So glad to read this. I always have problems when I take Lucy to the park with grabby children. She seems cute and friendly, but has been known to snap and bite. I try to smile and explain that Lucy isn't a 'pet me' dog, and most parents seem offended as if I'm purposely being mean to their child. As I child I never approached strangers animals and now that I have my own dog I am surprised by how many children just run up and grab at Lucy and the parents allow it.

I think that respect and caution around animals should actually be part of every childs education, whether from parents, or preferably from school. So many times kiddies have run up to my dog Jack, a 160 lb giant breed, who looks like a big teddy bear, to hug him. Jack is an absolute sweetheart, who loves a hug, but every time, I have to tell the parents to ask first, and always be careful, as even with a placid dog, it only takes a poke in the eye or a potential treat in a kids hand for a dog to do what a dog does naturally, and in fact, when a dog the size of mine goes into bouncy play mode, that in itself can be a danger to children. I'm always vigilant with my dog-I just wish people were with their kids!!!!

Situations such as this one you have described truly do anger me as well. It is the parent's responsibility as well.

Earlier this summer, I took my dog with me to the Farmer's Market. While down there, two children wanted to pet her, which I was more than happy to help hold her so that they could greet her. However, the mother snapped back and said, "Don't pet that dog, it's dirty." and then said, "That dog will bite you." Neither of these are true of my dog. Angry as I was, I fired back by saying, "Isabel (dog's name), please stay away from those children. They are ugly and their Mom is ignorant."

I think that woman will rethink what she says about dogs. Even though my dog may not have known what she was saying, I understood her loud and clear and defended my pup.

I actually scared a dog once! I was on the sidewalk and saw a dog that looked just like the sweet one I had when growing up. I made a cute cooing sound and went to pet it and it jumped back and the owner gave me a dirty look. I was so embarrassed! It had never occurred to me that even though the dog was the same breed it might have a different temperment.

I hate it when children trying to touch my dog without asking me first, and I hate it even more when parents are acting like it's not their business at all what their children are doing.

I have a Newfoundland - a big, teddy-like dog that luckily is totally nice and loves children to no end. However, I never know for sure how she'll react when someone's "attacking" her with a cuddle.

I agree with BigBird: it should be part of every child's education how to treat animals. If the parents can't do it, or don't know how do it, it should be part of school education. Gee, even mailmen are having seminars how to behave in front of dogs while doing their job.

I still ask people if I can pet their dogs. Last weekend we were at an agility trial helping out and Chase and I were sitting in the shade for a break, this man and his two kids(more like monsters) came walking by and the little girl FREAKED because Chase stood up,I too received the "Look of Death", from the dad, geez all because the dog stood up.

This is also a pet peeve of mine. Cuba, who is a mini doxie, is a total kid magnet and I constantly have to tell kids not to run up to him because it scares him. Most parents have been respectful and always ask me if their little ones can pet him but there are the few that should know better but their parents are lazy and do not teach them. I would rather have a stranger think I am a b*tch for not letting their kids pet Cuba than have him bite their little brat.

I'm on the dog owners side!
Like BigBird (poster above) said: "respect and caution around animals should actually be part of every childs education"!

I never let kids pet my dogs. My older dog has never spent much time around children, although she is very friendly with adults and loves to be petted. Her only experiences with children were at a camping event where the kids were jumping and running around (inadvertantly teasing her). They were told many times by me & their mother to stop, but they never did. She was extremely agitated and I was truly scared she might bite someone, so I kept her on a leash next to me most of the time. My younger dog is fearful of new people, so petting by any street stranger is out of the question.

When I see kids getting excited by the dogs, I let them know the dogs are "hot" or "tired" and "please don't pet them" or "not today...sorry". I don't think I've gotten the "look of death" because of it, but if I have...so be it. I don't want the "lawsuit of biting".

pet peeve of mine too! Kids always run up to my dogs and try to pet them w/o asking me. They aren't ever around kids and they don't like their energy they bring so it actually scares my dogs. If they properly ask and calmly pet them they love it.

