dog just doesnt like child

gercoral

so my dog who is about 6 or 7, just really does not like my niece..who is also 6.

she has never been rough with him, never been overbearing, has never hurt him in any way.
but he just seems so nervous when shes around. her dad patted him on the head earlier, no problem. she went to put her hand to him, he snapped at her. he didnt bite her, nor did he make an attempt per say, but he snapped at her, if that makes sense.

his behaviour is a little frightening sometimes. he defonintely can't be trusted around her. of course, we never leave the two of them alone together or anything.

any tips on what we can do?

njs030

He's told you very clearly he doesn't want her to touch him so make sure she doesn't.
A six year old should understand not to touch the dog under any circumstances but the simplest thing is to keep them separated so everyone can relax.
Don't force your dog into a position where he has to protect himself in his own home after you've had a warning.

Edit- I have a dog that doesn't like children so I keep him away from them for everyones safety and happiness too.

thadg

dogs and cats are often intimidated by children. best to keep the dog away from her until she is taller/older if she is only around the dog every few weeks

if she is around the dog every day she could leave out a bit of food on the ground for the dog and the dog will get used of her but never trust a dog. it is his home/territory

PucaMama

Like the others said just separate them. Dogs can decide who touches them too and this dog is trying to tell you it's not happy. Listen to it. Don't put it in that situation again because it's the poor dog that will pay with its life.

cocker5

gercoral wrote: »

so my dog who is about 6 or 7, just really does not like my niece..who is also 6.

she has never been rough with him, never been overbearing, has never hurt him in any way.
but he just seems so nervous when shes around. her dad patted him on the head earlier, no problem. she went to put her hand to him, he snapped at her. he didnt bite her, nor did he make an attempt per say, but he snapped at her, if that makes sense.

his behaviour is a little frightening sometimes. he defonintely can't be trusted around her. of course, we never leave the two of them alone together or anything.

any tips on what we can do?

Did she offer her hand first and let him sniff and drop his head inviting her?

Lots of dogs are terrified of kids for numerous reasons they are flighty , move around quickly, they can be loud and excitable , screaming , screeching for these reasons he might be scared.

Is this there first meeting?

As you say she has never been rough but assuming she has been around him over the past few years , as a baby / toddler I'm she was probably screeching etc...

how can you be sure she has never been rough? Young kids can be rough and not mean it.. ie have a dog on their lap and when putting them down drop them a little too high etc.

What breed of dog? Some breeds are less child friendly than others.

He is giving you and your niece warnings signs.. listen to him, he's uncomfortable for whatever reason - at 6 she's old enough to know to leave the dog alone.

VonVix

For a lot of dogs, kids aren't just smaller, shorter people to them... but they're noisy, fast and unpredictable beings to dogs who are not used to kids. It can be even worse for small dogs.

A dog doesn't necessarily have to have had a bad experience with something in order to not like children/a bike/a noise/etc, but a lack of experience specifically as a young puppy/dog can have an impact when they are older.

I wouldn't push the matter with him and try to force him to interact. All too often people unaware of how their dog feels and try to take things further than a dog is ready for, this can lead to a bite because a dog isn't being heard when he expresses how uncomfortable he feels.

If you feel it is necessary to work on this issue and you do not want to keep them separated at all times, get a good trainer involved (you can find one in your area here: http://apdt.ie/ ) do not try to handle this yourself, for both the dog's sake and the child involved. You would need an experienced professional's guidance to safely do it and to be taught what to look out for.

gercoral

no no, they have never been forced together. yes they have been around each other for years, but he's never liked her, since day one.
we have never forced them togther, i would never put my niece in danger like that, never ever. she would only ever be in the house once every 2 or 3 weeks. sometimes i think its part jealousy coz shes getting the attention..same when she was a baby. he a westie x bichon.
she never makes sudden movements towards him. she's been well trained. she knows a bit a cranky.

i suppose they'll just never be friends!

deadlybuzzman

My doggy daycare owner has a Great Dane that doesn't like me. No reason for it he just does, hes not aggressive, he keeps his distance and I respect that and do the same. It's a Great Dane so as goofy as they look they can do damage so I respect his space.
If the dog isn't aggressive and keeps to himself and she is able to understand that she needs to keep her distance is there that much of an issue?

cocker5

gercoral wrote: »

no no, they have never been forced together. yes they have been around each other for years, but he's never liked her, since day one.
we have never forced them togther, i would never put my niece in danger like that, never ever. she would only ever be in the house once every 2 or 3 weeks. sometimes i think its part jealousy coz shes getting the attention..same when she was a baby. he a westie x bichon.
she never makes sudden movements towards him. she's been well trained. she knows a bit a cranky.

i suppose they'll just never be friends!

