Another UGH moment

Oh my goodness. I would have so went off on them. I mean if Samantha did something like that I would be apologizing like crazy. Lucky she isnt like that and even fusses at me when I get after the girls here for something.

I dont take Cheyanne to place like that because all the little kids see spots and automatically come running. She isnt an aggressive dog but she doesnt like to be swarmed like that.

Poor Rory getting her hopes up like that. Give her a pat for me. 

He he, I was shocked, I couldnt even say a thing. 

On one hand I guess a farmers market isnt the ideal place for a dog and it isnt a place I take her to often and I dont take Primo because as nice as he is , he isnt a attention seeker like Rory but I was appalled, LOL I was just wondering if I had a right to say anything bringig her to a busy place but respect is respect no matter what

 If dogs are allowed then I would take them where ever possible. Maybe some kids shouldnt be allowed out in public!!

Hehe  you should have ran up to him and pulled his ears!! Now that would have been funny. 

 I treat uncontrolled poorly trained kids the same way I treat dogs, I'll verbally warn them off, and then move to body block if I have to.  I don't let any children coming charging Kirby.  I have no problem being picky with the kids I will allow to meet him.  He is by no means aggressive, but I have no doubt he would nip or bite out of fear if a kid pounced him, started yanking his ears, or some other unacceptable behavior.  No way I'm risking a bite record on my dog so someone else's kid can learn the hard way why not to tackle strange dogs.

That being said I have no problems letting polite children meet and greet if they have their parents' permission.  

At my brothers little league game a little girl once sat on Apollo!

I was sitting on the bottom bleacher, and he was laying down...he's totally fine with all the people there and can actually relax. He was just laying down and a little girl, maybe 4, came over and just sat right on him! Right on his back! I got up and said, "Hey! Hey! Who are you? Where are your parents?" I took the little girls hand and walked her back over to her parents, told them what happend, explained that Apollo is on the old side, why she shouldn't do it, etc, etc, they kind of just half hearted apologized.......My Mom couldn't believe what happend, she was pretty PO'd. The parents didn't even know where their kid was, she could've easily been taken!

Wow, it's not the child I am disappointed in, it's the parents! A young child can only really know what their parents teach them. Really poor judgement on their part... who lets their kid go flying up to a dog they don't know and pull on it?! Not to mention SO rude. I have had a similar thing happen... I was with my Corgi in Home Depot and out of nowhere I hear "doggy doggy doggy doggy doggy!" this ~4 year old comes running over, THROWS herself down on the floor, grabbing my corgi at the same time. I was shocked. Luckily Bixby didn't even make a peep, just sat there staring at me like "Do you know this kid?" I started to pull my Corgi away from the girl when finally her dad (I'm assuming) comes rambling up (who lets a tiny kid run around by themselves anyway?) and nonchalantly says "time to go". No apology, no nothing. I wanted to give him Bixby's leash and tell him he needed it more than I did. (I didn't, obviously.) What if Bixby HAD nipped her? Then it would have been a huge drama and I possibly would have had to get rid of my dog, all because some parents think it's okay to let their kids go wild and teach them no manners at all.

Your dog Rory must be a total sweetheart! Kudos to her :)

I intercept kids before they touch.   I am happy having kids pet my dogs, but they have to do it respectfully. With some kids that means giving a gentle lesson on how to approach and touch dogs. I will crouch down and help kids if I need to.

Sasha loves kids, but she is easily frightened and wild kids scare her. Eko is bulletproof as far as fear, but he's a big goof and can easily knock a child over. I also don't want him getting any negative impressions of kids.

I *like* teaching kids about dogs and how to pet them. So many aren't getting any guidance from their parents, and that scares the heck out of me. Even my goddaughter, who has grown up with dogs, has never been taught how to properly interact with them! Her dogs would take anything, and so she has no common sense or caution. I put Sasha away when my goddaughter is over.  

kle1986

Hehe  you should have ran up to him and pulled his ears!! Now that would have been funny. 

Ha ha, that would have been epic!

BL- Wow I'm sure Apollo was like "exscuse me,I dont know you, at least give me a treat first", LOL!

This little kid was slick I tell you.....maybe I'm just getting old!

Willow was so good with kids when we first got her.  I know it seems hard to believe but she was very tolerant and un intimidated by their size.  DH told me that when he first saw her in her old  home, she was tied out and there were kids running up to her and feeding her!!  I can't imagine but that's how she was.

