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Dingos ate my baby
Categories: Health & Safety
No, not really. But I know what's coming. Dingos are not going to eat my baby. Nor are my dogs. That said, my mother will surely, eventually, get news that Ving Rhames' dogs allegedly mauled a man in his employ to death. And then the phone calls will begin.
Actually, they will begin again. My mother started on her campaign to alert me to the dangers of having pets and children while I was still pregnant. It was not the best time for her to advise me of her fears, you see, because I was raging with pregnancy hormones. If you've been pregnant, you may understand.
The conversations between us regarding this subject were tense. She wanted to remind me once again about the story where the puppy ate the toes off a baby. I responded that I never intended to leave my child alone period, let alone unsupervised with the dogs (although my older mutt, Maxine, is straight out of Peter Pan: See "Nana").
I think she finally believed me, that I would be a good enough mother to never leave my dogs alone with the baby. I haven't and I won't, ever. I did heed her advice to an extent by getting the dogs to sleep on the floor instead of in our bed. We have two dogs, a small one and a big one. The big one is much older and was used to sharing the bed with us, so we naturally felt it was only right to let the puppy up there too.
Then the baby came. We decided not to take the chance of leaving the dogs on the bed where the little one could feasibly creep into the pack and play bassinet right next to my bed and lick the baby out of his slumber. Really, though, we did it because we wanted our bed back.
Now that this story of Ving Rhames' dogs mauling and possibly killing their caretaker, I'm sure to get at least one more phone call on the subject. In other words, my mother will not let sleeping dogs lie.
What will I say to her this time? Well, I have a mutt and a dachshund, not a mastiff or an English bull dog (the dogs in the attack). Not that that really makes any difference. My mother's own dog bit HER the other day--and she has a cocker spaniel. According to a pal who works at the ASPCA cocker spaniels are one of the top dogs known for biting people. Interesting how that works out, right?
My mother does have a very good point, though, in that it is important with any family pet to pay close attention to the dynamics between them and your children. Problems tend to arise, in my experience, when people become too lax. We get so comfortable with the situation that we forget or decline to take basic precautions.
Hopefully we'll soon have an answer about why the dogs attacked their caretaker, who fed them every day and was therefore known to them. Knowing why doesn't make it any easier though. I'm sure Mr. Rhames will be forced to give away, or, more likely, put down his animals.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
michelle 8-04-2007 @ 10:53AM
It is important, even when you have older children, to be very careful around dogs. When we took our dog to training, the trainer was adament that no children should be left alone with ANY dog. The other parents scoffed at her- they said that was impossible. But she has seen too many preventable tragedies, and knows how dogs might react around little kids. A sweet dog could react and bite if his ears are pulled, for example. We have our second sweet Golden Retriever, but we are still very careful around our 6 year old. I would never say the dog "would never bite" because any dog could bite with the right provocation. (I will say, however, that a vicious mauling like in the Ving Rhames case is quite rare.)
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S. Kelly 8-04-2007 @ 11:02AM
Ok, let's keep this in perspective: There's always a chance that ANY dog is going to bite a child. That's why you have close PARENTAL SUPERVISION when they're younger and as they get older, you teach your children love and RESPECT of animals so they will know how to treat them and act around them.
THAT SAID, I think it is absolutely preposterous to equate the magnitude of a human fatality with a nip on the hand. The two are not comparable.
And I'm really sick and tired of these people who say that it's not true that certain breeds are more prone to vicious behavior. Uh, wake up. It is true and it's scientifically proven. Certain breeds of dogs are inherently more "wild" than others. I have children and we have pets -- 2 dogs (Dachshund & Yellow Lab), two cats, and 3 frogs (don't ask).
I LOVE dogs and have had them most of my life. That said, I would NEVER own any of the breeds on the top of the child mauling/fatality list: Huskies/Wolf-mix, Pitt Bull, Rottweiler, German Shepherd...
And PLEASE don't argue from exception! Yes, YOUR dog may be the most lovable, sweetest, Rottie on the planet, but you best be keeping it away from my child. These are still ANIMALS and nothing can be predicted and certain breeds have shown a tendency to be more dangerous than others.
Do your research.
Choose WISELY, not rebelliously.
And NEVER leave young children alone with a pet -- no matter what breed.
That's just good sense.
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S. Kelly 8-04-2007 @ 11:17AM
Interesting websites:
http://dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/breedlaws.html
http://www.dogexpert.com/Dog%20Bite%20Statistics/DogBiteStatistics.html
and the CDC's own, UNBIASED, factual reporting (where there's smoke, there's fire):
http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/duip/dogbreeds.pdf (PDF file!)
