Five-Year-Old Girl Was Bitten By Dog Inside Bunnings Store

[Sheridan]

Given when I go to Bunnings I am hauling around a fair amount of stuff I'd not take my dogs.

Edited November 9, 2015 by Sheridan

[Loving my Oldies]

Just because you can take a dog to a place where dogs are allowed does not mean the dog is comfortable at that particular place.

I would imagine some dogs would not feel relaxed being taken into a strange building crowded with strange people and smells particularly if they can't see an exit way out.

Absolutely agree. It is horrible to see how some dogs are uncomfortable/frightened in crowded surroundings or just in the general traffic of footpaths.

[Leah82]

I like the move by Bunnings, I hope they don't go back on their policy after this incident and I do think we need to encourage dogs in more public places because this is where people start to realise that they need to be responsible both as pet owners and parents around strange dogs. I know we've bypassed bunnings on the way home more than once because it's been too hot to leave the dogs in the car so I'll definitely be bringing ours in next time if they are already with us rather than making another trip out.

What I don't agree with the whole thing is that bunnings paid the medical costs, albeit minor this takes away the responsibility of the owner. It doesn't matter where you are or how it happened the owner should be the one fronting any medical costs caused by their dog.

and yes the parent's are also to blame, there was mention that the little girl had just gotten over her fear of dogs which is often seen in children who have very little experience with dogs and clearly her parents have gone for the 'you'll be right, all dogs are friendly' approach in helping her get over her fear.

I was at the beach the other day watching this guy fishing with his grey hound x dane or something of the sort off lead. Dog couldn't care less about us but I noticed a young family perked his interest straight away. Owner managed to call the dog off once but as the family got closer this dog clearly wanted to get to the kids. Mum and Dad attempted to shield the children as the dog ran up to them and luckily the dog was friendly. OH scoffed at this attempt to shield as unnecessary, not sure he was expecting his dog loving wife to respond with the fact that I would have done the same thing. The dogs approach was to rush up the family, try to by pass the parents to get to the kids, clearly the children were new and interesting so it was anyone's guess how the dog would react up close.

at the end of the day there needs to be a bit more education on all fronts

[YippeeGirl]

Some dog owners are pretty bad at telling when their dogs are showing signs of stress. Bunnings can be fairly overwhelming for humans at times (I swear some people are as bad at navigating with trolleys as they are at driving), so I could very easily see how a bite could happen.

I feel bad for both the young girl and the dog owner. There's definitely no winners in this story.

I like the idea of being able to bring my dogs into various stores, as I feel that it can be a good learning experience for them, and a good opportunity for socialisation. Unfortunately, not all dogs have the nerves/temperament to be able to handle these sorts of environments. There's one of ours who can be leery with people, so I certainly wouldn't bring her to a place where she is likely to feel trapped if she is approached by a random member of the public.

[kami]

While I totally understand that for some people they see no reason to take dogs into bunnings, to add a different perspective I find it highly useful to now be able to take my dog there.

My dog Annie has separation anxiety, best managed by being crated when we are out. It is a pleasure to be able to take her with us while we pick up a few things at Bunnings during a week day to minimise crating time, yet have her somewhere safe with me.

That said, when I have been there, it is with the understanding that this is a privilege, and make sure my attention is on her and what is going on around us, to ensure she is under control -to ensure we don't ruin a good thing for others.

Would I take her on a busy weekend with hundreds of shoppers around? Never. She would be over stimulated.

Do I think it is Bunnings fault that.a child got bitten? No. It sounds like responsibility lies with both parties, with Bunnings placing the onus of liability firmly with the owner with their conditions for pet entry.

Hopefully at least discussions regarding safe interactions between dogs and children, and responsible dog ownership will be triggered by todays events. Rather than a knee jerk reaction such as banning dogs again which doesn't solve the issues at hand - a solution involves welcoming dogs into society, so we can learn the best ways of respectfully interacting together, change attitudes and make these cultural norms rather than exceptions to the norm.

