Kids.....

This is where to talk about Pit Bulls!

Postby Jenn » April 6th, 2006, 6:04 pm

I find myself sometimes annoyed by the "don't EVER leave your kid unsupervised, Never trust your dog alone with your child, any dog" comments. Maybe it's just me, though I wonder what exactly people do with their dogs/kids on a daily basis?? :|

If your cooking in the kitchen and your child is in the living room watching T.V., the dogs are sleeping ~ should they be awoke and placed in the kitchen to protect our children?

If your outside playing and the phone rings, should you ignore the call and everyone be made to come in the house to see who called?

If you have to pee should you crate the dog before you go, after all the dog may bite the child?

If your playing a board game in the kitchen and get up to answer a front door should your dogs and child be forced to come as well? What if they are sleeping?

If they are all peacefully asleep on the couch and you go to clean the kitchen or another room should you wake the dogs up and take them with you?

If you take the trash out should everyone accompany you along the journey?

I'm not being sarcastic, but I trust my dogs to not hurt my child. I trust my daughter to not hurt the dogs. She will be 6 shortly, I'm not talking about a 2 year old. She feeds them, helps me take them out, helps to make sure they have water, plays fetch with them alongside me, goes to the vet, gives them their heartworm meds. You name it, she likes to be involved. Though are we really that FREAKED out subconsiously, about the breed? Where do you draw the line? I seriously could not and would not own a dog that I couldn't trust alone for 30 seconds with my child. I'm not blind that an animal is an animal. Nor am I "oh my baby this, my dog is my baby" mush gushy mess. I correct my dogs when they do wrong, they aren't perfect neither is my child for that matter. Though if I had any suspicion that after these last few years of us all together they would gnaw my child's face off ~ they would be dead. I can't be all alone in the world? ;)
Please understand I'm not saying everyone needs to run off leaving their children unsupervised all the time with their dogs either!
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Postby Jesseca » April 6th, 2006, 6:22 pm

I agree with you. I don't leave my kids unsupervised for a length of time with our foster dogs or my doxie ( I don't trust him), but Summer, I'd let her babysit if she could. :wink: Some people though need to be told that because they are dumb owners with dogs that shouldn't be around kids at any time. Any new situation, new dog, etc, I don't leave them alone until I am comfortable with it. Doesn't mean everyone goes into the potty with me, but I am always aware of what's going on in my house
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Postby cheekymunkee » April 6th, 2006, 6:30 pm

I always left my daughter with my dogs but not for any length of time. If we were outside & i went in she had to go with me. BUT that was not because of my dogs, it was because I was afraid she would wonder off or someone would grab her. When she was an infant or a toddler I didn't leave her alone for fear of her hurting herself. Hell, when she cried Ruby usually beat me to her then look at me like 'what is taking you so long???". Sure Ruby knocked her down, stepped on her & sat on her but it's a hard knock life. :| I've never really been afraid of my dogs hurting her.
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Postby Maryellen » April 6th, 2006, 7:45 pm

i think it mostly stems from what a child could do to a dog unintentially, and the dogs reaction... if a child decided to stab/poke a dog with a pen or something, what will the dog do?? my stepkids are teenagers, but a few years ago one of them decided it would be fun to poke a pen at jesse.... i think i made him crap his pants when i went after him...... jesse was fine, but she wasnt too thrilled about being poked by a pen.... i think some kids just dont respect dogs, or they think that it would be fun to pull their ears while sleeping, or stuff like that.... now that my stepkids are older, and i scared the crap out of them when they were younger about how they treated my dogs, i can leave them in a room with them and not worry.. but if they were under the age of 12 i wouldnt..
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Postby mnp13 » April 6th, 2006, 8:56 pm

I think it is one of those blanket statements meant for most people, but not for everyone.

Ruby and Connor are guilty of knocking kids down, but not because of aggression, it's because they don't unserstand that little people don't weigh enough to stand up when you run into them. Are they in danger? no.

If you are a responsible parent you've taught your kids proper dog manners anyway, so if you have a dog with manners and a kid with manners you're probably ok if you have to go take a pee.
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Postby SisMorphine » April 6th, 2006, 10:17 pm

I say just get rid of the kids.

:off:
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Postby luvmyangels » April 7th, 2006, 2:16 pm

My children are 2 & 5 and I have three big dogs. Each weigh more than my children. I have my kitchen gated off for both my children and dogs safety. Depending on where I am one or the other may be on the other side of the gate if I can not keep a close eye. There have been times I am standing with the children and dogs and if the dogs walk by there have been times they will knock over my 2 year old accidently. Especially in the yard when the dogs are goofing off playing.

I have been teaching both my 5 & 2 year old how to respect all animals. They are both doing quite well but being the neurotic parent I am and their ages I am not comfortable leaving them alone together. Nor do I think it will happen any time soon.
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Postby rockermom » April 7th, 2006, 3:29 pm

I think it all depends on the situation. My youngest is 10. He was a little nervous about the dog and the way dogs act. Because this made his position in the pack questionable, if I need to run out to post office I crate the dog. If I had a 6 yr old or younger I cant imagine how tough it could be to have a puppy running around nipping and stuff. I suppose in that situation, being the way I am (overprotective mom). I would never leave them together. This is why I waited till my kids were older.
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Postby rockermom » April 7th, 2006, 3:30 pm

oops I keep forgeting my son is 11 now.
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Postby FruitbatMom » April 7th, 2006, 4:12 pm

SisMorphine wrote:I say just get rid of the kids.

