[JCarlson2004]

Originally Posted by JiggityJig

Wow, I'm relieved to hear that she was crying and sorry....and that you were open-minded enough to believe her sincerity.

Even if there was originally any smaaaaaaaall bit of malice in her mind when she originally did it, it sounds like the reality of the pain her action put the dog through was a wake-up call for her.

You could actually use this experience to be a bonding experience between the child and the dog....and you and the child! Since she IS young, I'd take her aside and say, "I believe you when you say you didn't mean to hurt Annabelle, but you DID....so now you need to make sure Annabelle knows that you didn't do it on purpose. You can show her that you do love and care about her by treating her very gently from now on, and always thinking about how fragile and easily hurt she is"....etc!

I don't know exactly what your situation (and the relationship between you and the daughter!) has been so far, but if the child develops a strong relationship with your dog, that you support in a positive way, this could really improve her attitude about living with you in lots of other ways!!

Excellent advice.

Give little Annabelle kisses from me!