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Letter & response

1999, Journal of Pediatric Health Care

To the Editor: In her article “Anticipatory Guidance: Having a Dog in the Family” (March/ April 1998, vol 12, No. 2), Loretta Iazzetti omitted some critical information about dog bites and living safely with dogs. The data we have about dog bites are incomplete; no research has included information about dog behavior or human behavior prior to and around the incident, and dog demographics are scant and biased. While veterinary behaviorists admit to knowing very little about the complexities of dog behavior, they have new ideas about how canine social systems work, which will dramatically change the way we look at dog behavior and the interaction of dogs and people. All of this renders us poorly equipped at present to draw any conclusions about which dogs will bite and when they will bite. Counseling strategies not included in Ms. Iazzetti’s article should be the highlights of anticipatory guidance for any family in the market for a dog. These strategies include the following: Question the family about why they want a dog; many human expectations frankly bode poorly for the well-be.mg of the dog. Ascertain if one adult is able to bear full responsibility for the dog, including provision of adequate exercise and full-time supervision around all children. Inform the family that control and mastery have no place in truly humane treatment of dogs, whose social systems are based on deference to each other, not on dominance. The family’s job is to learn how to get their dog to want to defer to them; control over a dog is about a person’s need, not about the relationship with the dog. The ultimate responsibility for dog bite prevention lies in the hands of the owner, upon whom it is incumbent to know and understand his or her dog, to accept its individual limits and strengths, and to avoid potentially dangerous situations. Molly Love,MSN, CRhP Haverford, Pa Response from the Author Ms. Love is correct in stating that veterinary behaviorists know very little about the complexities of dog behavior; this is because most veterinarians are not trainers. They do not spend 7 days per J Pediatr Health Care. (1999). Copyright 94 +0 Loretta lazzeffi, MS, RN, CPNP 73, 94. 0 1999 by the National Association 0099-l 767/99/$8.00 week, 3 to 4 times per day for 3 to 4 months retraining problem dogs. Most veterinary behaviorists are ready to prescribe Prozac, Valium, or Acepromazine to decrease aggressive behavior or dog bites. These drugs make the dog slower to react, but the dog can and will still bite-it does not prevent or solve the problem. Asking family members why they desire a dog does not prevent a family from buying or adopting a dog. In addition, having one family member constantly supervising the dog’s interaction with children is not likely to happen in today’s busy families. Rather, having a dog trained with mutual respect so it can be trusted around all family members is far better. Deference or submission is based on fear. Servitude (a dog’s innate willingness to obey and serve humankind) is based on mutual respect and trust. For a better understanding of this type of training philosophy, please see JeZZybean‘ueysus Dr. Jekyll b Mr. Hyde: Written for the safety of ow children and the we&are ofottv dogs by C.W. Meisterfeld. of Pediatric Nurse Associates & Practitioners. 25/8/92880 March/April 1999