But you see in there lies the problem.. you mention he's been around her for years , so when she was a baby ie screaming, screeching etc.. lots and lots of dogs are terrified of baby noises!

You mention jealously but he doesn't snap out of the blue he has snapped when she has tried to pet him - that isn't jealousy he's warning her to stay away and growling / snapping is the only way he's know how. He is communicating best he can.

You say she has never lunged at him but that's not it at all .. toddlers / kids are unpredictable .. they are loud, giddy, run around, sudden movements, jumping up and down and while u say she has never approached him in this manner he has witnessed this behaviour over the years and doesn't like it for whatever reason.

You don't have eyes in the back of your head so maybe at one point she hurt him by accident - you cannot say 100%.

On the breed size wise they are small another reason to fear a loud child running around and also many westies are not child friendly when not brought up in a home with kids from day one.

My advice OP he doesn't like ur niece and is more than likely frightened. He is warning you all he's uncomfortable listen to him.

Ms Doubtfire1

Please do keep them apart. For both their sake's.

Latatian

I had a lovely dog who was patient and good with everyone. She really did not like kids, especially small kids.

I left her alone. If anyone walked by with a kid and the kid wanted to pet her, I told them 'no'. When kids were around I would talk soothingly to her and give her a space the child was not allowed to be in. If there was more than one child in the house I would shut her away with something delicious to eat. The kids were not allowed look at her, follow her, or reach out to pet her. They were to act as if she didn't exist, except they were to give her a berth if walking by her.

After about a year of doing this consistently she started actually liking kids. Now, I still would never ever let a child pet her unless she asked to be petted first (not because she would snap but just for her own peace). So she would literally have to walk up and poke the child and put her head under their hand. But I had a picture somewhere of her sitting in the middle of a group of primary school kids being petted by everyone at once, smiling and soft-eyed and all wiggles. And she had asked to be petted.


She had never snapped, she would just tuck her tail between her legs whenever a child was around. Tell your niece not to touch or look at him, and when your niece is around maybe put the dog in a room by itself with something nice. Keep them separated and get a trainer.

gercoral

Latatian wrote: »

I had a lovely dog who was patient and good with everyone. She really did not like kids, especially small kids.

I left her alone. If anyone walked by with a kid and the kid wanted to pet her, I told them 'no'. When kids were around I would talk soothingly to her and give her a space the child was not allowed to be in. If there was more than one child in the house I would shut her away with something delicious to eat. The kids were not allowed look at her, follow her, or reach out to pet her. They were to act as if she didn't exist, except they were to give her a berth if walking by her.

After about a year of doing this consistently she started actually liking kids. Now, I still would never ever let a child pet her unless she asked to be petted first (not because she would snap but just for her own peace). So she would literally have to walk up and poke the child and put her head under their hand. But I had a picture somewhere of her sitting in the middle of a group of primary school kids being petted by everyone at once, smiling and soft-eyed and all wiggles. And she had asked to be petted.


She had never snapped, she would just tuck her tail between her legs whenever a child was around. Tell your niece not to touch or look at him, and when your niece is around maybe put the dog in a room by itself with something nice. Keep them separated and get a trainer.

yep this is exactly what we do do. i never force the dog or my niece to play or anything. i know for a fact that she has never hurt him (just in relation to another poster who said i dont have eyes at the back of my head). anytime she comes in, the dog goes out with his ball or a chewie bone thing. last night was an exception because his bed is at the front door (the one that she left through) so she had no option but to pass him by.
thanks for all the posts