2. Monitor Dog and Child Interaction/Activities
Always, always, always monitor the interaction of your children and dogs, even your own pet dog.
You may think your dog would never bite your child, but in the right circumstances all dogs will bite.
Children often think that we adults don’t know what we are talking about, so when they are alone they might be rougher with your dog or they might not be paying attention. If a child trips and falls on a dog even a nonaggressive and child friendly dog; the dog is likely to bite.
Be very careful when other children come to play. When children wrestle and fight playfully with one another a dog can misconstrue that as the friend attacking his pack member and a serious bite could ensue.
I teach my dogs to stay with me. If I can’t see them I go and get them. I don’t want there to even be a second that a child might do something painful or that the dog thinks is rude or bad manners and get bitten.
If I can’t watch my dogs, they go in crates.
And, if I can’t trust the children (that they might let my dogs out of their crates), they (the children) come with me.
