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10 Tips to Prevent Holiday Season Dog Bites in Children

10 Tips to Prevent Holiday Season Dog Bites in Children. Dog bites ARE preventable.

Meeting Milo, an organization dedicated to reducing the 2 million children bit each year, releases it's top ten safety list to help keep children safe during the holidays.

/24-7PressRelease.com/ - December 22, 2004.
1. Actively supervise your dog with children, and interfere where necessary. If a child is playing rough, sitting on, jumping on a dog or otherwise being rough, you need to intervene. If a dog appears uncomfortable, you are better to remove the dog from the situation right away.

2. Most dog bites to young children involve the family pet. Many people make the mistake in thinking their dog will never bite. Even good dogs have the potential to bite if frightened, anxious or threatened. Holiday time can definitely increase anxiety in a family pet.

3. Many pets get new toys and bones for Christmas. Dogs who have no history of guarding food or bones may guard new items until the novelty wears off. Do not let children take objects away from a dog, and better yet, let the dog chew their new bone after the children go home.

4. Let sleeping dogs be. The season can be exhausting for dogs too. Teach children to leave sleeping dogs alone. Some dogs are fine with this, others dogs startle and snap when woken from a deep sleep.

5. Give a dog some needed space. Any parent can tell you that if you get several children and a small mountain of presents together, you have a noisy chaotic environment. Most adults do not enjoy the chaos, and most dogs do not either. Give your dog somewhere quiet where they can go to, like a bedroom or den. By the same token, teach children to slow down around dogs.

6. When out visiting, teach children to always ask permission when visiting, and teach them how to pet a dog. Do not let a child pat a dog on the head, or hug a dog. This triggers a bite in many dogs. Teach children to scratch a dog under the chin after getting permission. Do not approach a dog that is tied out. Statistically, they have a very high likelihood of biting.

7. If your dog has problems with aggression, play it safe and keep your dog separate from children. Take the time to see a specialist in dog behaviour to resolve the problem.

8. Take warning signs seriously. A growl or lip curl is a very clear warning that a dog may bite.

9. Look for subtle signs. Dogs that leave the room with bones are potentially guarding them. Dogs that stiffen or try to leave a situation are often uncomfortable. Lip licking, panting, yawning and stress dandruff are other subtle signs that a dog is not comfortable.

10. As the adult, the ultimate responsibility for keeping children safe from dogs lies on your shoulders. If in doubt, do not allow the child to interact.

Meeting Milo created a storybook that reaches young children through a vivid storybook that captures the imagination and prevents dog bites at the pre-school level. "Meeting Milo" the storybook is an accurate and effective piece of the dog bite prevention puzzle. Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) Ontario - a not for profit organization also receives profits from the sale of every copy of Meeting Milo.

About Meeting Milo
In North America, there are approximately 2 million children bit by dogs each year resulting in more emergency room visits than playground accidents. Meeting Milo is dedicated to educating children by teaching them how to avoid common dog bite triggers through an accessible child friendly format.

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