Dog bite

[superfun]

I have a dcb that stayed home most of last week. His dog bit him 10 days ago, they spent a long time in the emergency room waiting for stitches. He catches everything! So he has been really sick and hasn't been here much. He's good enough to come tomorrow, and his hand has healed really well. So here's my question. He hasn't opened his hand willingly since the stitches. We think it's a comfort thing? That's his dominant hand, he uses it for eating, etc. So he doesn't want to feed himself, etc. (He's almost two.) Would you gently work with him to open his hand more often, or would you ignore it and wait for him to start using it on his own?

[torontokids]

I would leave it until he opens in on his own and follow the Dr. directions. If it is still tender then he is being smart. The last thing you want is a torn stitch.

He may just forget about it and start using it tomorrow when the play do or whatever comes out.

[superfun]

Thanks! I was thinking the same thing, but I was doubting myself.

[superfun]

Well, he's using his fist for everything instead of opening his hand, and for the first time ever, he didn't want to paint. He's usually the first to the table when we paint. I feel bad for him. It must be quite sore for him to say no to that.

[Fun&care]

Poor thing. Kinda scary too...have the parents said anything about what they are going to do about the dog? I can't imagine how upset I would be if my dog did this to anyone to the point of needing stitches, she would be outta here.

[superfun]

I feel the same way. We had a small dog, and he never bit our kids, but he thought about it a few times. He would nip at them, and ultimately we decided he would be happier in a house without kids. Luckily for us, my brother in law really wanted a dog. They were a perfect match.
This family says it wasn't the dogs fault and they'll be more careful. I can see their side of it, but it's definitely not what I would do if that happened.

[mickyc]

I had a family whose dog bit him as well. They put the dog down immediately. It was on the boy's face too. Luckily the stiches have healed.

I would just leave him and let him do what is comfortable for him. Only he will know.

[Lee-Bee]

This is a hard one. Growing up we had a dog for 19yrs. He was a great dog, gentle, not aggressive at all. One year when I was about 7 on Christmas eve I decided to give him his present early. He got a new dog bone. Then I decided no, wait, he needs to wait till morning or I won't have a gift to give him. So, being my 7yr old self I got down on my hands and knees and decided to crawl up to him and pick the bone up with my teeth. Yep. Well, my dog was indeed a dog and dog's protect their food...especially brand new bones. So he bit me. I was indeed dumb enough to have put my face in front of his mouth so he happened to bite me on the lip, requiring stitches.

We spent Christmas eve in the emerge waiting for stitches. My dog never, ever acted aggressive towards anyone after this (or prior to this), and we had him another 12yrs or so. So, sometimes it really, truly isn't the dog's fault. Dogs are animals though, not children and they cannot be trusted to be left unsupervised with young children, because children do lack common sense!

[superfun]

I really hope that's the case with this dog. They seem pretty sure it was their fault and not the dogs. The way you described your incident with your dog does make sense. Sometimes the dog can't be blamed.

[bright sparks]

This is a hard one. Growing up we had a dog for 19yrs. He was a great dog, gentle, not aggressive at all. One year when I was about 7 on Christmas eve I decided to give him his present early. He got a new dog bone. Then I decided no, wait, he needs to wait till morning or I won't have a gift to give him. So, being my 7yr old self I got down on my hands and knees and decided to crawl up to him and pick the bone up with my teeth. Yep. Well, my dog was indeed a dog and dog's protect their food...especially brand new bones. So he bit me. I was indeed dumb enough to have put my face in front of his mouth so he happened to bite me on the lip, requiring stitches.

We spent Christmas eve in the emerge waiting for stitches. My dog never, ever acted aggressive towards anyone after this (or prior to this), and we had him another 12yrs or so. So, sometimes it really, truly isn't the dog's fault. Dogs are animals though, not children and they cannot be trusted to be left unsupervised with young children, because children do lack common sense!

I know someone locally who's child was bitten whilst in daycare! The dog still lives and they still take their child there!! I must be missing some specific details to that story because that's nuts, but I would never send my child to a provider with a dog in the first place. I too have had dogs for years and agree entirely with what you say Lee-Bee. It distress' me to hear of those who would immediately put a dog down for being simply that, a dog, an animal. These are the risks of having an animal in the household that should be taken seriously. This is essentially why when we moved overseas and we owned older dogs who would have likely not survived the trip or the climate change, we decided to refrain from getting any more dogs as the liability in a daycare setting is huge. We are all very excited now that it is such a short time till my doors will be closing, to be discussing the possibility of taking on another dog again...I don't miss the dust though lol