Worried About My Dog With Children

[DelDiv]

I am new to this forum and very happy to have found it! I have three dogs, my newest addition is a boston terrier. He is now 9 mos old and is a very good dog at home, however he's exhibited aggressive, well more nervous I would say tendencies towards children. He has not been around many children, when he was younger my boyfriend brought him to his family's house and he was fine with the children there. However, he was recently around my neighbor's children and was very nervous, his hair stood up and when they would get loud or near him he would growl. He always barks like crazy when he sees kids from our yard. Then I took him to a family function and he nipped at my cousin's little boy. We kept them away from each other for the most part and when the little boy fed him he was fine, but at one point my cousin's son started running and my puppy chased after him and it looked like he wanted to bite him. He's not really an aggressive animal, but very skittish. He's not had any bad experiences with children. I want to get him over this behavior as I know I will one day want to have children and really I just don't trust him around kids and he makes me really nervous when he's around them. I don't know how to train this behavior, as I can't take the risk of introducing him to children and having him bite them. So, I'm at a loss!
I would appreciate any feedback!

[D.Schäferhund]

Ok
thats a little tough, well I know a little from experience..
kids don't know what to do and what not arround dogs, so i would keep the dog under control all the time, next to you or in a spot, running kids are very temting to dogs, aveen if it starts of as a game it may very well end up in a bite
My dog gets along with my niece very very good, but due to poor socialization we have to introduce her slowly to new kids, and we have to make the kids dominat to the dog, well usually the dogs feel that the kids are something special and treasured if they know whos "boss".
But it still takes a slow introduction,if the kids aren't old enough to aproach a dog as they should aproach a dog then keep your dog away, or in a save spot, where the kids can't bother the dog and the dog can watch the kids from a distance.
From a distance over the net this is hard to reply to.
I just can guess and hope my advice hits the spot or atleast gets close?!

[mulroony]

It was mentioned in one of these forums somewhere, but I think the best approach is to work your way down the age groups. Start with older kids that you know your dog is ok with and slowly work your way down the age groups. Keeping treats handy is helpful, if you have the kids start off by giving the dog a treat. I would have them make the dog sit before they give it to him though. Make sure the kids keep there petting to the dogs back and that they are not doing anything that might upset the dog. (Scratching hard, pulling on tail/ears, blowing at its face) Do not let the kids put their hands anywhere near the dogs mouth or head. With a little work and sometime you should notice a big improvement, and you need to find your way to get the dog to associate kids with good in the dog's mind.

If you are at a playground and see a kid that is kind of a bully or being a brat I would not let them near the dog at this stage. This is going to be the kid that kicks or pinches your dog, and then heir parents are going to yell at you when the dog nips at them. Just stay clear and you life will be easier, and will prevent any steps back in your training.

[WingedFoal]

The main thing is, do not let your dog around people, especially children, until you can get help. It's an accident waiting to happen, not only with lawsuits, but it can be a very scarring experience (mentally and physically) for ANYONE to get bitten, child or adult.

I had the same problem with my male Boston (I found out later that it was due to mental instability, which is a growing problem in Bostons). It got to the point to where I couldn't take him anywhere for his aggression, and ended up putting him to sleep when he finally turned on me. Before he went completely unstable, he was the dream dog I always wanted - very social, not a mean bone in his body, very well-mannered. I had raised him to be the best dog possible, yet he just grew more and more aggressive. I hope your Boston doesn't have this mental problem that mine had, but yours just sounds fear-driven, not crazy like mine was, lol....

You need to find a qualified trainer that can help you with this problem. Otherwise, you are not going to know how to go about solving it, and some things that you think may help could actually make him worse. Get some references for trainers in your area from your veterinarian or other pet owners. Some other members may be able to help you with that too. Please do it soon before it gets out of hand, not only for the sake of your family and your dog, but for the sake of anyone who comes near him.

And once again, do not allow him to be around children, even if you think he's under control. Children don't understand not to get near an aggressive dog and will get too close many times (which not only puts the child in danger, but stresses your dog out horribly, too). You need to work with a trainer before even thinking about getting around children again. I cannot stress that enough.

Take it from me, I've been through the same thing and made many of the same mistakes you may have made. It's not a risk worth taking.

[Carrie]

I agree with Wingedfoal. You need a ceritified, reputable behaviorist/trainer to see your dog and see how you interact with him. The lack of early, puppy socialization is likely the problem. They must be socialized to all kinds of kids, grown ups, among other things or they have problems later on. It's really hard to re-coup that socialization later....if it wasn't done by the time the pup was about 4 months of age. You can try gradually, as it was suggested, conditioning him to kids from a distance. But I wouldn't trust him either around kids...not until you get professional help. It is indeed a scarring thing if someone gets bitten. I know, I was.

Hopefully, he's young enough that his behavior may be able to be modified. I do feel for you and wish you the best. Let us know how he does.

You might also look up some info on the Internet about aggression...different types. Good luck!

[WingedFoal]

I forgot to mention about the things you can do to make it worse.... Never hit a dog for being aggressive. That is definitely a trigger to make the aggression worse. (Not that I'm saying you do hit him, just explaining myself .) And I don't know about yours, but Bostons are notorious for being extremely sensitive. They do tolerate yelling or hitting horribly. I've heard this from many Boston owners, and have seen it in many books and articles about them. It can make them regress on any amount of training a person does with them, and it's hard to get them back to the point they were at. They are best with positive, upbeat, lots of treat, happy training. Just a little info in case you didn't know. Keep us posted on your boy.

[Raised By Wolves]

All of the posts in this thread contain excellent advice. A good hands-on trainer is going to be a must. I hope you can find someone who understands the importance of providing good leadership skills for you, as well as training techniques for handling your dog.

Teaching any kids who may be anywhere near your dog, on how to act around dogs will also be of help, once you start working with your trainer. Anything you can do to teach a child, about how to behave around dogs, will help that child in the future. Children tend to stare at dogs, move too quickly, and make high-pitched excited noises...which can trigger reactions. Teaching children to completely ignore a dog and stand calm while chatting with you in a relaxed manner is important. Older children seem to get the idea. Younger children, usually just have a hard time controlling their little bodies!

How you react when children are around, will also influence how your dog "evaluates" a situation. If you tense up in anticipation of how your dog is going to react in ANY situation. Your dog will only sense the fact that you've become tense, and will become more wary. They don't know that you're tense because of what THEY might do...they only know that all of a sudden, you tensed up, and will go on that, while associating what just entered the picture, ( a child, perhaps?), with your reaction.

I hope this helps! Let us know how things are going!