Talk about dog safety in your home
Dog bites are scary, but dog bite prevention doesn’t have to be. It’s important to have a conversation with your children about how to stay safe around strange dogs. Our SAFE program gives you fun materials that you can use to teach your children how to be smart and prevent dog bites.
Kids want to pet and rush up to every dog they see, but that’s a very unsafe practice. Not every dog is as tolerant or accepting of children as your family dog or dogs that your children have previously met. Kids need to be taught to stay away from dogs they don’t know and to stay away from dogs without an adult around.
Running, screaming and moving quickly are actions that can overstimulate or trigger arousal in some dogs. Teaching children calm body language around strange dogs can help diffuse potentially dangerous situations. Regardless of the breed, any dog can bite, depending on a variety of factors including their previous social experiences or lack thereof, level of self control, and the how their owner has trained or handled them.
Playing the SAFE game is a great place to start
Teach your children dog safety and dog bite prevention with the SAFE game. It’s easy, fun, and promotes safe behavior around dogs. The SAFE game can be used not only with unfamiliar dogs, it can also help in a range of different situations where your child is interaction with an overexcited dog.
The body cues practiced during the SAFE game not only keep your child calm, they can be calming signals for the dog as well. SAFE can reduce everyone’s excitement level.
What are dogs trying to tell you?
Dog communicate with us every day. If you know the signals, you can have a much better idea of what a dog is trying to tell you.
Dogs have stress and anxiety just like people. They can’t come right out and tell us they are uncomfortable, but they do communicate how they feel and their intention through their body language. These signals can range from posture, to eye contact, to tail height and movement and can be warnings to us that a bite is possible. If you see a dog giving certain signals when they are interacting with your child, it is your responsibility to step in and redirect your child or the dog.
As adults, we need to teach our children to respect every dog’s space and every dog’s body. Each dog is different and may not communicate their discomfort, especially if they have been ignored or punished in the past. One dog may tolerate being crawled on or ridden like a horse, but that doesn’t make it appropriate, safe, or fair to that dog or any animal. A dog is not a toy. Don’t allow your child to treat any dog like one of their toys.
In any interaction with a dog, teach children that gentle touches and soft petting on the dog’s chest, back, and sides are enjoyable to most dogs. Let the dog decide when they’ve had enough. When the dog gets up and walks away, it’s important that children understand the dog has had enough for now and they need to spend some time alone. Have a space, like a dog crate, that your dog can retreat to when they need a break that is a child free zone.
Dog safety education for adults and children is key
Any dog can bite, regardless age, breed, how long you’ve had your furry friend or how well you think you know him. Unfortunately, many dog bites result in a dog being surrendered to an animal shelter. According to the ASPCA, approximately 1.2 million dogs are euthanized each year.
Help stop the growing number of dog bites and the number of dogs being surrendered at shelters. Educate yourself and your children about dog safety and the proper behavior to have around dogs, how to greet a dog, and how to respect dogs. A little understanding goes a long way to building a better relationship between dogs and all your family members.