[Willem]

I like the move by Bunnings, I hope they don't go back on their policy after this incident and I do think we need to encourage dogs in more public places because this is where people start to realise that they need to be responsible both as pet owners and parents around strange dogs. I know we've bypassed bunnings on the way home more than once because it's been too hot to leave the dogs in the car so I'll definitely be bringing ours in next time if they are already with us rather than making another trip out.

What I don't agree with the whole thing is that bunnings paid the medical costs, albeit minor this takes away the responsibility of the owner. It doesn't matter where you are or how it happened the owner should be the one fronting any medical costs caused by their dog.

and yes the parent's are also to blame, there was mention that the little girl had just gotten over her fear of dogs which is often seen in children who have very little experience with dogs and clearly her parents have gone for the 'you'll be right, all dogs are friendly' approach in helping her get over her fear.

I was at the beach the other day watching this guy fishing with his grey hound x dane or something of the sort off lead. Dog couldn't care less about us but I noticed a young family perked his interest straight away. Owner managed to call the dog off once but as the family got closer this dog clearly wanted to get to the kids. Mum and Dad attempted to shield the children as the dog ran up to them and luckily the dog was friendly. OH scoffed at this attempt to shield as unnecessary, not sure he was expecting his dog loving wife to respond with the fact that I would have done the same thing. The dogs approach was to rush up the family, try to by pass the parents to get to the kids, clearly the children were new and interesting so it was anyone's guess how the dog would react up close.

at the end of the day there needs to be a bit more education on all fronts

Bunnings is responsible for the safety of the premises - hence they (respectively their insurance) have to step in in the first place if an accident happen. That doesn't mean that - after some consulting with their lawyers - they (respectively the insurance company) won't send a letter to the dog owner asking for reimbursement. In no way Bunnings action takes away the responsibility for this accident from the dog owner.

And I just can't recognize what information shared here leads to the conclusion that the parents 'have clearly gone for the 'you'll be right approach...that's pure speculation and definitely not clear!...the parents might or might not have asked the dog owner whether patting is o.k....and even if they didn't ask: as I pointed out before, just by bringing the dogs into Bunnings it could be assumed that the dogs are absolutely kid & people friendly - if not (which obviously was the case) the dog owner has to adopt appropriate measures to ensure the safety of all visitors that could come in contact with his dogs, no matter whether by accident or intended.

[Leah82]

And I just can't recognize what information shared here leads to the conclusion that the parents 'have clearly gone for the 'you'll be right approach...that's pure speculation and definitely not clear!

Experience.

also if the parent's asked if the dog could be patted it would have been included in the story, instead of 'the little girl saw the other dog being patted'

Willem you seem to be opposed to speculation whilst doing a lot of it yourself.

If we don't speculate and read between the lines then what's the point in even discussing it in a forum

[Pailin]

What gets me is how many people think that incidents like this are avoided by asking permission of the owner. I too was of this belief and taught my children to never approach any dog without getting express permission from the owners. They are told not to even go "in range" without the owner's saying it is ok. I thought I was doing the right thing until my very dog savvy 9 year old had her face snapped at by a greyhound she had gotten permission to greet. It was incredibly lucky that the snap didn't actually connect but it also taught me that "permission from the owner" is giving the owner a lot of credit for knowing the limitations of their animals and is placing a lot of trust in them that they may not deserve. In my daughters case they then began to exclaim about how he had been raised around their grandson and was child friendly, they were astounded but then instructed my daughter to further invade the dogs space and pat it again! No way no how, I told her to back off immediately and told them that clearly their dog was uncomfortable and a warning like that should NEVER be ignored. I've now discussed with my children and completely changed my outlook to, we don't approach other people's dogs at all.

[Willem]

...'Madelyn had attempted to pat the dog before she was told not to, and it is when she walked away from the Jack Russell that it bit her, Ms Hungerford explained....'

...that's a quote from here My link ...

