Kats inc Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 (edited) I agree. Presumably if you had gone to the beach at a time of year when dogs werent banned, Caitlin would still have hugged the dog? I think the point Wendy makes is a very good one.It's up to you to supervise your child and ensure her safety and not to always rely on others to supervise their animals.As Wendy says if you'd gone to the same beach in winter would you have taught your children different rules? Children's skin heals remarkably well with minimal scarring so I hope Caitlin heals well both physically and emotionally from this incident. Edited January 3, 2007 by Kats inc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlmckay Posted January 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Steady on Kathy... the dog approached us remember... I have told all my children to leave all strange dogs alone and if they are allowed to pat one, then to pat at the side of the head or under the chin. Children are unpredictable and cannot be kept on leads like a dog can - the government gets upset when you do this and sends Social Services around http://www.dogsafety.govt.nz/dogsafety.nsf...33;OpenDocument This was brought about when a 7yo was attacked in a park in September 2003 - as a result, dogs were banned from pretty much every public place unless on a leash... I won't take it further, but will reiterate to the lady to keep the dog on lead in future when there's people around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mooandboo Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 I won't take it further, but will reiterate to the lady to keep the dog on lead in future when there's people around. I agree with you and Jacky about that - Caitlin looks lovely by the way Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyM Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Steady on Kathy... the dog approached us remember... I'm not sure how this makes the situation any different. I won't take it further, but will reiterate to the lady to keep the dog on lead in future when there's people around. I'm sorry, but I still dont see how there is any risk from an elderly dog that did what any dog would do under the circumstances. Seems a bit drastic, but having had a kid bitten by a dog, I do sympathise with the irrational anger and drive for some form of retribution. It passes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lazydaisy Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 IMO the dog should not have been on the beach. You can tell children the rules about approaching strange dogs, but they are not robots and sometimes will act impulsivly as Caitlin did. You cannot watch a child 100% of the time. If the rules had been observed then Caitlin would not have been bitten. Dont blame the child she is only 3!! I would speak to the dog owner and put the onus for reporting the incident to her, see what her conscience tells her to do. If the dog continues to be on the beach who knows what could happen next. The dog owner should certainly pay the medical fees I hope Caitlin recovers quickly physically and mentally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlmckay Posted January 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 I think the point Wendy makes is a very good one.It's up to you to supervise your child and ensure her safety and not to always rely on others to supervise their animals.As Wendy says if you'd gone to the same beach in winter would you have taught your children different rules? Fair point, but whenever we've gone to the beach in the winter, there's less people around and therefore easier to keep distance between yourselves and other beach go-ers... Kathy, sigh... there's no "irrational anger" here - jeepers, I'd only have to make a complaint to the police and this dog would be destroyed. I'm trying to weigh up a way for the owners to understand that their dog hurts when touched and allowances made. Keeping it on leash or under stricter control does not seem to me a "drive for some form of retribution". We've all had the discussion when we've got cross that someone else's dogs have approached ours without warning and owners shout helpful things like "he's friendly". This is exactly what the owner said to me, she didn't expect that would happen and the dog has always been friendly. Caitlin disproved that notion for the owner... and I would hate for another child to suffer the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyM Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 My dog's friendly. BUT, if provoked, maybe by squeezing, prodding or other form of physical provocation, she would most likely behave like most dogs would under the circumstances. I'm not belittling what's happened, or your worry about it happening again, but it really is simple not to allow your kids to do that to a dog. It's not fair to label the dog as dangerous because it was provoked into a natural behaviour. I really didn't mean any offence, and I apologise if my wording was iffy, I did try to make it as diplomatic as possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mooandboo Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 I'm sorry, but I still dont see how there is any risk from an elderly dog that did what any dog would do under the circumstances. I think it would benefit the dog to be protected from both sides so that it isn't in this situation again - which could have been much worse through no fault of it's own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlmckay Posted January 3, 2007 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 ... but it really is simple not to allow your kids to do that to a dog. Key word - allow. I didn't allow Caitlin to cuddle the dog, she just spontaneously did it before I could do anything. I really didn't mean any offence, and I apologise if my wording was iffy, I did try to make it as diplomatic as possible. It's your irrepressible forum manner that I have come to love over the years Kathy - don't change - I know exactly what you're thinking when you type! Right, off to bed now. Will write letter to owner and leave the authorities out of it. Good night! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendbert Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 http://www.dogsafety.govt.nz/dogsafety.nsf...33;OpenDocument This was brought about when a 7yo was attacked in a park in September 2003 - as a result, dogs were banned from pretty much every public place unless on a leash... Hmmm... that does make me have a slightly different view on this now So, apart from not being allowed on the beach, the dog shouldn't have been offlead either? Whilst in my opinion kids should always be taught not to approach strange dogs, the fact that the owner didn't have sufficient control over their dog to stop it coming up to you makes me feel the responsibility lies more with them. Their neglect let the incident occur Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyM Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Maybe lead for the dog and reins for the kids? There, there's my amazing compromise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trallwm farm Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Same here Im afraid. The dog was local and on its home ground with its owner. Your daughter would have hugged him regardless of where the dog was so the beach isnt an issue. We are mainly horses and livestock here and I do not ever put our address or allow people to turn up. We have dogs that are not friendly and we protect THEM Always people wander towards horses or dogs and when I say dont they always tell me they are good with horses /dogs.One of our horses is from Arizona and will kick bite AND strike so it doesnt matter HOW good you are with horses/dogs. Given that the dog was just a pet keeping up with his owner I think you should just put it down to experience.The dog got frightened because your daughter had too much confidence and the dog just wanted his mum. He didnt chase your daughter. Given the present climate its easy to see why people suddenly look at things differently but be the bigger person and just let sleeping dogs lie. Your daughter learnt a valuable lesson that could someday save her from something far worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
border collie Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Oh no, thank god it wasn't worse I always cringe when I read the dog bite reports in this country and keep my mouth shut if they are blunty dogs because I know full well that the farm collies near me do nearly all of the nipping and biting. They only ever seem to do a quick in and out and not a savage full on attack though. Ickle kids are just as quick with their in and out approach. There but for the grace of god etc. having had three toddlers and now owning collies. The owner might feel she should keep it under close control in future hopefully. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cycas Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 You cannot watch them all the time, but on the other hand, it's not the responsibility of the rest of the world to be made of cotton wool. If Caitlin had been walking near a cliff or across a road, I am sure you would have kept her close so that any impulsively dangerous behaviour could be checked. Same around animals. Both you and the dog owner had a slightly erratic creature with you that behaved unexpectedly. It was bad luck that the two unexpected things coincided that way, but I am not sure that keeping ONE of the two erratic creatures on the lead would necessarily have prevented the problem. The dog wouldn't have been able to approach Caitlin, but she would still have been able to approach him. I imagine now everyone involved has learned something (including the dog!) and that should be enough, surely? I hope Caitlin heals quickly and was not too shocked by the incident. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redditchlady Posted January 3, 2007 Report Share Posted January 3, 2007 Firstly for Caitlin. I feel that this could have happened at any time though. Yes the dog shouldn't have been on the beach on the day. But on the other side of the coin, Caitlin hugged a dog that was unknown. There are a lot of dogs that feel threatened by this type of affection. The owners have been fair in my opinion. I do also feel that you can't have eyes in the back of your head so I do understand both sides. So to sum it up I would say its a case of 6 and two 3's. Kazz xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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