telling a story about a young child that has been bitten by the family dog. I am sad for the child, the family, and the dog.
Just this week I saw a photo on Facebook, posted by a mother trying to warn others not to ever assume your dog won’t bite your child. She reported that her child was attacked by their docile family dog, a dog that never showed any signs of aggression.
The child was okay but got a bite in the face and needed stitches. They were going to get rid of the dog because she couldn’t bear keeping the dog in the house with her kids. Some people responded with hateful comments, others responded with heartfelt comments.
I know this is a highly controversial issue and believe me I avoid conflict like the plague. But I feel strongly about kids getting bite by dogs – it should never happen!
Here’s the thing, it’s not the kids’ fault and it’s not the dog’s fault. It is 100% the parents’ fault for not teaching her kids to respect the dog’s space.
I will be the first to admit, it is impossible to keep an eye on our kids 24/7. So, if you have a dog, then our kids need to learn how to respect the dog and how to read the dog’s body language.
Dog Bite Facts
According to U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), more than 4.5 million people are bitten by dogs each year in the United States. At least half of those bitten are children.
It’s easy to fall into a false sense of security. But we have to remember that dogs are animals, and as much as we want to believe our dogs will never bite us or our kids, the fact is that it is always a possibility.
It does not matter what type of dog you have, all dogs have the potential to bite. He can be small, medium or big. A Chihuahua, Pitbull or Labrador retriever. A purebred dog or a rescue dog. A dog is a dog. I know a lot of people bash the pit bull breed dogs, but the fact is a dog is a dog, just as a human is a human, no matter our race.
I almost wanted to say animals can be unpredictable, no matter how well trained. But really, dogs are pretty predictable if we know how to read their body language. Dogs are communicating with us all of the time, but many of us just don’t understand them.
My Story
I’m going to tell a story of our dog JJ that I don’t like to talk much about. But I think it’s important to communicate, that no matter who we are, or what we do for a living, we are all capable of making mistakes.
When we adopted JJ, all three of my kids were under 10. So, our house was chaotic at times, kids running, screaming, slamming doors… if you have kids you know what I mean.
We noticed right away, JJ did not like kids running. He would get all worked up and bark like crazy when the kids would run in the house or the yard. At first, we thought it was funny, my boys couldn’t wrestle anymore because JJ wouldn’t allow it. But we started to realize this could get out of hand quickly, so the kids learned not to run when JJ was in the same room. And we would put JJ in our room when friends were over.
I brought JJ to one of my boys’ baseball games. I was standing off to the side with JJ and his leash around my foot so that I was able to free my hands to cheer for the team. It took one young boy to run by and JJ took me right off my feet to go after him. It startled me, but JJ was still hooked to my foot, so nothing happened other than losing my pride that day.
Several weeks later, I brought JJ to another baseball game. I learned from my mistake the first time, so I kept my distance again and put JJ on a short leash in my hand. I had him in a sit command right next to me. Low and behold, coming from behind, a little kid ran right by us and JJ lunged toward the kid. Scared the heck out of the kid and me. No bites, but it very well could have been a very bad situation.
After that, I never brought JJ to another public place with kids. But it took me two warnings to get the hint. Looking back, I should never have brought him to the baseball games in the first place. You can judge me if you want, but please no hateful comments. I learned from my mistakes and thank God nothing serious came from them.
So, if JJ had bitten one of those kids, would it be JJ’s fault? No. The kids’ fault for running by us so closely? No! It would have been 100% my fault. As the dog’s owner, it is my responsibility to keep my dog from biting anyone.
There you have it, I’m not perfect, nor do I expect any other human being to be. We all make mistakes but learning from them are key. Learning from other parents’ mistakes is a little harder, as we feel that could never happen with my dog. Well, I’m here to tell you it can. No dog is perfect either.
Recommended Just For You: How To Speak Dog Language
How to Keep Kids Safe Around the Family Dog
I don’t want you to panic and start freaking out that your sweet, cuddly family dog is going to bite your kid one day. But as parents, we need to step up and start teaching our kids how to interact with dogs.
It’s not the barking, teeth showing, aggressive looking dog down the street that you have to worry about. We all instinctively know that we need to stay away from those types of dogs.
It’s your golden retrievers, cute little fluffy dogs and yes, your family dog, that we need to teach our kids about.
Reading a dog’s body language is crucial to teach yourself and your kids. Understanding that even if a dog is wagging his tail doesn’t mean he is friendly. And even though your dog allows your kids to pull his tail and stick his fingers in his mouth, doesn’t mean one day that same dog will turn and bite.
Dogs use many calming signals to communicate to us that they do not like or are uncomfortable in situations. But most humans have no idea what those calming signals are… heck, I didn’t until these past few years.
Why Do Family Dogs Bite Kids?
Dogs bit kids mostly because kids are not taught to respect the dogs’ space. Let’s turn the table around for a minute.