Unfortunately when B-Bop was about 6 months old we were in an outdoor mall and he got surrounded by a group of kids while I was trying to fish my phone out of my bag. When I got to B-Bop (seriously he was like 5 lbs and there were like 6 pre-teen girls around him) he was shaking like a leaf. Now he's always Scared of kids, especially if they run up to him. He hasn't ever tried to bite, but he will run away. I've been working with him on this a lot, holding him and letting kids come up very slowly to pet him or give him a treat to show him kids aren't always bad. But I wish someone would've taught those girls to be more careful, he was just a baby and he got scared for life.

kkellum13 - I LOVE your story. Way to fight back haha! Sounds like the kids were doing the right thing, but their mother was being ridiculous

For some reason, kids seem to flock to Axle and not Newton (thankfully). Axle is a big goofy mutt who loves everyone (as long as they aren't a smoker)and Newton is a little 12lbs brat who HATES new people (really he's just afraid of new situations). I'm pretty aware of my surroundings at all times, so kids have never had the chance to sneak up and try to pet Axle without my say so. If they do start approaching without asking, I always tell them they shold ask before petting a dog, and I tell them to hold on a moment so I can get Axle to sit, and then I stand behind him and hold him (just in case he wants to jump up to kiss them, wouldn't want to knock them down). I then tell the kids to stick out their hands and let him sniff the top part of their hand (not the palm, I was told dogs may find that threatening, but the top is supposed to be safe, i don't know). And then I tell them to go ahead and pet him, and Axle usually covers their hands in slobber, with his tail going a mile a minute.

If a kid wants to pet Newton, I either hold him, and let them pet him, or I simply tell them he doesn't like kids (although he does love the odd one).

I don't like children and, coincidentally, neither does my dog. He growls at them. I wonder if he can feel my "no children" vibes or if he's just scared of little people or if he doesn't like them because they are unpredictable. Either way, we avoid kids out in public.

i've had a bunch of kids approach my Sheltie while eating food and candy. i warn all of them that if they get too close with their goodie that Jack will take it right out of their hand and gobble it up. i figure they are forewarned!

Kids are always coming up to Bella (we haven't had Harlow out in public with kids very much), and petting her. Most of the time they ask, but there are a few who don't. Good thing I have a 5-year-old sister whom Bella loves, so she's used to the energy of kids.
I'm actually glad she's had the exposure so I don't have to worry too much about it. Harlow, on the other hand, is a big ol' scaredy cat. He's gotten really used to my little sister, it's actually other dogs that he has the issues with, which is why we're taking him to the dog park everyday.

I agree with what previous posters have said about children being educated in how to behave towards animals. I mean, we're taught how to act if you should be attacked by a bear while camping or hiking. Dogs are a lot more common to be around, why not teach them how to approach them, right?

My giant puppy, when approached my small children, has always looked like she was going to jump on them and knock them over, so I keep her close to me and keep walking when kids are near. I throw a "Sorry she's too wild!" over my shoulder and don't look back. I hate the sound of kids screaming, so I am not going to get myself into a situation to have to listen to that crap.

I totally agree with this. When I first got my dog she was wild but really adores children so she always wants to protect or run after them when they are playing. Being that she's a pitbull however leads to less problems for me with kids because parents automatically assume she's dangerous and move to the side...it's actually those who own dogs that will come up and play with Hope without asking!

having a mom who has worked in a animal shelter for over 20 yrs, i was always taught to ask the owners if we could pet their dogs/cat/whatnot. i've taught my kids the same thing. its dangerous to just run up to a pet you do not know, it scares them and the owner. its the parents responsibility to teach children the importance of pet safety.

Approach a strange dog without an invitation from the owner? It's just not proper!

Ugh, I hate this incident most when I'm training Zena. Zena is only 17" at the shoulders and the children at the park (there's an elementary school with a country park attached to it where I train her) flock to her. She's a people dog, but there is a time and a place for love for her. Training is NOT one of those times. When this happens, I tell Zena to "sit" and tell the children to go away, I am training my dog in a slightly miffed tone. I baby-sit for a living, but they should know I must be training her if I'm telling her to "Sit," "Down," "Stay" and "Heel" all over the park. I do not take kindly to people disrupting training time.

Other times, I tell them to ask me, the owner walking the dog, to pet her. Zena isn't mean but I know what it's like to be bitten by a dog when I forgot to ask if it were okay or not! I wouldn't want Zena feeling unsafe which would cause her to growl or snap back either.

I love it when strangers have the common sense to ask if they can pet Viva before they reach out to her. She is a very loving dog. My nephew has stuck his hand in Viva's mouth without being harmed, but you never know how she'll react to a stranger. Sometimes when we're walking she'll immediately like someone, but some people scare her or upset her. I think children tend to scare dogs because of the excited energy they give off.

There are A LOT and a mean A LOT of dogs in my neighborhood we probably have an average of one per house because most people who have a dog have 2 or more so thankfully most of the kids know to ask before they pet a dog. However if they don't ask and just run up I stop them immediately. Not because they can't pet my dogs but because I will explain to them that they need to ask first and that I need to put both dogs in a petting position for them. The dogs are in school just like they are, but the dogs are learning how to be petted nicely. Most of the kids love to hear that the dogs are in school too and generally will wait after I stop them.

