Author’s practical guidance
Runs at an unfamiliar dog with both arms out
Source named in the book: AAP guidance on injury prevention
Small children are bitten more than anyone else, mostly on the face and hands, and mostly by a dog somebody in the room knows.
Say this now
“Stop. We ask the person first.”
Two beats, and the stop has to come before the asking.
“Hand low and flat. Let him come to you.”
A specific thing to do, which beats "be gentle."
Do this
- Hold their hand as you approach any dog you do not know.
- Teach the sequence at home with a toy, so it is practiced before it is needed.
- Keep faces apart. No kissing, no leaning over, no arms around the neck.
- Leave dogs alone that are eating, sleeping or with puppies.
- Supervise the family dog with the same rules as any other. Familiarity is not safety.
Avoid this
- "He's friendly!" Said by the owner, about a dog that has not met your child.
- Hugging a dog around the neck for a photograph.
- Leaving them alone with a dog they have known all their life.
If it repeats
If a bite breaks the skin, wash it under running water and call your doctor the same day. If your child is now frightened of all dogs, rebuild slowly at a distance rather than pushing them closer.
Why the book suggests this
Small children are bitten more than anyone else, mostly on the face and hands, and mostly by a dog somebody in the room knows. The reason is geometry as much as behavior: a three-year-old's face arrives at a dog's face, fast, from the front.
What a child needs is not a fear of dogs. It is a short sequence that happens before contact — stop, ask the person, offer a hand low and let the dog come. That sequence works with familiar dogs too, and familiar dogs are where the bites are.
From this collection
Same Words: Their Own Body
45 prepared situations in this family area.