[*kirty*]

Pailin I had the same thing happen to me. My 3yo daughter asked to pat a dog, owner said yes. As my daughter went to pat it, I saw the dog back off so I stopped her. The dog then lunged at my daughter's face, missing it by centimetres. Then the woman tells me the dog doesn't really like kids??

People are so oblivious to their dog's behaviour and body language. Every time I hear stories where the owner says 'my dog has never been aggressive before' I just think 'yeah right'. I bet these dogs were stressed and over stimulated and the little girl coming close was the final straw.

[Leah82]

...'Madelyn had attempted to pat the dog before she was told not to, and it is when she walked away from the Jack Russell that it bit her, Ms Hungerford explained....'

...that's a quote from here My link ...

me thinks Ms Hungerford is back pedalling after the initial backlash because that's not mentioned in earlier articles. also it doesn't say who told the girl not to pat the dog.

believing everything you read is right up their with speculation :p

[Rascalmyshadow]

I think it's a great idea allowing dogs in more places, as a teenager my APBT went everywhere woth me on the train in the city, many shop owners knew him well and it made for a very social dog. So many stupid laws and regulations have created the mess we now have.

As for the child getting bitten maybe parents should control their kids a little better and teach them to stay away from unknown dogs, why should dog owners continually have to be on the lookout for rogue kids?

Both my kids by three years old had been taught not to approach any dog they didn't know and if an owner said it was ok I would approach the dog just to make sure first.

I hope this doesn't ruin it for everyone else.

[RiverStar-Aura]

I don't just look at the "kids shouldn't pat strange dogs without permission" perspective, I go for what I was taught as a youngster: don't touch what isn't yours. Same went for grocery shopping in that I wasn't allowed to maul the merchandise, nor was I allowed to treat shops like a playground, racetrack etc.

Having said that, I wouldn't deliberately take my dogs into Bunnings either, and they LOVE shopping. They've both been into Bunnings before because I've ducked into one a few times at night after dog training to buy bits and pieces to make agility equipment, but I've also always sought permission first. Kirah rides in the trolley (same as in Pet Barn) and Zeus walks beside me. It's very quiet, usually around 8:30pm and I was in and out within around 10 minutes.

These days I've got lockable crates in the boot of my car so I'll lock the dogs in them (with a key) leave the boot open (lock the rest of the car) and duck in. I tend to remember quick little errands (like getting a script at the chemist) on my way home from the dog park or such so it's not like I deliberately say to myself "oh I think I'll take the dogs into Typo or Smiggle for a spot of shopping".

[Kirislin]

Why are people blaming the victim? Seriously if your dog does not like being approached by children who want to pat it, don't take it to Bunnings. It is not adequately socialised. Note in the last link how the owner claims the dog had never been aggressive before but both dogs kept barking as they were leaving the store. How many times do we hear on here that some idiot claimed that their dog was friendly before it attacked their dog, and posters are up in arms about the stupidity of the attacking (friendly?) dog's owner but when it is a child that is attacked it is the child's fault. Children do silly things. That is their nature. However they should be safe from a dog attack in Bunnings.

I agree with this. The parent of the child has enough to deal with taking children with her and shopping at bunnings, now she's got biting dogs in the mix too. If people want to take their dogs to bunnings, or anywhere else, then they need to be watchful for situations like small children approaching and muzzle their dogs if they're likely to bite.

[Willem]

Why are people blaming the victim? Seriously if your dog does not like being approached by children who want to pat it, don't take it to Bunnings. It is not adequately socialised. Note in the last link how the owner claims the dog had never been aggressive before but both dogs kept barking as they were leaving the store. How many times do we hear on here that some idiot claimed that their dog was friendly before it attacked their dog, and posters are up in arms about the stupidity of the attacking (friendly?) dog's owner but when it is a child that is attacked it is the child's fault. Children do silly things. That is their nature. However they should be safe from a dog attack in Bunnings.

I agree with this. The parent of the child has enough to deal with taking children with her and shopping at bunnings, now she's got biting dogs in the mix too. If people want to take their dogs to bunnings, or anywhere else, then they need to be watchful for situations like small children approaching and muzzle their dogs if they're likely to bite.

