Cockers And Children

[Babylonian]

I have to say that I do not trust Miss Millie to be alone with the kids.

Thats a worry  

Molly, although only 5 months is trusted 100%, I also trust my parents 18 month old springer 100% with the kids too.  Surely if your apprehensive the dog has got to go  

How can you trust her off a lead?

You should be able to trust your dog.

Just my humble opinion  

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Sometimes it's not a matter of how much you trust your dog but more about understanding that with the best will in the world accidents can happen with small children and pups/dogs.

A few months ago my 6 years old daughter went off to play with jed in her room (I didn't know and she had been told not to do this) - she was encouraging him to jump up to grab a toy from her hand (she'd seen her dad do this outside).  jed jumped up and because they are roughly the same height he caught the side of her cheek with his mouth.  

The cheek has healed but she'll probably always have a small mark - in no way has jed ever shown any aggression towards her before or since - it was a moment of unsupervised excitement and an accident ensued.

IMHO you need to exercise caution with children and animals - I can't tell you how guilty I felt at the time it happened.

[CarolineandWill]

This sounds more like an unfortunate accident, than an attack.

Accidents happen, supervised or not  

[miche]

Yes I agree accidents happen and it is not always the dogs fault.

My collie snapped at my my son and when I asked my son what had happened told me he was only trying to pull him out from under the table by the white tip on the end of his tail.

You could tell poor Hooch was full of guilt afterwards, and my son was told off.

[jools]

I have to say that I do not trust Miss Millie to be alone with the kids.

Thats a worry  

Molly, although only 5 months is trusted 100%, I also trust my parents 18 month old springer 100% with the kids too.  Surely if your apprehensive the dog has got to go  

How can you trust her off a lead?

You should be able to trust your dog.

Just my humble opinion  

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Just one of these things with a puppy farmed solid cocker I'm afraid. She is great off the lead...and in the vet...and with strangers...and other dogs...and at the groomers,  as her issues only manifest themselves at home...which is very common in Millie type dogs.

You're right, it is a worry that we can't trust her, but that's just how it is. We are sensible with her, and we are experienced enough to recognise her pressure points.

I hate to sound patronising, but until you have one of these dogs, it is impossible to understand just how far removed they are from the normal cocker type behaviour. It wasn't until we got Bramble, who, as I mentioned has a fantastic nature, that I could fully appreciate the difference.

Yup, Millie's not perfect, but we aint going to give up on her.

[Cob-Web]

I trust Molo 110% but would NEVER leave him with my daughter or any other child unsupervised for a moment  ::

Neither dogs or children are predictable and an unexpected occurence, such as something falling, or a slip/fall, could lead to either reacting in a way that will have a long term impact on the other  

No matter how old  or "well-bred" the dog, or how dog-experienced the child, it is asking to much of either of them to be left unsupervised IMO

[jools]

I trust Molo 110% but would NEVER leave him with my daughter or any other child unsupervised for a moment  ::

Neither dogs or children are predictable and an unexpected occurence, such as something falling, or a slip/fall, could lead to either reacting in a way that will have a long term impact on the other 

No matter how old  or "well-bred" the dog, or how dog-experienced the child, it is asking to much of either of them to be left unsupervised IMO

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Yup, that's pretty much how I feel.

[Cayley]

I have to say that I do not trust Miss Millie to be alone with the kids.

Thats a worry  

Molly, although only 5 months is trusted 100%, I also trust my parents 18 month old springer 100% with the kids too.  Surely if your apprehensive the dog has got to go  

How can you trust her off a lead?

You should be able to trust your dog.

Just my humble opinion  

[snapback]145468[/snapback]

If a dog is temperamental, then the best home is the one that knows it's strenghts and weaknesses and can tell when the situation is getting a bit much for them. I would NEVER leave any dog and child unsupervised, nor would I leave two dogs that don't know each other unsupervised.

[miche]

i think we're all of the same opinion of dogs and kids but it's so cute to see them together in a safe situation so here's my pic



also, as posted previously check out the piccy of Mikey and Ollie, my other son in Dogs Today p33

[graciesmum]

I havent got kids and i dont leave Gracie unattended with them, she absolutely adores kids though, if she spots one when were out on a walk she goes mad to try and pull me over there or try and join in with whatever their playing, she's not even boisterous when she gets her way, she just crouches down low bum wagging for her tickle      

[scooby's mum]

Hiya all

I'm a childminder and would never leave "minded" children alone with Scooby, ever, but I do leave my own two alone with him (they are 10 and 5) and do not worry whatsoever  

There have been a few moments when Scooby has acted posessively when he's had a bone and the children have gone near, and also when he has "stolen" something and ran to his bed and the children have tried to get it off him but this has just been a warning growl.

As far as I'm concerned, having two kids and a dog, I cannot shut Scooby away in another room everytime myself or my husband go upstairs, in the garden etc. etc., it's just not practical    although I don't ever leave them with him for any length of time, it's only every for a few minutes.

