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Old August 15th, 2005, 09:04 PM
Yoho Yoho is offline
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Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Rainbow Country, Ontario
Posts: 19
Post How to deal with a bite.

I want to post this little blurb based on my recent experience when my baby was bitten by a dog. The event was made much more difficult for me because I was living in a fantasy world in which that sort of thing wasn't going to happen. The fact is that I was so completely terrified by the thought of such a thing happening, that I didn't think of how to respond properly. This was simply ignorance.

I'm hoping that if I share this information, somebody who reads it will benefit.

First of all, it is critical to avoid the dog bite. Experts recommend that you never leave a child and a dog alone together.
Unfortunately, even supervised dogs will bite children under unexpected circumstances. Just because the owner is holding the dog's collar does not mean your child is safe.

Second of all, ANY bite that draws blood / breaks the skin (Cat, Dog, or Human) requires anti-biotic treatment. If a visit to the emergency is not warranted based on the size of the cut, go to a doctor within a day to get a prescription to prevent infection. Infected cuts scar.

Thirdly, If you don't know the vaccination history of the dog you must report the dog and the event to the authorities for rabies testing. If the dog is a stray, the bitten person will require rabies shots.

Fourth of all, if this happens to your child remember that your immediate instinct is that of a mother bear with her cub. You will be ready to attack and out for revenge. Calm down before you start blaming everybody and attacking the dog. It is important to try and be a civilized human being even when something uncivilized and inhuman occurs.

Fifthly, try not to make a big deal in front of the child that may make the child more afraid. Don't expect the dog to be punished after the fact if it was provoked. Obedience lessons with the dog and the child (if they are to live together) from a professional trainer are a good idea.

Finally, I hope this never happens to you. Maybe if you realize that it happens quite often and that dog bites are the second most common reason for children to visit the hospital, you will realize that you
******MUST WATCH YOUR CHILDREN WITH DOGS******.
It doesn't matter how cute, nice, well-trained, friendly, well-known, or small the dog is... any dog can bite a child under circumstances. I just wish someone had told me this before it happened to me.

I hope you never have to deal with this problem yourself.

Thanks to everybody who wrote to me.
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