A week old baby killed by a Jack Russel

[sequeena]

Oh that poor baby

We're also dog lovers. We have an eldery terrier/collie, a German shepherd and a mastiff. They interact with Thomas but only under supervision. I can't always trust my dogs but I don't fear them biting him but more my mastiff crushing him because she's a lard arse.

 

[Broodypants]

I don't think anyone is disputing the fact that leaving dogs and babies unsupervised is not a good thing to do, to say the least. But the idea that children and dogs should not be allowed in the same room that is coming across from some posters is very sad I think.

I have two lovely dogs and they are around my children but never unsupervised. They're both trained exceptionally well and show no signs of aggression but I would never take that risk. I have allowed them to be in the same room as my son from the moment he came home from hospital, I believe this is better for everyone concerned that they are allowed to understand he is here and smell him - I don't mean directly sniffing his head etc but just generally getting used to his scent but always a few feet away and he was always in my arms when they were around.

If you own dogs you have to take everyone in the house into consideration and I don't believe keeping well trained dogs separate from your children is a good thing for the family as a whole. You need to be sensible and vigilant as dogs are animals at the end of the day but there is no reason why they shouldn't live harmoniously together if you're careful.

 

[_Vicky_]

The implications in this thread that those of us allowing our dogs and babies to be in the same room are putting our child's lives in danger/being careless is seriously ridiculous and not appreciated.

It's not implied - i personally think you are taking an unnecessary risk if you leave them unsupervised fact

Who said unsupervised?

No one and I confess I didn't read all 13 pages sorry if I expanded a little in error x

IMO and in my experience if you Are supervising and respect and know the body language then interaction is fine and enjoyable! We do mix them BUT one boy and one dog at a time my girls are 6,7 and 8 and I know dogs and as soon as they are uncomfortable they are then separated. Responsibility and total concentration is the key IMO I wouldn't say be watching TV or surfing and leave them to interact - not yet - its not a risk I am prepared to take and afterall who benefits really? Not LO or the dog there are no cons to keeping them seperate none at all IMO

 

[_Vicky_]

I don't think anyone is disputing the fact that leaving dogs and babies unsupervised is not a good thing to do, to say the least. But the idea that children and dogs should not be allowed in the same room that is coming across from some posters is very sad I think.

I have two lovely dogs and they are around my children but never unsupervised. They're both trained exceptionally well and show no signs of aggression but I would never take that risk. I have allowed them to be in the same room as my son from the moment he came home from hospital, I believe this is better for everyone concerned that they are allowed to understand he is here and smell him - I don't mean directly sniffing his head etc but just generally getting used to his scent but always a few feet away and he was always in my arms when they were around.

If you own dogs you have to take everyone in the house into consideration and I don't believe keeping well trained dogs separate from your children is a good thing for the family as a whole. You need to be sensible and vigilant as dogs are animals at the end of the day but there is no reason why they shouldn't live harmoniously together if you're careful.

For me I think if I only had one child I would be more inclined to take this approach BUT in my case there are too many bodies both human and canine to consider x

 

[MommaAlexis]

I don't think anyone is disputing the fact that leaving dogs and babies unsupervised is not a good thing to do, to say the least. But the idea that children and dogs should not be allowed in the same room that is coming across from some posters is very sad I think.

I have two lovely dogs and they are around my children but never unsupervised. They're both trained exceptionally well and show no signs of aggression but I would never take that risk. I have allowed them to be in the same room as my son from the moment he came home from hospital, I believe this is better for everyone concerned that they are allowed to understand he is here and smell him - I don't mean directly sniffing his head etc but just generally getting used to his scent but always a few feet away and he was always in my arms when they were around.

If you own dogs you have to take everyone in the house into consideration and I don't believe keeping well trained dogs separate from your children is a good thing for the family as a whole. You need to be sensible and vigilant as dogs are animals at the end of the day but there is no reason why they shouldn't live harmoniously together if you're careful.

For me I think if I only had one child I would be more inclined to take this approach BUT in my case there are too many bodies both human and canine to consider x

I totally see your situation. With that many it's easier *and safer to keep them divided for now. But if you have two adults and only one pet/kid it's much easier to supervise.

 

[Broodypants]

Vicky I can see why with two toddlers and three dogs you feel the need to keep them separate, that's a lot going on! Do you allow them limited access to each other? What do you think you will do as the boys get older?

I have two children also, but as Sam is not even mobile yet it's not so much for me to keep an eye on at the moment. I would like to get to the point when both children are older that I won't always have to be standing right next to them as I do truly believe that dogs and children make great companions as long as everyone is respectful of each other.

 

[_Vicky_]

Vicky I can see why with two toddlers and three dogs you feel the need to keep them separate, that's a lot going on! Do you allow them limited access to each other? What do you think you will do as the boys get older?