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Ethel 8-04-2007 @ 12:15PM
Yeah cockers can bite - I was bitten by my cocker too, except she was a freaking cocker! I have also been mauled by 5 pit bulls, big freaking difference! What I think a lot of folks do not see the distinction in nipping, which is a warning that all dogs and wolves use and biting which is not okay ever from a dog. Of course, with such tender skin a warning nip for a child can be bad - but that's different from having your skin ripped away.
Never leave your children unattended with any dog, but I do think there are distinctions with dogs. If it's a wolf-hybrid, put the poor thing down. If its trained to be mean, or picked because it has that reputation, maybe you shouldn't have that dog. If its a lap dog, make sure the dog understands it's the lowest in the pack (like make the dang little thing walk!), and I don't mean hurt the dog.
There will always be dogs that do horrible things, not because they're dogs but because even humans do horrible things to little kids all the time.
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Amy 8-04-2007 @ 1:09PM
We have a huge German Shepherd mutt, and I've waxed poetic about her on my blog (http://prettybabies.blogspot.com/2007/07/i-love-this-dog.html)
enough that I won't repeat it here. She makes Lassie look lazy. Seriously, she's a great dog.
On the other hand, my daughter was bitten by my mom's miniature dachshund while I was in the room. I had turned my back to throw something away, and in that millisecond, he bit her. Luckily it was just on the arm, and not on the face, but it could've been so much worse.
I should've insisted that Mom have him put down, because he's a vicious dog, and he's bitten other people, but I am a softie and I didn't. Instead, he has to wear a muzzle whenever kids are around, and if he doesn't have the muzzle on, he is kept in an area of the house where she can't get to him. I still have to endure her saying, "Poor Ozzie hates his muzzle... He doesn't understand why he has to wear it..." etc, but it's better than having her blame me for her dog's death for the rest of my life.
I guess my point is that your mom's dog is every bit as much of a threat as your own. More, actually, because you know your own dogs and can read their moods better than you can read someone else's dog.
We always had dogs growing up, and I've had Max for 7 years, now. I don't think I'll ever live in a house without a dog, because I really believe that the benefits of having one outweigh the risks (see my blog). But you have to be so careful...
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S. Kelly 8-04-2007 @ 8:44PM
Amy,
Please understand me -- I love ALL dogs -- and would like to believe that they are not inherently evil, however, I think your analogy is seriously lacking. It is highly unlikely that your mom's dachshund could maul your daughter to death. It is VERY possible for your so-called German Shepherd to do so. Even if he's never shown even the slightest hint of aggression. Case in point:
When my daughter was almost a year old, my in-laws bought a Rottweiler. I was not happy and clearly voiced my concerns. I was ridiculed and cajoled for my fears. Years passed and I had to admit, this was the SWEETEST, (and LAZIEST) rottie I had ever seen! He was so protective of the kids, but I always had a lingering fear... When he was about 7 or 8 years old, my sister-in-law was staying with her parents and left her daughter (then 3) upstairs in the living room. No one knows for sure what happened, but suddenly there was a loud growl and a scream and cry from my niece. My SIL & MIL ran to her and found the skin torn from her lower face and a bite so close to the jugular it was sickening.
This was a dog that had ONLY shown love and affection for the kids in the family. He was fat and lazy and not aggressive in the least, but my niece has a lasting scar to remind us NEVER to take anything for granted.
Whether we want to accept it or not, some breeds are closer to their genetic roots than other breeds and hence, are more primitive and undomesticated. I think PBS did a wonderful documentary about how and why this is -- can't remember the title, but it was a great show. It's not that the species is "evil" or that the owners were "abusive" (although abusive owners do add to the equation), these dogs simply do not see children as human beings; they see them as potential PREY -- or at the very least, a weaker member of the pack to whom they can display aggression.
I say all this to say, PLEASE be careful. Shepherds -- especially shepherd MIXES (non-pure-bred) are #4 or 5 on the child fatalities list. Don't take that for granted.
I wish you the best,
S.
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Bunny 9-20-2007 @ 4:04AM
Our family is a "Chihuahua" family. When I was growing up, we had them and now that I am married, my husband and I have them....... That being said, I would NEVER leave any child alone with them...... Small children move quickly, pull ears, pull tails, hit, throw, drop....... and do NOT understand that they are hurting a living being when they do these things....... I believe that pets and children CAN co-exist WITH "proper supervision"....... this is the role of a parent....... If one does not supervise children-pet interactions, then I guarantee that there will be problems....... my dogs have snarled and snapped at small children....... I tell the children that the snarling and snapping is a message to them to "STOP" whatever it is that they are doing as they are upsetting the dogs. My dogs have learned that snarling and snapping at people earns them an immediate "time-out" in a training kennel....... It IS hard work, but I am training both the kids and the dogs to tolerate each other!!!
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