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WHY SOME ADULT DOGS DISLIKE SMALL CHILDREN
Dogs dislike very small children for two reasons. Either
they belong or belonged at some time, to someone who does not
discipline their children and allow the children to pull the
dogs ears, hair, tail, fall on top of the dog, step on his
toes, take his toys away from him, interfere with him while he
is eating, all those things can make a dog dislike small
children. I have often seen the parents of such children yell
at the kids but make no attempt to actually discipline the
child and teach the child to really leave the dog alone.
Without stopping the children or teaching the children, the
dog is being set up as the bad guy in this scenario. The day
he snaps at a child or bites the child, the dog gets a
beating, locked up or disposed of. And it wasn't the dogs
fault. It was the adults who wouldn't discipline the children
who are at fault.
The second reason is that the dog is simply not used to
young children. He is nervous around them as he is afraid of
them. You often see this with adult dogs that have never been
exposed to young children on a regular basis before. Children
move rapidly towards and away from a dog, their little hands
are reaching towards the dog continually and the dog doesn't
know what the child wants. The children's voices are higher
pitched, often punctuated with squeals of delight and things
like that. Again the dog does not understand this difference
in tone. These dogs growl warnings at the child just like a
dog that has been mauled by kids. They attempt to stay out of
the child's way much the same too. Again, a child may get
snapped at or bit by such a dog. Again, it is not the dogs
fault for not having been exposed to well behaved children as
a puppy when the dog is more open to learning to get along
with them. Adult dogs like these may never learn to relax and
trust small children and should be placed in a home with no
young children to prevent a child getting bitten.
If we were talking here about a dog not liking adults or
even older, more mature children, then I would say that with
patient and slow exposure to the adult or older child, that
the dog can reach a level of acceptance for them. That is
because the human in this case is wise enough to follow rules
and guidelines when earning the dogs trust and affection. With
such small children as babies to approx. 7 years old (depends
entirely on the child as they mature at different rates and
learn at different rates), I would say a dog who either has
learned to dislike children or one that is nervous and/or
afraid of them, that regardless of how patient and slow and
correct the exposure to these children, that there will always
remain the possibility of a child getting bit.
The dog should never be punished for his fears but at the
same time, he must be firmly disciplined for any show of
aggression. Growling and threatening to bite a child must not
be allowed.
"He Must Always Be Given An Avenue Of Escape." Meaning that
he must be able to get completely away from the child at all
times and never be forced into sitting there. You cannot force
a dog to accept any object of his displeasure or fear. They
must learn this acceptance on their own terms, which some do
with enough time and gentle encouragement.
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