Britster - I so agree with you. And I'm an ECE...one of the things that drives me craziest is when people can't be bothered to supervise kids or pets...you have them, you brought them, YOU supervise them...its only an "ADULT ONLY" party when you don't bring them to begin with...can't bring them and expect someone else to supervise
And in my family, I'm afraid, I've always taken the dog's side...in fact when I was little (~3 years old) we had a Chi, and I got down on the floor and had my face in her face and who knows what I was doing...Dog bit me on the nose...didn't break the skin, but boy was I upset...my Dad's response? You shouldn't have your face in her face...she's a dog, how is she supposed to tell you to back off?? That dog and I went on to have the best of relationships, and I was heartbroken when she died peacefully of old age...