|
She's never done this before! Help! A friend brought her 2 year old over to swim. Mia has played with this little girl before and usually showers her with kisses. Mia is obsessed with her blue ball, and while we were in the pool this little girl kept taking it from her. Eventually she would return it. While I was preparing dinner I heard some scuffle and a weird noise from Mia, like a growl. When I came over to investigate the mother said Mia snapped at her. It totally surprised me. 5 minutes later she did the same thing. I put her in her crate for some safe time out. Things settled down after that, then. Later after dinner Mia was sitting on my lap, the little girl came up and rested her head on the foot stool near me. Mia moved towards her and snapped into the air, near this child's face. (3 or 4 inches away) and let out the snarl growl sound. So now what? Mia has never showed any sort of aggression ever before. My grand daughter is coming for a visit for 3 weeks this summer and she is only 1! OMG what to do?? Any advice would be appreciated. |
I don't have children but have two young nephews (6 yrs and almost 2yrs), children can get "too comfy" with pets sometimes and get a little overzealous. Perhaps the little girl did somthing to aggravate your furbaby and now she is being territorial? I have own my own shop where I bring Uni with me everyday. Uni LOVES children, but sometimes she can tell when a child is too hyper, too crazy, too something. she will hide on her bed at the shop, and if the child comes too close to her "safe" bed zone she will growl. However, she has never snapped at a child. Also, in the rare occasion an actual "crazy" person will come into the store, she will not greet them, or she will check them out, deem them crazy, and proceed to hide. I'm not saying the 2 year old did somethng wrong, but sometimes dogs can sense something we can't. If your dog is showing strange behavior, it may be because something strange has occured. Just my thought. |
Just wondering if the little girl done something to mia while your back was turned.A two year old only has to grab at your baby for your baby to give her a warning growl. What do your instincts tell you on this? Is that totally out of character for Mia or can she be a bit snappy at times? How well do you know the mum of the toddler ,would she tell you the truth if her little girl accidentally hurt your Mia? When my first dog, a border collie had her ears pulled as a pup by a toddler,she could never be 100% trusted with little kids again as she thought they all wanted to hurt her.:animal-pa |
Thanks for the reply's. I know the mother very well, she is like a daughter to me, and was so cool about the whole situation. Her daughter is teething and extra fussy. The mom did say at one point Mia was cornered and may of been stepped on. My instincts tell me Mia had more than she wanted to take. I felt as if she was giving warning signals to this toddler. I have seen her do this with younger dogs. My fear is that this will continue with other kids. It really bothers me. We really don't have many young children in our lives. I am a bit protective with her and young kids, I was distracted cooking dinner. I should of put her in a crate for a nap. I feel bad and responsible. I will avoid this in the future. |
Quote:
Just because this happened once it doesn't mean she is going to be a child killer lol Give Mia the trust and watch closely, but remember dogs feel your tension ,so hard as it may be at first , try to relax.Thats just my opinion. |
Quote:
You stated at the start of this post that Mia is obsessed with her blue ball and the little girl kept taking it - right there is the root of your problem - Mia has a favorite toy and it's hers - end of story - she is thinking the baby is going to take her toy - they are very smart but they do not reason as we do and Mia finds it threatening - Its best to take the blue ball away and out of Mia's sight until the baby leaves - I find this works with mine - if they are very protective of one item - i simply put it up untill the one that wants that item is gone - am i making my self clear ? i hope i am explaining it right as it is sort of like a child that comes over and takes your human childs favorite thing and it upsets your child. Don't punish Mia either with actions or by withholding affection - this will only make it worse - however don't let her develope this either - tell her firmly when she growls that that is a NO- and if you say it sharply she will know you are unhappy with her actions. I am not a trainer but i have owned and raised dozens of Yorkies and have learned what works. |
Quote:
Either it is Mia's toy or not. If it is Mia's take it away or tell the "children" that it is Mia's and only Mia's. Also make sure Mia has a place to go when she wants to get away from the "kids". |