A few years ago, our neighbor at the time had a little girl who was 3.  I had allowed her to pet Willow with her mom present.  She didn't pet Willow.  She gave her a smack right on top of the head! 

Willow growled and that was the end of kids. 

At least for us, the mom was very upset with her and told her that's not the way they taught her to treat animals, if you had been bit it would of been your own fault. 

I felt so sorry for Willow, her trust was really broken at that point. 

BOUNDRIES    period ....simple....adifinitum ..   A child who is ANYTHING other than gentle and respectful gets beyond reemed out by ME and should their parent be having a less than shining moment ...oh lawdy look out cause they are going to get it too !! I LOVE to tell people that the only canine with stronger jaws than a RR is the Hyena,  psi even the pit bull does not beat the Rhodesian and then with a smile I explain we are not deemed as dangerous as the pit , since all of them assume this is the dog de jour for the newspapers... Because we don;t have that rumored locking issue, instead MY breed rips and tears, breaking bone and maiming...think wild boar or lion..... yeah your 4 or 5 year old is lucky my dog is well trained......a family member that is rough with one of my 9 dogs should simply begin saying the Lord's prayer Or dpoing a rosary ...they KNOW they are close to a near death experience and it is notthe dog they need to worry about.....G'ma will KILL them

Bonita of Bwana

I had a similar situation occur at the dog park - of all places. We came in, and there was the usual people with their dogs, and a dad, 2 kids and a cute little pitty. The dog was just laying there, chewing his stick. But the KIDS! They were running around, being total maniacs. They asked if they could pet my dog, I said - if he comes to you. So they proceeded to follow him. I said, no. Do not chase dogs - that will make them afraid. I called Casey over, he sat - they pet and moved on. But - they continued to chase after him, trying to pet. He snapped at the (as I knew he would do), and they left him alone, not after I told them to leave my dog alone. We were on our way out when a little corgi came in, and the two boys went straight for him. I know the dog, and he does not like sudden movements, but is a real sweetie. They went after him, and the dog snapped and growled. I said "that is why you do not pet dogs you do not know without permission" and we went to another yard. I was very po'd at the dad - who was just sitting there. I also felt really bad for the dog....

and apparently before we got there - the two monsters were running around hitting the dogs in the park. Another lady had it out with the father, but they refused to leave. They haven't been back since - I guess I came off a bit nasty, but whatever - they deserved it.

The way I was raised was to respect dogs, upon pain of punishment. Standard punishment was the belt. One does not run up to strange dogs, one does not simply assume that every strange dog wants to be petted or accosted right away, one does not interfere with a dog eating his/her meal. You don't just hang off of ears. And children were not allowed to run wild. If necessary, one might have one's child in a harness and leash. Violate these rules and you would receive spankings until you quit doing that. After a few punishments, it became easier to be polite than to get another punishment.

However, especially these days, you have no idea what you will encounter in public. So, it's best to train for rock-solid stays, recalls, watch mes, calming regimes, etc. Sometimes, I do have the right tone of voice. I command "stop" and the kid, who doesn't even know me, freezes the charge in mid-step. "Does he bite?" "No, but let him approach you." etc. etc.

 Thankfully I've not had a lot of bad kid  experiences.  But there was one time after a really crappy run at an agility trial I was walking back to my van with Kota, where Tasha was crated, and I watched a young girl take a step away from my van, then turn around to go back!  The back door was open, obviously.  I yelled, very loudly and very angrily, DO NOT GO NEAR THE DOG IN THE VAN.  She spun around really fast and walked away, looking like she might cry.  I didn't give a flippin' whatever.  What if Tasha had bitten her fingers?  MY DOG would have been at fault even though she was crated in my own van!!  ugh....

The other day in class, I had Tasha tethered to the fence while I was helping someone with a skill and look over to see a little girl sitting on the ground next to Tasha with her arm around her and petting Kota (who was on the other side in an x-pen) through the fence.     I was impressed, scared senseless and relieved all at the same time.  I didn't know that was even possible!

but yes, I am very diligent and then rude when it comes to the safety of my dogs.  I would have totally reemed the kid AND his parents out for that.

what happened to leashes for children!?!  LOL  i actually had one of those when i was little  hehe