Scenario Comparison
Human: You are quietly sitting on the couch reading a book when your kid comes running up to you pulling on your leg and crawling up in your face. The first time may be cute, the second time a little less cute, by the fifth time you’ve about had it. You nicely tell your kid to please stop, but he keeps at it, pulling your leg, crawling up in your face. Then around the tenth time, you scream, leave me alone! Your kid persists, you finally put your book down, get up, yell at your kid and send him to his room.
Dog: The dog is quietly laying on the floor when your kid comes running up to him pulling his ears and sticking his face in the dogs face. The first time may be cute, the second time a little less cute, by the fifth time the dog has about had it. He nicely gets up and moves somewhere else, but the kid keeps at it, pulling his ears and sticking his face in the dogs face. The dog uses his body language and calming signals to try and tell the kid to leave him alone. But no one is listening. Then around the tenth time, the dog growls as a warning to leave him alone. You yell at the dog for growling. Your kid persists in annoying the dog, the dog has learned that growling gets him in trouble, so feels he has no other choice but to bite the kid.
Now I’m not saying this scenario is going to happen in a day or even a week. It usually builds up over time. Many dogs can be very patient, hoping that their humans will help them and start understanding their calming signals. But eventually over months or even years of humans ignoring the kid’s behavior, or thinking the kid’s behavior is cute, the dog simply feels he has no way out. And that is where the bite comes in.
There are many other scenarios for why dogs bite kids. Kids getting too close to the dog’s food, bone or toys. Startling the dog when he is sleeping, pulling the dog’s body parts or playing too rough.
Children need to be taught to respect dogs as they would people. If you wouldn’t allow your child to do something to another child, then he shouldn’t be doing it to your dog.
Babies and toddlers that are too young to comprehend these strategies must always be supervised around your dog. I realize this can be super difficult with our busy lifestyles, but be creative with baby gates, playpens, and dog crates. Anytime that you cannot be physically and mentally present, with both baby and dog, they should not be allowed to interact.
Kids no matter the age, should never be allowed to climb over or on top of the dog, pull the dogs tail, ears or put fingers in the dog’s nose, tug, twist or whatever it is that looks so cute in photos and videos.
Respect your dogs’ space, just as you would respect a humans space.
Below are two great resources for dog owners. Click on each image to download a PDF.
Thank you to Dr. Sophia Yin’s Website. Source: Kids and Dogs: How Kids Should and Should Not Interact with Dogs
Everyone has the right to their opinion, and I’m sure there are strong ones for both sides. Feel free to comment below but keep it nice. No parent, dog, kid or breed bashing. I strongly believe that it is not the Pitbull breed that is at fault. It is the humans behind the dog and the dog’s environment that factor into why dogs bite.
Please watch your kids around dogs, teach them how to respect your dog. And let’s help save kids from being bitten and dogs being euthanized.
P.S. I realize there is so much more that goes into teaching kids about dogs and I hope to write more in detail in future posts. So make sure to download our free body language cheat sheet below, which in turn will sign you up for our weekly newsletter so to not miss any new and important information.
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It is for this reason that I started my dog safety classes in schools that we do free from the Plymouth County Extension and 4-H. I got tired of reading about poor kids getting bit and poor dogs being put down or rehomed, I use my therapy dog to demonstrate whale eye, licking the lips and yawning on command to show the kids first hand what it is. For the younger crowd, I wrote a book called "please Don't Hug me" and it is simple= with photos and few words to explain what they need to look for. Plus 100% or the profits benefit the 4-H program!
To date we have taught over 15000 kids in our county and are in the schools each year teaching.
More people need to read this and start advocating for their dogs. Thanks for posting this!
THANK YOU! for everything you do Cathy. I just looked up your book, what a great idea! Anyone interested can find it on Amazon by clicking here
We took in a very sweet dog that was a stray. He was found wandering around town and the original owner didn’t want him, poor guy! The vet guessed that he’s about 5 years old. We have no idea what his life was like before we got him. We’ve had him for two months now. Anyway, he seems to not like our kids. He does ok with our 6 year old, but less ok with the 4 year old and even less ok with the 16 month old. We never let the kids be rough with him or anything like that, but he still growls at them and seems to be nervous when they’re around. He has barked at the baby twice, once through a gate (I lock him behind a baby gate when I can’t watch him) and once when she came up behind him. He’s definitely afraid of her, and we’ve been trying to give him space and time since he’s new here. I’m just not sure if he’s really comfortable here. Maybe he would be happier in a home without small children? He’s an excellent dog! Very well behaved (minus separation anxiety) and he’s very sweet. Loves all the adults he’s ever met, does great at parks with other dogs and people. Even kids! I just don’t know how to proceed. Adopting from a shelter is great because they assess the dog’s temperament before you adopt, but taking in a stray, we had no idea. He just needed somewhere to go, and we thought we’d try and help him out.
When we first got him he would constantly tremble around the baby, now he doesn’t tremble but he still growls and sometimes shows his teeth. I always remove her, or have him leave the situation, but is this going to be forever? Because he just seems constantly nervous whenever the kids enter the room. I think he would be happier without young kids around, but he’s pretty attached to me and my husband, so I just feel guilty of even the thought. Not sure what we should do.