I have two children also, but as Sam is not even mobile yet it's not so much for me to keep an eye on at the moment. I would like to get to the point when both children are older that I won't always have to be standing right next to them as I do truly believe that dogs and children make great companions as long as everyone is respectful of each other.

As everything I will play it by ear we also have to consider personalities I have one laid back son and one laid back dog so those two I can imagine will be the first combination to mix more freely. My other son is just a ball of energy and my other two dogs the same so this combination will be longer - also the girls are ageing so by the time the boys are six or seven the girls will be 10,11 and 12 so it may never happen it just depends how lively the girls are and how respectful the boys are - we shall see.

I now quite often allow 1-2-1 contact but rarely with one dog (my baby lol) she is nervous and quite frankly doesn't want to be harassed by a two year old so i respect that. Also one of my sons isn't that interested so I let him be - it's just meeting the needs of both the dogs and boys while retaining a shred of my sanity amongst the chaos really xxx

 

[mommie2be]

This is so sad ! That poor baby & his family.
I have two dogs & still don't trust them with my 10 month old, not because they're bad dogs, just because you never know what a dog will do ! This is a reality check for sure !!

 

[beanzz]

My mum has a jack russel that growls at Oakley. I hate the little fucker. So sad this has happened RIP

 

[Tasha]

I've not read the daily fail article cos they're always out to make parents look awful in situations like these. It's been mentioned a few times the dog was known to be aggressive is that based solely on the teddy incident? If so could that not be playing rather than aggression? And could the bite on the head not be the dog trying to help by picking baby up? I dunno just seem presumptuous to be certain that the was an aggressive dog and the bite was cos it was aggressive.

 

[Dezireey]

"Do you know anything about English Staffs? If you did, aggressive is the last word you would use when talking about them *They are bred to be companion dogs. Go and read up on them dear."

My 'dear', I am well acquainted with this breed of dog. They are playful and sweet 80% of the time but this breed, many moons ago was bred as a pit fighting dog. But you knew that? didn't you? They, if not trained or supervised correctly can show aggression towards other dogs primarily. So.... my argument to you was,why go on about the danger of dogs and how they shouldn't be around kids unsupervised, yet instead of purchasing e.g a golden retriever or maybe a spaniel, you purchased a dog that has a small 'potential' ( rarely shown of course because the majority are good) to be aggressive? Just odd I think?


"You can NOT predict an animal. I don't care how many dogs you have placed or if you have bred thousands. It only takes one dog and one second, no matter the breed, for something to happen. It's just about using common sense so you have the bare minimum of risk that it will *That was all I was trying to say."

You cannot predict a human being either. A teenager in the news has just been attacked, at random, with no apparent reason in the street by a man, just knocked her out because he felt like it. Apply the same rationale to the human race, you'll probably find far more examples in that lot than you will the animal kingdom. Lest we forget, it was man after all that befriended the canine and took it out of it's own environment and domesticated it, it was quite happy where it was. Humans are to blame for any acts of aggression by dogs that are not controlled properly. We should protect our children from ALL bad things in society, lately I'm seeing far more evil 'people' in the news ( e.g April Jones story) *as being more of a threat to kids than animals.*

 

[Larkspur]

I've not read the daily fail article cos they're always out to make parents look awful in situations like these. It's been mentioned a few times the dog was known to be aggressive is that based solely on the teddy incident? If so could that not be playing rather than aggression? And could the bite on the head not be the dog trying to help by picking baby up? I dunno just seem presumptuous to be certain that the was an aggressive dog and the bite was cos it was aggressive.

In the article a neighbour said the dog was known to be vicious and would try to bite the hand of people putting things through the mail slot.

 

[kareha]

I hope this little one rests in peace. I wouldn't let my LO stay with anyone but me, especially for the first months. Any dog can be aggressive. I wouldn't even leave my LO unattended with just gates separating her from a dog.

This little boy should have been protected by his family. A life is a life, but this little one should have come first. Such a sad story.

 

[pinklightbulb]

"Do you know anything about English Staffs? If you did, aggressive is the last word you would use when talking about them *They are bred to be companion dogs. Go and read up on them dear."

My 'dear', I am well acquainted with this breed of dog. They are playful and sweet 80% of the time but this breed, many moons ago was bred as a pit fighting dog. But you knew that? didn't you? They, if not trained or supervised correctly can show aggression towards other dogs primarily. So.... my argument to you was,why go on about the danger of dogs and how they shouldn't be around kids unsupervised, yet instead of purchasing e.g a golden retriever or maybe a spaniel, you purchased a dog that has a small 'potential' ( rarely shown of course because the majority are good) to be aggressive? Just odd I think?


"You can NOT predict an animal. I don't care how many dogs you have placed or if you have bred thousands. It only takes one dog and one second, no matter the breed, for something to happen. It's just about using common sense so you have the bare minimum of risk that it will *That was all I was trying to say."