Great Advice, what you might want to add since you are concerned about other children is to always have treats on you when introducing to new kids, and have them give the treats this way the dog will associate kids with good things. |
Good point, the toy should be taken away from Mia when children are around if she is possessive over it. Being possessive over items isn't a good thing though. Nip it in the bud now. When my border collie puppy had a bone I used to make my kids , who were younger then , remove the bone and she grew up to learn that was the norm.We do the same now with our furbaby. When we have doggy visitors all toys and bones are left on the floor to be shared. Anyone should be able to remove an item away from a dog without getting growled at or bitten ,the last thing you need is for her to get possessive over you.:D |
Quote:
Fantastic advice. I don't know why the mother of the child would have allowed her to "tease" Mia in the first place -- I hate it when parents don't take responsibility of their children's behavior. I would never ever allow a guest to tease one of my furbabies. This is their home, they live here and guests must behave or leave. |
yorkie mad LOL child killer! Love that. Yep, I need to relax a little. capt_noonie I too think something strange happened! hasrv4fun I love the suggestion to take the ball away. I so agree with what you said, thank you. I have not had a yorkie before, I did tell her a firm no when she growled at her, to say this is not acceptable. I did get her attention, for a second at least! I really want to nip this in the bud, in the future I will take the ball away. Chattiesmom - I agree, this is Mia's home!! (BTW I love the lilac silk step in harness and leash) It looks so nice and Mia looks so good in it!! Thank you so much for everything. You ROCK!! ( cdawnfineGood idea about having treats when she meets new children. I don't know if I would of thought of that. It will totally turn to a positive experience and make my nerves settle down! She is so treat driven. (ESP if it is Yorkie Yummies!) greyacresmomThings are a little crowded right now, and I will find a way to give her a place to go. (Son was in an accident, he can't go upstairs so downstairs has become his bedroom, all furniture is (temporarily) overcrowded! |
Hi there, You have had excellent advice ! I can't blame your little dog for reacting the the he did though. He needs to be taught not to growl and show threatning behaviors around young children. However, there is a mutual respect that needs to happen. It is not all one sided. The younger the child is, the more a parent needs to take the responibility for the child's behavior. There is no way a 2-3 yr old young child's behavior is to be blamed for playing with a ball in a pool. If it was the dog's ball, then the ball needs to be put away. Of course this is going to be seen as a threat to the dog. Dogs, are, IMO, just like a toddler. With the propper training your Yorkie will be able to relax and feel comforable chikldren, howeverm, I advise you and ALL grown ups to be very cautious when there are very young preschool aged children near any dogs, especially toy breed dogs. I do not think it is right to Crate your Yorkie when the kids are around, with propper supervision, and training , respect by all , kids and Dog , then all should be happy :) |
Update on progress We had company last night. A different 2 year old girl came over. I was a little nervous at first. Mia ran to her quickly when she arrived, I picked her up and went and got a treat. I gave it to the child and asked her to give Mia a "hello treat" (This little girl was so well behaved!):thumbup: It was WONDERFUL from that point on. Mia would follow her around and give her a kiss whenever she could. I shadowed them all night. When the toddler was in the pool, Mia was there waiting to kiss her when she came out! After 2 hours I brought the dreaded ball into the evening to see how that would go. They played well together. After a while the toddler did not want to throw the ball, that is when I ended it. I put the ball away for a while and brought out something else to play with. Thank you once again for all the good advice you gave me. I do not have a child killer after all!! LOL:yelrotflm |
child killer Thank goodness....1 less child killer on the loose LOL Really tho, I think a pup has to have a place to feel safe, and on the 2nd child visitor you did everything right...the child was happy, the fur child was happy, and hopefully you were able to enjoy the visit. GREAT GOING!!!!!:D |
I discovered my Laci is not to fond of Little kids like under 5 she runs and shakes.... I think they move way to quick for her , she pants and gets nervous!! |
| All times are GMT -8. The time now is 07:35 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2025, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2003 - 2018 YorkieTalk.com
Privacy Policy - Terms of Use