:off:

lol lol lol lol lol
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Postby bullymommy » April 8th, 2006, 5:36 am

i let spencer and the dogs be in the same room without me all the time. im just not worried that anything will happen to either of them. chub and hannah know their place. spencer knows his manners. im just not concerned at all!!!
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Postby dogcrazyjen » April 8th, 2006, 10:28 am

I do not let toddlers around my dogs without supervision. I did let my younger one around my Newfoundland back when he was little, but that was because of Benny's nature, being SO calm, docile, and gentle, AND because my son was likewise.

It isn't that I do not trust my dogs, it is that i do not trust most toddlers. My friend's toddler harrassed and hit and chased their small mix, and it finally nailed the kid. Now the dog is nuerotic, not understanding the pack rules and feeling afraid, so she is labeled aggressive and is lucky she is not dead. The same child started after my dogs, trying to bash them with a shopping cart. I gave him one warning, and when he continued I picked up the cart, opened the window, and threw it out, slamming and locking the window. I told him if he kept up with my dogs I would put him in his room behind the dog gate. He left mine alone after that. :rolleyes2:
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Postby Patch O' Pits » April 8th, 2006, 10:41 am

All my kids have 4 legs LOL
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Postby Jenn » April 8th, 2006, 11:27 am

lol Patch and Sis ;)
I suppose my main irritation stemmed from a statement, or what I perceived as an insinuation that my child was in danger, because of my ignorance. :rolleyes2: I agree about the general statement, and I agree that dogs should not be left alone with babies, or small wild children who's parents haven't taught them to respect animals. I never left them alone when she was smaller. Did I think she would be hurt or attacked? No never, otherwise I can't honestly say that the dog would still be in my home. If I had to live in fear or what might happen when I turned my back, I'd not have that dog. I don't know, it's just a touchy subject I suppose. Even I have arguments for both sides, but would never judge someone or question their situation unless I had reasonable cause. It's just a fact some people should not own an animal, some people shouldn't have children either. :crazy:

My personal experience has been wonderful. I know my dogs, and I know my child. I can't name one instance where Ben or Maddie have ever given me cause to worry about their stability. I don't think I could have found better pets for my home. Ben is much calmer when playing with her than he is when playing with me. He knows "easy" when he starts to get excited, she tells him "easy" and he backs off. Otherwise he's normally sleeping while she's playing along side him, or off interested in his own thing. IF she's upset he's upset too, they pout together. When she cries he'll lay beside her, and do his best to help her make me feel guilty. Maddie never gets excited, and for the most part doesn't do anything anyway. Though she will sit and wait for an invitation to join you in a couch snuggle while watching a movie, or whine for the invitation to go to bed with you for the night. It all just "works" just as it should for me. To insinuate to all or to me that I'm an accident waiting to happen, is complete BS. To always go around preaching DON'T leave that dog alone with you kid for one second! Isn't that basically stereotyping right along side everyone against them? Ughhh, I don't know. Thanks though, I suppose the crew and I will continue on with what works for us.... ;)
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Postby cheekymunkee » April 8th, 2006, 11:56 am

As well you should. Any other breed I might worry about but not with pit bulls. My daughter knew how to treat animals & they knew how to treat her. Munkee has not been around little ones much but when my great niece comes to visit he treats her with kid gloves. Justice does too & she's a spazz. The only thing we are cautious about is stuffies. The one time she walked into my home with a stuffie in her arms was her last. Munkee saw it, ran up to her, grabbed it from her arms & beheaded it in front of her..........all while putting not ONE scratch on her. She was heartbroken but unscathed. :oops:
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Postby PittieLove » April 8th, 2006, 10:20 pm

well i dont have kids..
To me its "Dont trust any kid with a dog." even though some dogs are just mean. Ivan can take a lot, stabbing, pokeing, being crush, arm rest, etc. But i wouldnt trust a fiesty child not to do something. You can leave them for 30seconds, but not for hours. :wink: In just about all the dog attacks the kid did something to the dog, and was bitten.
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Postby PittieLove » April 8th, 2006, 10:23 pm

i wanted to add something..
Ivan was never raised with yound children but is SO great with them. Just goes to show how mean those pit bulls truely are :twisted: lol
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Postby Hoyden » April 8th, 2006, 11:12 pm

Well - as a rule of thumb - you shouldn't leave children & dogs unattended.

But this what we do: I won't let MY dogs be around OTHER PEOPLE'S children unattended and I won't leave MY kids around other people's dogs unattended.

I don't trust other people's children or dogs.

Petey and the Gremlin have been buddies since before she was born. He has proved to us time and time again that he can be trusted - so I will leave those two alone for a few minutes.

Birdie hasn't been with me long enough to earn that trust. She is great with the Gremlin and any other kid she has come across, but I don't know her as well as I know Petey.

I also don't leave both dogs in the same room with the Gremlin unattended incase something were to happen and the two dogs start fighting. Just a pre-cautionary measure because one of the golden rules about pitbulls is you can never trust them not to fight.

Honestly - we had to put the Gremlin behind a baby gate or in her play yard because she used to pester the hell out of Petey. Then Petey would go over to the play yard and lie down next to her or bark at us to let her out.
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