...to make it worse and what really puzzles me: I recall a recent thread where a little bird was caught and killed by a dog in a garden and posters gave their 'poor little bird' comments - here a kid was bitten and a poster who showed so much affection for this 'unfortunate' little bird in the recent thread suggested here that 'the kids should go in leashed as well'...on the one side it is 'poor little bird' and on the other 'stupid kids...their fault...' attitude. I don't get it!

Edited November 9, 2015 by Willem

[Leah82]

Both parties were partly to blame for this accident happening

However it's unlikely children will get banned from bunnings any time soon so there are a number of people that want to make sure the dog and the dog's owner are not vilified which would likely lead to further backlash when it comes dogs in public places.

I for one am hoping this isn't one step forward, two steps back when it comes to where our dogs can and can't go

[HazyWal]

Bunnings to review the dog policy.

http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2015/nov/09/bunnings-to-review-dog-friendly-policy-after-five-year-old-girl-bitten-in-store

[Christina]

I don't know why people compare dog ownership in European countries and dog ownership here in Aus. They are like apples and oranges. Many of the European people I know through dog pages and some pet owners I know through online games are very socially responsible.

This was bound to happen due to the Aussie "she'll be right" attitude when it comes to things.

--Lhok

Growing up in the UK & being there until I was 35 I don't think its a case of socially responsible its a different attitude to wards dogs & them being much more socialised & accepted in more public places. When my son was age 8 a neighbours teenager was walking her Jack Russel on the lead. Family dog used to kids including mine. My son ran past, maybe a bit close, & the dog bit him on the leg. Minor skin break but had tetanus shot.

We didn't report it to the police & council or go overboard. Lessons learned were that the teenager needed to shorten the leash when kids were running around & my son learned don't run too close to any dog. Any dog can bite given a certain set of circumstances. Sometimes I can understand why the dog would bite & a token nip or warning growl is not the end of the world IMO. Sometimes it is how the child learns to respect the dog too. I cannot understand when a dog mauls & viciously keeps on attacking that is a completely different scenario.

Maybe the child ran too close & startled the dog. It sounds like it was a minor matter but now it probably has basically stuffed it up for all dog owners taking them in.

[Canisbellum]

Why are people blaming the victim? Seriously if your dog does not like being approached by children who want to pat it, don't take it to Bunnings. It is not adequately socialised. Note in the last link how the owner claims the dog had never been aggressive before but both dogs kept barking as they were leaving the store. How many times do we hear on here that some idiot claimed that their dog was friendly before it attacked their dog, and posters are up in arms about the stupidity of the attacking (friendly?) dog's owner but when it is a child that is attacked it is the child's fault. Children do silly things. That is their nature. However they should be safe from a dog attack in Bunnings.

I agree with this. The parent of the child has enough to deal with taking children with her and shopping at bunnings, now she's got biting dogs in the mix too. If people want to take their dogs to bunnings, or anywhere else, then they need to be watchful for situations like small children approaching and muzzle their dogs if they're likely to bite.

...to make it worse and what really puzzles me: I recall a recent thread where a little bird was caught and killed by a dog in a garden and posters gave their 'poor little bird' comments - here a kid was bitten and a poster who showed so much affection for this 'unfortunate' little bird in the recent thread suggested here that 'the kids should go in leashed as well'...on the one side it is 'poor little bird' and on the other 'stupid kids...their fault...' attitude. I don't get it!

Willem if you go to the chemist you can buy Chill Pills I suggest you buy a jumbo sized container. Clearly the kid on leash comments were jokes, although I actually think it's a good idea given that most of our dogs are better behaved than the average 5 year old

[Christina]

I must have been an awful mother :laugh:

When I had 3 children under 5 I used to put 2 on dog leads & push the baby in the pram, not around the neck though. It was the only way I could go out & be in control alone with 3 of them & we didn't have those wrist things then & they grew too big for the walking harnesses.