1 week old killed by Dog.

[ellismum]

But what if the dog had shown no sign of aggression towards the baby? There doesn't have to be the growling, snarling etc beforehand, as special_kala said before, it can happen so quick.

It is just awful to see people up on their high horse and passing judgement, calling the parents fit to burn, when we do not know what happened. As far as I have read there are NO details of the circumstances surrounding it. So why make underhand comments? Imagine how heartbroken you would be, if something similar happened to you, through no fault of your own whatsoever. As I said, it's so easy to sit here and say tut tut to the parents, but in all honesty you don't know the details.

xo

It was reported that the babies mum tweeted last week that the dog had attacked and ripped apart one of the babies teddies last week. Typical terrier behaviour? I don't know, I grew up with labs and spaniels and my parents still have 3 cocker spaniels and there is absolutely no way in hell El's as a newborn would be on the house if one of them had done that. The dogs would be outside. Luckily my mum did when he was little and still do when my sisters and I visit with our LO's.

This is such a tragic thing and I feel for all involved.

 

[Aidan's Mummy]

It's heartbreaking x

 

[special_kala]

But what if the dog had shown no sign of aggression towards the baby? There doesn't have to be the growling, snarling etc beforehand, as special_kala said before, it can happen so quick.

It is just awful to see people up on their high horse and passing judgement, calling the parents fit to burn, when we do not know what happened. As far as I have read there are NO details of the circumstances surrounding it. So why make underhand comments? Imagine how heartbroken you would be, if something similar happened to you, through no fault of your own whatsoever. As I said, it's so easy to sit here and say tut tut to the parents, but in all honesty you don't know the details.

xo

It was reported that the babies mum tweeted last week that the dog had attacked and ripped apart one of the babies teddies last week. Typical terrier behaviour? I don't know, I grew up with labs and spaniels and my parents still have 3 cocker spaniels and there is absolutely no way in hell El's as a newborn would be on the house if one of them had done that. The dogs would be outside. Luckily my mum did when he was little and still do when my sisters and I visit with our LO's.

This is such a tragic thing and I feel for all involved.

My lab has never ever shown any sign of aggression towards anyone, he has been around my girls since day 1, if I gave him a teddy he would probably rip it to shreds. I don't see that as a sign of him being anymore of a risk then any other dog. Its a teddy not a person.

 

[special_kala]

Also I disagree that locking a dog outside is the answer's it seems in a lot of the cases where a attack is fatal is because the dog has got in the house or the child in the garden. Children and dogs need to learn the correct behaviour which will only happy if they are in the same environment in a safe manner.

Personally if I went round someones house and they put their dog in the garden I would have serious questions about why the dog was not to be trusted around children.

Both my dogs are very well behaved around kids and the kids know to respect them. I would rather a dog learn to, for example, not take food of a child walking round. The only way my dogs did this was by being allowed round them while they are and being corrected but I've been to family members houses where they insist on putting the dog on a lead and forcing it to sit by their legs. That seems silly to me because they won't learn and if they happen to be around kids with food and someone let's there guard down they are far more likely to dosomething dangerous because they haven't had the chance to learn

 

[MikaylasMummy]

This is very sad.im not a dog owner,but I am and always will be cautious of any dog around my kids.if there was someone with a large dog that stayed in the house and couldn't go outside while we visit I would not go.both my parents have dogs my dads dog in particular is his partners baby and treated as such but they still take him outside while the kids are there.you just never know

 

[dani_tinks]

How tragic poor baby, poor family.
I've been brought up around dogs (samoyeds), bred and showed them. Dogs are all different, all have different personalities, all have little things that COULD make them snap. This is probably a case of a jealous dog. It was the childs grandparents dog wasn't it? so probably wasn't happy with the attention being on baby.
I agree that no baby should ever be left unsupervised with any animal. We wouldn't of left Jacob alone with Pangur when he was tiny and he's a cat!
I'm not blaming the family though, these things happen so so quickly .
RIP baby boy xx

 

[Lellow]

R.I.P Harry

Dogs of any breed can turn at any point, there doesnt have to be signs of it happening, sometimes it just does...

It wouldnt be fair to lay the sole blame on the parents, but this couldve been avoided.

 

[monkee12]

R.I.P Baby Harry, such a tragedy

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

It was a lab what bit me and nearly blinded me when I was 5. I was innocently playing in my garden too! I dont mind labs though, I dont blame breed for something one dog did to me. I personally wouldnt have one just because I dont think they look nice or have any traits that I would want in a dog, but I wouldnt say ALL are like that just because one was aggressive to me in the past.

People can argue all day about the breed involved but its not going to bring back this little boy

I would say that on private land I am not sure what the law should be, if someone broke in my house or ever put me in any danger I would hope my dog would bite the feckers!