However, I wouldn't leave the kids alone with him when he has a bone and tend to only give him these in the evenings when the children are in bed, just to be on the safe side  

[jools]

I've really enjoyed this thread.  

[CarolineandWill]

I trust Molo 110% but would NEVER leave him with my daughter or any other child unsupervised for a moment  ::

You can't, can you, really?  Bit of a contradiction here.

I really can't believe some of the responses to this thread

How do you do small tasks such as cooking, cleaning etc...?

I have 3 children, 8,4 and 3 and also take care of my 18 month old nephew mon-fri, and have never even thought for a second about leaving the children in another room with the dog, not to mention the practicallity of it.

My children are the most important thing in the world, and if I thought they were at the slightest risk, I would remove the risk.

I believe that if you feel that a dog is putting your childs saftey at risk, you should remove the risk  ::

As a parent, your children shoud be of paramount importance!

[jools]

I trust Molo 110% but would NEVER leave him with my daughter or any other child unsupervised for a moment  ::

You can't, can you, really?  Bit of a contradiction here.

I really can't believe some of the responses to this thread

How do you do small tasks such as cooking, cleaning etc...?

I have 3 children, 8,4 and 3 and also take care of my 18 month old nephew mon-fri, and have never even thought for a second about leaving the children in another room with the dog, not to mention the practicallity of it.

My children are the most important thing in the world, and if I thought they were at the slightest risk, I would remove the risk.

I believe that if you feel that a dog is putting your childs saftey at risk, you should remove the risk  ::

As a parent, your children shoud be of paramount importance!

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I wouldn't like to think that are insinuating that my children are NOT of paramount importance to me!

I think that other members have responded to this thread in an honest and responsible way.

I manage my daily tasks very easily thank you very much. Yes, it is difficult...but stair gates are fantastic things.

Millie is not some sort of maniac dog. If you were to meet her, you would never know she had any problems. Millie has NEVER gone for any of the kids. She has behaviour issues, and we CHOOSE not to put her into ANY situation where she MIGHT have cause to react in a way which is not appt. I think that is sensible.

Millie was kept behind a sofa from birth to the age of 10 weeks old, when we rescued her. She had no muscle mass, kennel cough, a bad tummy and fleas. She did not know how to behave like a puppy because she had never been allowed to. She had no trust in humans, and her only form of defense was her teeth.

As a family, we have decided on sensible measures to keep her and us safe. We do not give her anything she is likely to guard.....and we don't leave her alone with the kids.

I feel that this minor inconvenience is the least I can do to try to put back some of the things that humans did to Millie.

IF Millie ever bite one of the kids, that would be a different thing. However, by behaving as responsible parents / owners, we do not expect to encounter this.

Please think about the impact your post can have on others. I have found your remarks deeply offensive.

[Cob-Web]

I trust Molo 110% but would NEVER leave him with my daughter or any other child unsupervised for a moment ::
You can't, can you, really?  Bit of a contradiction here.

Yes, I can, and I do - it was one of the preconditions in my mind when I decided to invite a dog to join our family. What is contradictory about it?

How do you do small tasks such as cooking, cleaning etc...?

Either: Molo and my daughter are both with me. Or Molo is with me and my daughter is playing elsewhere. Or, Molo is in one room and she is in another while I am in a third room (eg if I pop out to the loo or to answer the phone).  I agree with Jools - babygates and doors are an essential requirement IMO    Its not difficult - but then I only have one child; I have often wondered whether I would have considered a puppy if I was blessed with more children  

I have 3 children, 8,4 and 3 and also take care of my 18 month old nephew mon-fri, and have never even thought for a second about leaving the children in another room with the dog, not to mention the practicallity of it.

I accept that you trust these children and your dog to be predictable at all times - I'm afraid I am not as confident. As previous posts have said, even responsible and well behaved children will do something unexpected without realising the possible consequences - so I agree; why put them at risk?

[CarolineandWill]

I stand by what I have alreadty said and apologise if I offended anyone, this was not my intention and was in no way a personal attack  

We to, could have opted to get a rescue dog, however after much evaluating, we decided that having children in the house we wanted a puppy who had already been socialized with children, and chose a breed renowned for being excellent with young children, therefore ensuring peace of mind and lowering the risk of conflict between kids and pup.

I still can't understand why, if you trust your dog '110%' you won't leave the dog with the children, this IMO is not trust, but concern.  You may have reason to seperate and fair enough, but you cannot say you trust your dog 110%, if you did, you would have little or no concern  

Personally, if I thought that my dog could not be trusted with the chidren, or if I or my wife were not prepared to trust the dog we would not have made a a life changing decision to get a dog.  However, we did and we do trust her completely, trust is an important part of living with a dog.

Your dog will be around for many years, and I hope that given time you will learn to trust your dog and children together as it is a match made in heaven  

This is in no way a personal attack, I am just expressing my personal views on leaving your dog and children unsupervised.

This is my opinion.

Many thanks

Will