You cannot predict a human being either. A teenager in the news has just been attacked, at random, with no apparent reason in the street by a man, just knocked her out because he felt like it. Apply the same rationale to the human race, you'll probably find far more examples in that lot than you will the animal kingdom. Lest we forget, it was man after all that befriended the canine and took it out of it's own environment and domesticated it, it was quite happy where it was. Humans are to blame for any acts of aggression by dogs that are not controlled properly. We should protect our children from ALL bad things in society, lately I'm seeing far more evil 'people' in the news ( e.g April Jones story) *as being more of a threat to kids than animals.*

I wasn't picking apart breeds. I said any breed can turn. You picked on *my* dog's breed when really, what does it matter, they ALL have the capability to turn. I actually think we are in agreement when you think about it? Why are we arguing unless you are trying to say some dogs aren't unpredictable, in which case, I feel you are 100% wrong. Other than that we seem to agree in principle about this?

 

[beth_terri]

It isnt always stupid owners.

ANY dog can snap no matter the training.

Yes but it's stupid owners that walk a dog off its leash near a child's play ground


And stupid owners who let their dog loose around their baby knowing its got an aggressive temperament

A dog doesn't knouw the difference between wrong and right until its trained to know

Beat me to it.

It is true that any dog is capable of vicious behaviour and doing damage/killing an infant. However it's far less likely if the owner is intelligent and aware of their dog's potential and respects it.

Im not an idiot and my dog bit me. He was a jack russel x and he bit my face.

No dog can be trusted 100%.

My childhood dog bit once in its 15 years, he knew the difference between right and wrong as much as any dog can but he was in pain which we didnt know about.

You can train a dog extremly well but its still a animal and they can snap for no reason.

Ok firstly... If your dog bit your face then perhaps putting your face next to a dogs mouth isn't sensible


And secondly... You have your dogs in the same room as your child... Supervised or not... I'm surprised that after being bit in the face by a dog your willing to put your kids in a room with one... It only took two seconds for that girls dog to bite and kill her kid...


Which part of that logic isn't stupid?

My little cousin got bit in the face by a German Shepard. She was 4/5. It didn't make my auntie get rid of their German Shepard (not the one that bit her as this was a complete unprovoked attack from someone else's dog). And it also didn't stop her from getting another German Shepard when theirs died. My cousin is now 7, scarred in the face but not remotely scared of dogs. If my auntie hadnt have got another dog, chances are my cousin would be terrified of them.

 

[xSin]

Its amazing how many ppl dont read the link and then think those who have are "making assumptions" about whether or not the dog in the article had displayed aggression before... Lol

Rip baby boy.

 

[Mummy Bean]

I dont understand why these stories always cause such arguments on here.

Were all grown adults who are quite aware that an animal of any sort is dangerous is some way. only we as owners/parents can know our child/pet and how best to handle them.

sadly we cant do anything about others when walking round. we need to stop judging this family they are going through the worst tradey... Maybe if they left the newborn on the floor unattended with a known vicious dog then perhaps, but so far the offical police investigation and post mortem has not been carried out so we do not know what happened.

Let us just send our thoughts/prayer to that poor mother...and stop discusing if certain dogs are dangerous.

 

[Shellyvet2007]

:*( this makes my heart break. poor baby. poor family. I could not even imagine what they are going through.

 

[Tasha]

Its amazing how many ppl dont read the link and then think those who have are "making assumptions" about whether or not the dog in the article had displayed aggression before... Lol

Rip baby boy.

That is a bit rude, I wont read the daily mail because it is full of crap. Lies and just anything to make a story.

To me a dog ripping a teddy up is not aggression it is playing, also the claim of a neighbour saying the dog tries to bite anyone who puts their hand in the mail box doesnt mean a thing to me. A jack russell is very unlikely to be able to reach a letter box, and so therefore they are commenting that it barks when people put stuff in the letter box, hardly a sign of aggression to me. My Grandad's dogs were all army dogs, springer spaniels, the soppy and doppiest dogs I have ever met but if someone put something in the door then yes they would bark, they were trained to make my Grandad aware if a stranger approached the property

 

[The Alchemist]

What a sad news and even more for the family. Eight days old only and was only brought home from the hospital a couple of days before this incident. R.I.P. Baby Harry Harper.

On their dog, I read on Examiner website that the dog bit his head. Mother was around. What lead the dog to bite is still in question. The post mortem will find out how baby died. I would imagine it doesn't take a very vicious bite to puncture a newborn's head, especially because a newborn's head is still so soft, sutures not yet fused. It can easily be punctured. But then again, exact location matters. I just am curious why their dog would feel like biting, what turned the switch? The news is vague for now.

My condolences go out to the family. I'm heartbroken on their behalf. So sad...