Every Pet owner should read this, especially those with large breed dogs

[KristyHall]

another worrisome image. Like with the dogs. I do not care how calm your horse is, this is insanely dangerous

 

[drumstick diva]

GEEZ what a setup, if the horse even twitches his withers the baby will fall off.

I remember when I was new to dogs - some of the larger breeds were advertised a lot in Dog World magazine. Inevitably the ad photos had tiny kids wrapped all around a huge dog, or riding the dog. This was so you KNEW this huge dog loved children.

Bah humbug, I was 11 years old then and didn't believe that. .. Even as a kid I recognized "set up " photos - the dog probably never saw a kid before but for the photo op they shoved a kid in his face. That was the late 1950's and nothing has changed.

Photos like this always have me screaming inside that the a**holes don't have a brain in their head.

 

[Fancychooklady]

The problem is , you just can't tell some people. I recently had a conversation with a young couple who treat their 2 staffy bull terriers like kids. They then went on to tell me that when they babysit a 4 month old little girl, that the dogs lay either side of her on the lounge.( protecting her) I gave them the old " even though you think you know your dogs " you should never allow them inside when the baby is there. Went in one ear and out the next. Of course they are young and they know everything .

 

[Shellz]

The problem is , you just can't tell some people. I recently had a conversation with a young couple who treat their 2 staffy bull terriers like kids. They then went on to tell me that when they babysit a 4 month old little girl, that the dogs lay either side of her on the lounge.( protecting her) I gave them the old " even though you think you know your dogs " you should never allow them inside when the baby is there. Went in one ear and out the next. Of course they are young and they know everything .

Sad, but true. Oye!

 

[Shellz]

GEEZ  what a setup,  if the horse even twitches his withers the baby will fall off.  

   I remember when I was new to dogs  - some of the larger breeds were advertised a lot in Dog World magazine.  Inevitably  the ad photos had tiny kids wrapped all around a huge dog,  or riding   the dog.  This was so you KNEW  this huge dog  loved children. 

Bah humbug, I was 11 years old then and didn't believe that. .. Even as a kid I recognized "set up " photos - the dog probably never saw a kid before but for the photo op they shoved a kid in his face.  That was the late 1950's  and nothing has changed.

Photos like this always have me screaming inside that the a**holes don't have a brain in their head.

I agree! I'm hoping there's at least a couple of mattresses around that horse.

 

[duckinnut]

While I agree mostly with the article I wish it touched on some other subjects. Like while your family pet may be the most loving dog on the planet and wouldn't hurt a thing, human or otherwise. A dog of the same breed at someone else house may not be as receiving as yours. This rule I always reinforce when my kids were little. Another I lived by is never approach somebodies dog more so if they are lying down, always let them come to you. By approaching them they deem it as aggression. You have to know how to read a dog as well, they let you know what they are feeling, usually. Sometimes the do go off without notice. Aggression is not breed specific as well, while certain dogs deal with small children better than others but doesn't mean something bad can't happen. I have seen cream puffs of Pitbulls and downright mean Goldens.

As far as parents go, well there isn't enough time in the day. Small children and animals is generally a bad mix. I think both can fail miserably. While a child can not comprehend the situation, the dog( or whatever creature) probably doesn't either. When things turn sour they act surprised. Never did these cutesy pictures when my kids were little, although now we do X-mas cards with the chickens and the rabbit. Keanu Reeves character said it best in the movie "Parenthood" and I paraphrase as this is a family site. "You need a license to catch a fish, you need one to drive a car, and even a dog needs one but any idiotic moron can be a parent".

When I was a small child I was bitten in the face by a Collie named Bobbie some 45 years ago. Wow time flies. While not a photo -op, I was just petting her and she turned and bit me. Unpredictable to say the least. Can still picture the house, the dog, the yard but it didn't waiver my love of dogs. There has always been dogs in my life except the lapse times between their deaths. But I guess it leads me to how I try to teach my kids in how to respect the animal space.

 

[Shellz]

Good points & well said!

 

[FrostBytn]

In the 70's we lived in the Northern part of Michigan and people would park at trash dumps in the evening to watch the Bears come out and scavenge.
One night a man got out of his car with his toddler and was going to stand next to a bear with his kid while the wife took pictures.
Thank God someone started yelling and scared the Bear away.
I grewup with the rule, "The gun is always loaded, all dogs bite and all horses kick."
I've been bitten and kicked plenty but very few times was it a surprise.

 

[Shellz]

Good rule!
And what the heck was wrong with those people?!!! OMG! That was retarded.