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Originally Posted by Sydney'sMom I agree! I think that I will be more assertive in the future with kids. I shouldn't have been so polite. I should have just told the kid to back off. Thank heavens it all turned out ok in the end. |
It's OK to say no to petting and you don't have to feel bad. With adults I just say He's very young and he gets nervous so I would rather not and with kids I reason with them on their level and tell them Chewy is a baby and he might get scared, blah, blah. It has worked for me so far. I have had some instances when the adults are the ones that push and then I start to get mean or I will simply say "Get your hand off my dog". That works!
The bottom line though is that you have to protect the safety of your dog and if this is at the risk of being impolite or having to say no to someone, even if it is uncomfortable for a minute, then so be it.