Afraid Of Children

[Guest Tuffersmom]

Our male grey baby almost 6 years old is afraid of kids....we have had him 4 years and he has always been this way.....if we go anywhere where kids are he freaks out and turns and runs the opposite way....now with grandchildren we would like to be able to have him around them.....any other grey owners have this problem and how do you handle it?Thanks in advance

[NeedlenoseJake]

I haven't had this situation but I would say to have the kids approach him slowly while throwing high-value treats. Pretty soon he will associate the kids with treats. If he is too scared to eat the treats you may have to back off a little until he's more comfortable.

[krissy]

Kili dislikes children. I usually handle it by just avoiding children. Putting a dog that is fearful of children in a situation where they have to deal with children is potentially asking for trouble. If I'm asking Kili to interact with children I make sure I have lots of her favourite goodies shoved in her face, control of her head just in case, and then I police the children even more than I'm policing her. That means making sure they don't crowd her, grab or poke at her, scream, run, chase her, etc. I line them up in a straight line (not curved around her), I give them a treat for her, and show them how to pat her under her chin instead of reaching over top of her head. I tell them to keep quiet, and that if she doesn't want to be patted anymore she'll walk away and they have to let her. Having my other dog, Summit, is also helpful. Once they've petted Kili a bit I will nudge them over to Summit to pet to their hearts' content while Kili gets a break.

 

Constant supervision is a must for interactions with any child and ANY dog (no matter how much they may seem to love children). And not every dog is going to be safe around kids. If a dog is really afraid of kids (as opposed to how Kili is which is curious but wary) it's best not to put them in a situation with children. Scared dogs bite, and kids are face level with a big dog.

[MaryJane]

Have the children sit quietly on a sofa reading a book or some other quiet activity (ignore the dog) and see if the dog at least attempts to step a few feet closer to the children. If the dog starts to get curious, lay a few treats a few feet from the children in a path leading back to the children and see if the dog follows and gets closer to the children. Do not have the children call or try and pat the dog until the dog is not fearful getting close to the children. You'll have to continue this for a few weeks before the dog gets used to being close to the children. Patience is the key ...

 

I would not have the children approach the dog or throw anything at the dog.

[Guest Tuffersmom]

thank you for the suggestions.....as the grandchildren are babies still I'm hoping that we can get him to not be so fearful of them as they get older but even if he hears kids or babies on tv he will try to hide.....do you think if I hold the babies his curiosity would get him to see what mommy has?

[mom2four]

Our big male grey Ambi was our foster before we adopted him. He was scared of kids at the M&G's that we took him too in order for him to be adopted out. In the end, we figured WE were the best family for him, having no small kids around. He still does not like it when the neighbor lady's (noisy) grandkids come over. We have no good answers for you from our experiences. What Mary Jane suggested seems a good approach.

[robinw]

ManyJane's suggestions are good. See if the children can ignore him until he approaches them.

Edited March 22, 2016 by robinw

[Batmom]

Yep, I'd do as Mary Jane suggests. We have done similar and it gets results if the children (or adults ) can be patient and help you play the game .

 

I have also spent some time letting a fearful dog hang out -- at a distance the dog deems safe enough -- and watch children playing etc. while we two have a quiet conversation, share some treats, maybe circle around and come back (but not too close!).

[greysmom]

A great book

 

"Childproofing Your Dog" by Brian Kilcommons

http://smile.amazon.com/Childproofing-Your-Dog-Complete-Preparing-ebook/dp/B002WAUVBE?ie=UTF8&keywords=childproofing%20your%20dog&qid=1458695254&ref_=sr_1_1&s=books&sr=1-1

 

Vigilante supervision is the key to all dog-child interactions. You must be aware of your dog's signals and know enough to take him out of the situation before he reaches his threshold.

[Guest Scouts_mom]

When the kids become mobile, I wonder if it would help if you baby-gated him into a room where he can watch the kids, but they can't bother him (and maybe the kids can give him cookies thru the gate).

[sobesmom]

Be VERY careful. I had a dog that was terrified of children get cornered by one (my fault) and snapped and bit the child's hand. Not a bad bite at all - but any bite is a bad bite when a child is involved. I blame myself.

 

Definitely do your research. This may be workable for your dog. Or not. There are a "few" greys that really are NEVER OK with toddlers. My Sobe was one of them. His stress level was through the roof with toddles around, so when my brother's kids came to visit - we completely separated them. My brother said "Oh - my kids are GREAT with our dogs" - um, not with MY dog. So - I kept my dog away from them.

 

Try to work it out through research and training of the dog and the humans, but if you have ANY doubt - separate.

[Guest Tuffersmom]

again thanks for all the advise and I will check out that book.....mean while "when in doubt separate"

[txsbbtc]

Allie loves kids that approach politely (or not at all; she is convinced that they really do want to meet her). She likes to check their faces for any leftover snacks.

 

However, running/screaming kids are a different story.