Staying Safe When You’re Out With Your Baby and You See a Loose Dog

HOW TO STAY SAFE IF YOU SEE A LOOSE DOG ON THE STREET

Recently a friend told me a story that involved a young mother, a toddler, and a loose dog. This is what happened:

It was a beautiful sunny day, and Sally decided to take her son Andrew out for a walk. There was a nice park several blocks away, and even though Andrew was only 3 years old, Sally knew he was able to walk to the park, play for an hour or more, and then walk home, as long as she let him set the pace.

They had a nice, slow walk that morning, as Andrew often stopped to examine flowers, watch squirrels, and point out things to Sally. It was a relaxed time for both of them. 

But as they got near the park, Sally noticed that on the street ahead of them there was a loose dog, alone, with no person in sight, and Sally immediately stopped to watch him, wondering what he might do if she and Andrew got closer to him.

Sally had never had a dog of her own, and she knew very little about dogs and their behavior. As she continued to watch the dog, she realized she had no way of telling if the dog was friendly, or perhaps might not like unfamiliar people getting close to him, or might even be dangerous. Even though Sally was concerned about her own safety, she was much more worried about Andrew. He was so little, and she didn’t know how to protect him from a dog who might threaten him.

The most direct route to the park was to keep walking and pass right by the dog, but Sally didn’t know if that would be safe. As she hesitated, trying to decide what to do, the dog raised his head a little and looked directly at her. Now that the dog had noticed her, Sally was even more confused. What was the dog thinking? What was he going to do next?

Then suddenly the dog began to walk toward them. This was too much for Sally, and she yelled at the dog to stop. When she yelled, the dog appeared startled, but he continued walking toward her. 

Thoroughly frightened by now, Sally grabbed Andrew’s hand and turned and walked quickly away from the dog, glancing back every few steps to see if the dog was following them. As the dog kept walking toward them, Sally told Andrew to run, and they hurried down the street. Then, to Sally’s great relief, she saw a fenced yard with an open gate. Pushing Andrew through the gate into the yard, Sally slammed the gate shut, just as the dog reached them. 

What happened next was a complete surprise to Sally, nervous and frightened as she was. The dog stopped, looked at them briefly, sniffed the air for a minute, and then continued walking down the street. 

Sally’s heart was pounding and she was still in a panic, so she decided to stay in the yard until the dog was well out of sight. As she watched the dog go farther and farther down the road, she realized that Andrew didn’t seem upset, and in fact was spending his time in the yard inspecting a small bug crawling through the grass. 

Wondering how Andrew was feeling but not wanting to scare him, Sally simply asked her son, “What did you think of that dog?”  “Nothing,” Andrew said, as he continued watching the bug. Sally heaved a sigh of relief as she realized that Andrew hadn’t been frightened by the dog the way she had!

Once Sally calmed down and the dog was out of sight, she and Andrew left the fenced yard and continued on to the park, where Andrew had a nice time playing. It was a happy ending to a stressful walk.

WHAT HAPPENED HERE?

Because Sally was unfamiliar with dogs and didn’t know how to interpret dog behavior, she couldn’t tell if the dog might be a threat to them. Confused and unsure of how to handle an encounter with a loose dog, she became frightened, especially because of her strong natural instinct to protect her child. What might Sally have done differently?

IF YOU SEE A LOOSE DOG WHEN YOU’RE OUT WALKING...

While most dogs are friendly and not potentially dangerous, it’s always safest not to approach or interact with a dog you don’t know, especially if that dog is alone. Prevention is the best way to avoid problems with an unfamiliar dog, so if you can go into a building or yard the way Sally did, so there’s a door or gate between you and the dog, do that. Otherwise, here’s a quick summary of what to do if you notice a dog on the street by himself. More details are below:

WHAT TO DO:

* Make a U-turn and walk away from the dog

* If you can pick up your baby, do it right away

* Keep walking, slowly and calmly

* If the dog gets close to you, stop and turn your side to the dog

* Turn your head to the side so you’re not looking directly at the dog

* Do your best to act calm

DO NOT:

* Run

* Stare at the dog or make eye contact

* Yell

* Wave your arms around

DETAILS FOR THE LISTS ABOVE:

Making a U-turn and walking in the opposite direction is often all that you need to do to avoid an encounter with a loose dog. Even if a U-turn means that you need to take a different route, or if you’re in a hurry and don’t want to change your route, it’s still better to spend a little extra time and keep a good distance from a dog you don’t know.

If your baby is small enough for you to pick up and carry, do so as soon as you see the dog. Dogs follow movement, and waiting until a dog is close to you and then picking up your baby could encourage the dog to jump up toward the baby. 

If the dog is at a distance from you and isn’t rushing to get to you, keep walking away, calmly. 

If the dog comes close to you, stop walking and turn your side toward the dog so you’re not facing him directly. Turn your head to the side too, so you avoid making direct eye contact with the dog. 

Do your best to appear calm. Your calm manner will be reassuring to the dog, and will help you feel less nervous too.

DETAILS FOR WHAT NOT TO DO:

DO NOT RUN!!! Dogs love to chase moving objects, and running will only encourage the dog to chase you. Dogs run fast, and chances are you won’t be able to outrun the dog anyway. 

Be careful not to stare at the dog or make direct eye contact. A direct stare can be threatening to dogs, just as it can be to people, so just watch the dog out of the corner of your eye so you know what he’s doing, without looking directly at him. 

Don’t yell at the dog, wave your hands around or gesture toward the dog, and try to stay as quiet and calm as you can. Any sound or movement may cause the dog to become excited, and the goal should be to keep the encounter as calm as possible. 

Stay still until the dog loses interest and walks away, even if it take a while for that to happen. If the dog is still watching you, back up slowly, without making eye contact. Don’t turn your back on the dog as you move away.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU GET BITTEN:

Dr. Victoria Ang-Nolasco, pediatrician, says there are just two steps you should take if you’re bitten by a dog.

1. Wash the area with soap and water, and do NOT encourage the wound to bleed. Bleeding doesn’t wash the germs out; it just spreads them around.

2. Go to a doctor, emergency room or other trauma center for treatment, within 24 hours. Dog bites can cause infections, as well as serious diseases such as rabies, so even if the dog bite is a small one, if your skin has been broken or if the wound bleeds, it should still be checked out by a doctor.

TRY NOT TO BE AFRAID OF DOGS

For thousands of years, dogs have been bred to work with people and to get along well with them. Most dogs are friendly, and the majority of dogs love people. So even though it’s easy to feel frightened when you see a loose dog, especially if you have your precious baby with you, chances are good that the dog you see will not be a threat. Following the guidelines in this article will mean that you’ll be less interesting to the dog, and he’ll probably just ignore you as he goes on his way. And if you’re walking away from him yourself, you probably won’t even see him again.

This article is all about handling an encounter with an unfamiliar loose dog on the street. But what about at home, with your own dog and baby? That’s a very different situation, and one that requires a lot of hands-on help to keep things safe and calm. For lots of suggestions to try at home, read my blog article on Safe Supervision: