Preventing Dog Bites in Children
This is National Dog Bite Prevention Week in the US, so I
thought I’d look at two recent studies that investigate dog bite prevention in
children. Both studies are based on interviews with parents and children, after
the children had been admitted to a hospital emergency department.
By Zazie Todd, PhD
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They identified two main circumstances for dog bites; younger children tended to be bitten inside the home, often by a dog that they lived with, whereas older children tended to be bitten outside, by dogs they did not know. For the younger children, there was often some interaction between the child and the dog prior to the bite, which was usually initiated by the child.
They suggest that children should not approach a dog that is lying down or stationary, and that adults need to pay close attention to interactions between young children and dogs in the home. Preventing the outside dog bites is more difficult, since the dogs were not under control or supervision at the time. They wonder if a proactive approach of people reporting dogs that regularly escape their yards or lunge aggressively from behind fences would help with this. Obviously, ensuring that dogs actually stay in their yards would play a major part in preventing this kind of bite.
By Zazie Todd, PhD
This page contains affiliate links which means I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you.
A study by Ilana Reisner et al asked children who
had been bitten by dogs about the circumstances of the bite. They wanted to
know things like whether it happened inside or outside, and what the dog and
child were doing immediately prior to the bite. Most indoor dog bites happened
in the dog’s home (whether or not it was also the child’s home), and most
outdoor dog bites happened near to the dog’s home.
They identified two main circumstances for dog bites; younger children tended to be bitten inside the home, often by a dog that they lived with, whereas older children tended to be bitten outside, by dogs they did not know. For the younger children, there was often some interaction between the child and the dog prior to the bite, which was usually initiated by the child.
They suggest that children should not approach a dog that is lying down or stationary, and that adults need to pay close attention to interactions between young children and dogs in the home. Preventing the outside dog bites is more difficult, since the dogs were not under control or supervision at the time. They wonder if a proactive approach of people reporting dogs that regularly escape their yards or lunge aggressively from behind fences would help with this. Obviously, ensuring that dogs actually stay in their yards would play a major part in preventing this kind of bite.
And this year, a study by Cinnamon Dixon and colleagues,
looked at knowledge about preventing dog bites, and whether more education
would be beneficial. Participants included children presenting with dog bites
as well as those presenting with other conditions. Children and their parents
were given questionnaires about education about dog bites, demographics (for
the parents), and a knowledge test about how to interact with dogs. For
example, a photo of a dog eating from its food bowl was accompanied by the
question “Should you pet this dog?” (the correct answer is no).
Almost three quarters of the parents currently owned a dog, and a prior dog bite was reported in almost a quarter of the children. Although almost all of the parents passed the knowledge test, only 57% of the children did, suggesting that more education for children would be useful.
No link was found between a previous dog bite and children’s scores on the knowledge test, which could mean that families are not learning from a dog bite situation. The questionnaire showed that parents would welcome some kind of formal education for their children on preventing dog bites.
Almost three quarters of the parents currently owned a dog, and a prior dog bite was reported in almost a quarter of the children. Although almost all of the parents passed the knowledge test, only 57% of the children did, suggesting that more education for children would be useful.
No link was found between a previous dog bite and children’s scores on the knowledge test, which could mean that families are not learning from a dog bite situation. The questionnaire showed that parents would welcome some kind of formal education for their children on preventing dog bites.
Both of these studies focus on the child, but there are
implications for dog owners. Make sure you carefully supervise all interactions
between young children and your dog, and teach the child about how they should
behave around dogs. If you leave your dog in the yard, make sure it can’t
escape, and train it not to snap or lunge at passers-by. Don’t keep it
permanently chained, as that can lead to aggression. And of course, there is no
substitute for a well-socialized and well-trained dog.
The American Veterinary Medical Association has lots of
useful information about preventing dog bites, including statistics, advice,
and a podcast with Victoria Stillwell,
What are your tips for preventing dog bites? Who do you
think should teach children about dogs?
If you liked this post, check out my book Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy. Modern Dog magazine calls it "The must-have guide to improving your dog's life."
P.S. You might also like An evaluation of the Blue Dog project's influence on parents and a new approach to dog bite prevention.
Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, and also has a column at Psychology Today. Todd lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, one dog, and two cats.
References
Dixon, C.A., Mahabee-Gittens, E.M., Hart, K.W. and Lindsell,
C.J. (2012) Dog bite prevention: An assessment of child knowledge. The Journal
of Pediatrics, 160, 337-341.
Reisner, I.R., Nance, M.L., Zeller, J.S., Houseknecht, E.M.,
Kassam-Adams, N. and Wiebe, D.J. (2011) Behavioural characteristics associated
with dog bites to children presenting to an urban trauma centre. Injury
Prevention, 17, 348-353.
Photo: Parinya Feungchan (Shutterstock.com)
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Photo: Parinya Feungchan (Shutterstock.com)
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. As an Etsy affiliate and Marks and Spencer affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