Katelyn, I think deep in your gut you do know what to do. You have three small children, I would be concerned about their well being. It only takes a split second for something bad to happen. The dogs sounds like he prefers a quiet home. I’m sure with a lot of time, patience and training he could become a great family pet. But in the meantime, are you willing to sacrifice the safety of your kids? Obviously you are the only one that can make this decision. But if it were me, I’d start looking for a quiet home without kids for him.
My grandson was lowered from couch to floor by his mother not knowing dog was sleeping on floor below them; this older, docile, sweet dog snapped at grandson causing cuts to face. Now son and daughter in law hate dog and want to send to shelter. I feel sorry for dog and baby-mom should have looked before putting baby on floor
Oh no! I am so sorry to hear this. It’s such a difficult situation. I feel for everyone involved.
What about situations where the child is actually doing NOTHING but walking around in the same room near the dog. My 2.5 year son is extremely gentle with all of our animals but our 5 y/o Aussie has always been aggressive with small kids. Our son can’t even walk past the dog without him growling. The dog won’t move out of the way to get out of the situation, he stands his ground and growls. He has snapped twice, the most recent time my son was simply walking around the kitchen (not running, not touching or even really looking at the dog). I’m leaning towards rehoming our dog with a family that doesn’t have young kids. I just feel like since this has been as issue since we got him as a puppy, that it’s going to be an issue until our son is older.
I would likely feel rehoming is the best solution in your case. It sounds like the dog needs some serious behavior training and would do best in a home without children.
We just rehomed my Aussie Tuesday for this exact reason. Training, separation, vet visits, baby didn’t have to be near her at all and she finally got past growling and to snarling gum over teeth snapping at her this week unprovoked. Were heartbroken but I felt the need to comment since very similar situation and same breed.
We’ve had our 9 month old since she was 8 weeks old. We discovered she had a bit of a food aggression when she was around 3 months old. But it was mostly whenever my husband or I had food, she would growl at the person who didn’t have it that tried to pet her. Like she was protecting the person with the food, from the person who didn’t have any. And she’s gotten aggressive with our older dog, who is 15, whenever food is involved. Those are all things we are currently working on, especially now since our 9 month old bit our 10 yr old daughter! The dog was under my desk while I was sitting there enjoying a spoonful of peanutbutter. My daughter came up to her to pet her and didn’t listen when I told her to leave her alone. Then my daughter got down on the floor to talk to her and the dog came out and bit her. Then another incident happened when I was on the floor with my husband and she smelled treats in my pocket, leftover from a training session we had earlier that day. My husband reached over to pet her and she bit him, I guess she thought he was going to take the treats. I’ve been working with her in regards to food and “leaving it” and not taking it til she’s told. But she has an issue with our daughter still. 2 days after the biting, the dog was sleeping on the couch and my daughter sat down and started petting her. The dog growled and I told my daughter to “GET UP NOW AND LEAVE!” She got up and the dog came running over to me and any time my daughter got close, she growled. Her ears were down and she looked scared. My daughter has been one to constantly get in her face and squeeze her and I know over time, that’s just built up the frustration and fear, I guess, that the dog has. What do you suggest we do between the dog and my daughter? I’ve seen a few videos that say that dogs need to have a way out of a situation and they need their space. I know I will be working on this with my daughter for sure! Since the dog bit my daughter, I’ve told everyone in the house that they need to have the dog sit or “work” for her affection and not to just reach down and pet her. Should we have our daughter completely ignore the dog and let the dog come to her? I’d hate for the dog to hate just her. She loves the dog dearly but I don’t want her getting bit anymore.
Amy you’ve got a lot going on here. But sounds like you are on top of the situation now. Learning the dogs body language is important. Teaching your daughter what to look for is also important for her safety. A couple more articles to read would be How to speak to dogs and Living with a Resource Guarding Dog. I also recommend joining our private Facebook community. It’s a safe place to ask these hard questions and get feedback from others that have been in similar situations.
I am curious my dog is fine around small children 2 yrs old (family nephew) but growls & tries to bite the neighborhood kids who are ages 3-10. They are very loud and active. Is this out of fear? She has no interaction with them but when we walk by go on walks in the neighborhood. Our other dog her sister is fine. Never barks or growls at the kids and lets them pet her.
I am wondering if they did something to Daisy through the fence in my backyard when I wasn’t there.
Most likely fear based. She knows your nephew and is likely more comfortable around him. But I would still be very aware of any interactions with the two. You need to work on counter conditioning the dog to teach him that the kids mean no harm. It will take time and patience.
What do you do if a dog attempts to bite a newborn, has bitten 2 other people and made them bleed, and has gone through training?
That dog should NOT be allowed near the newborn or any child ever!!! Obviously the trainer was not able to help the dog, find a better trainer or you need to find a new home for the dog, a home with no kids and has the time and money to rehabilitate the dog. The dog needs a dog behaviorist, not a positive reinforcement trainer.