I feel bad for parents that are not animal people especially if they have kids that are. They really don't know how to handle animals and kids when the situation arrises. And not enough school teach safe animal practices

People are just stupid. Who lets their child run up to a dog that is unknown!? Common sense is needed.

I've taught every kid that I've had this sort of interaction with the same way I was taught. Slowly put out the back of your hand and let the dog sniff it before you pet him. (AFTER asking the owner OF COURSE). I don't know the soundness of this, but it seems to be a good way to gauge a dog's mood after getting the OK from the owner (who, I assume, would say no if the dog was going to bite.

The thing that sucks is that, no matter the provocation, a dog biting a strange child is a death sentence for it if it gets reported.

One of my pet peeves is when people bring their children to the dog park and let them run all over the place. To some dogs, little kids look like a giant, walking steak!! It's just asking for trouble.

If a kid runs up and tries to pet my doxie Ladybird, I let them...and laugh when they get bit by my 13 pound terror. Perhaps a lesson will be learned.

A j4everlasting, I always learned you gave them the top of your hand with your fingers down so that they don't get excited and nip a finger--I don't know if that's it but it makes sense to me.

I don't have a dog =( so I always have to pet others', but I always ask if it's ok first. I know my parents always made me ask when I was a kid so I always do (besides for the fact it's just rude if you don't...), but what's so hard to parents about just teaching basic manners??

@silliness: I was just discussing this with my S.O. Do you think it's rude to bring children to the dog park at all, or just unsupervised, undisciplined children. What ages? Just curious...you might settle an argument..)

God I hate this too!!!! Parents just seem to think that if I am walking Scarlett that it is fine for them to let the kids just run up and pet her. My real pet peeve is that she is small and so they always try to pick her up! I always tell them no and explain they can hurt her. I also try to steer her away from kids that look rowdy.

I have both children and a dog and I have taught my kids to ask someone if they can pet their dog. Quite often we are told no and the kids understand this and don't approach the dog. They know that some dogs bite and some don't like kids. The problem I have is that people see me with my kids and dog and assume they can bring their kids to pet my dog. I keep him held tightly on the leash and always tell children to ask first. My dog is great with kids but I am trying to teach the lesson that other parents seem to not understand or bother teaching.

Pets just got BANNED from our local farmers' market because a kid (grandchild of a councilwoman) got nipped by a dog. People watch their dogs, but parents don't watch their children. Bad dog owners get penalized, but not the parents!

kkellum13, you ROCK!!!!

I agree, best story ever kkellum13. That kind of generalization in the long run is not helpful in teaching children to respect animals if the reason to not pet them or touch them is because they're dirty or will bite you. Adults need to be teaching respect and understanding for a living creature, so kudos to all those who do it.

I can completely relate to this! My puppy Maizey gets very nervous around children (being a Shih Tzu Pomeranian she is only 4lbs!) and she freaks a little when they go to grab for her. They are often too rough and go at her too quickly. A lot of parents never say anything when their kid comes up and pet her without asking but they'll be the first to react if a growl or bark comes out. They should control their children and teach them not to pet unknown animals without permission!

Animals are kid-magnets. And, not every parent has an animal in the family or has ever owned one, so how can they be expected to know how one might behave? I would err on the side of caution and not assuming a parent knows that a child should not approach an unknown animal/that the parent would be watching, and I would 'CMOA'(cover my own a$$) when out with my animal. After all, if their child comes up to your dog (or whatever) and starts completely messing with it, who gets sued if the child gets an injury? Exactly.

omg i deal with this all the time too! it's SO frustrating! and something that bothers me even more than children doing this is when GROWN MEN AND WOMEN come up to my dog and start petting him. i mean, i know my dog rocko looks cute and friendly (and he is)...but you dont just go up to a strange dog and start petting them no matter how cute they look. YOU ASK FIRST!
that is one thing i HATE about living in a city...so many bonehead people around. ugh!

I always tell kids they have to ask before approaching when I'm walking the dogs, and that they should hold their hands out for the dog to sniff first.

However, KKellum--how does that make it OK to say those kids are ugly? So their mother is ignorant, that doesn't mean it's OK for you to insult the children's looks. You're mean.

@daisydidi...Yup, I completely agree, Im more tolerant with kids coming up to my Romey and petting him, but adults...not cool.