 

[lhancock90]

Those calling for the parents to be punished? The dog has been "destroyed" as the papers say. So the culprit has already been charged and punished.
I do agree with Kai nobody knows the circumstances and to be honest, i don't see why we deserve to.
I do think this serves as a reminder that as much as we love our pets, they can not be fully trusted.

x

 

[Wriggley]

RIP baby Harry thats so sad

 

[babyno9]

Very sad

We had a JR when i was growing up, i used to stroke her before bed to say goodnight. One night (i was about 14 at the time) I bent down to stroke her and she lunged at me and bit me on the face, enough to draw blood. After that we were all very weary of her, if we took her out she was muzzled because children used to come rushing up to this little cute dog. When i had my own children my mother used to keep the dog in a separate room when we came to visit, we weren't going to risk it. She has since died of old age.

My uncle was attacked by his GS, his loyal dog that he had had since a tiny pup just went mad and attacked him one day, my uncle had to escape out of a window and call the police for help.

My cousin was also attacked by a GS, it was also a family pet from a rescue centre.

I would never get a dog whilst my children are young, i wouldn't be able to trust it.

 

[lhancock90]

I might be slammed for this, but never would i have a dog from a rescue centre as much as i'd love to, i need to know the dogs history.

 

[dani_tinks]

Yeah I wouldn't rescue a dog whilst I have young children. A lot of them do have certain issues, and can be quite hard work.
I'm all for rescuing one when your attention can be spent on the dog itself, not having to worry about littleuns.

 

[BeccaxBump]

It's a very very sad story. I feel for his family so much. No baby should die so young.

One the dog side of stuff, I have a Staffie, and they have a bad name, but my auntie has a Jack Russell and he bit my little sister and my Staffie never has. Saying that, I will never leave my baby with my dog alone. You just don't know what will tip the dog over and jealousy is a big deal for dogs. No matter how long you've had a dog or how much you think you know them, they can turn, and my Staffie is he softest, nicest, most loving dog ever.
xoxox

 

[Missy86]

So sad, I wouldnt have a dog in the house with young kids tbh I am wary enough of my parents boarder collie

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

I have a rescue dog and I trust her more than I would a stranger tbh!! I think you need to be confident with the breed too. This is why I would always get a bull breed as I feel like I understand them. I wouldnt feel comfortable with a collie or a lab and I feel like you need to be confident in order to be a good owner.

Its all down to training too, I am not on about in this perticular case, I just mean around the home. A dog needs to know its place in the family pack, a dog also needs to be respected. Yes, my kids come first BUT they must respect the dog as it is her home too. If the dog is in her bed the kids leave her alone, they are not to touch her paws or ears, they are not to follow her about.
She has never grumbled at them but I think its fair a dog needs to feel secure and safe at home too! She knows she can go in her bed and will not get hassled. Her bed is her place.
I think you do have to be confident. I am not anxious around my dog, I dont even think I am scared of her actually. She knows I am above her!
Yes, any dog can turn. So can any person.

 

[dani_tinks]

Totally agree with you there MF. Dogs are pack animals and they need to know their place, absolutely. My opinion about rescues is just that really, my opinion. I think you have to be ready to take one on. I know right now, I wouldn't be. Even though i'm confident with dogs and think I have a good understanding on their needs, I think a rescue would take a little longer to work out and settle into our family unit.
I do think all new owners should go to dog training, though.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

I agree on that it depends on the dog in rescue. We fostered a dog that was on death row and I knew straight away that I couldnt trust her in my family unit and so we kept her for 4 weeks until we found a home for her. I am glad we saved her from death as she was a lovely dog but had many many complex needs.

With Sasha, we just knew straight away that she had not been mistreated so I guess it depends on how you feel about the dog. I dont know if we would do it again while the kids are young though as much as I would love too. We were very lucky with sasha.

 

[blueskai]

But what if the dog had shown no sign of aggression towards the baby? There doesn't have to be the growling, snarling etc beforehand, as special_kala said before, it can happen so quick.

It is just awful to see people up on their high horse and passing judgement, calling the parents fit to burn, when we do not know what happened. As far as I have read there are NO details of the circumstances surrounding it. So why make underhand comments? Imagine how heartbroken you would be, if something similar happened to you, through no fault of your own whatsoever. As I said, it's so easy to sit here and say tut tut to the parents, but in all honesty you don't know the details.

xo

It was reported that the babies mum tweeted last week that the dog had attacked and ripped apart one of the babies teddies last week. Typical terrier behaviour? I don't know, I grew up with labs and spaniels and my parents still have 3 cocker spaniels and there is absolutely no way in hell El's as a newborn would be on the house if one of them had done that. The dogs would be outside. Luckily my mum did when he was little and still do when my sisters and I visit with our LO's.

This is such a tragic thing and I feel for all involved.

But that's like saying if a dog chews up a ball it's gonna be a danger to humans? It's just a toy, normal behaviour. My lab at home in my mums used to chew up anything you would give him, cuddly toys, balls, dog toys, but has never ever turned on the kids or shown the slightest bit of aggression (there are 5 of my younger bros, sis & nephew, aged from 3-13) and trust me they give him a hard time.

xo