Chin and chest pats not the best
The ‘ chest and chin’ method for greeting dogs is outdated and dangerous, Kids Safe With Dogs’ Joanna Clough claims.
The last 10 years has seen an almost 14 per cent increase in dog bites to children under 14, and Clough says it’s getting worse.
‘‘Last year in New Zealand we had 14,024 reported dog bites - that’s 260 plus a week,’’ the Auckland vet nurse said.
Working in schools, holiday programmes, and the Whangarei and Kaipara District Councils, Clough teaches a different method to the ‘chest and chin’ approach.
When approaching a dog, Kids Safe With Dogs recommends you should always check with the owner that it’s okay; only pat the dog if it doesn’t need to be restrained; avoid touching the dog under the chin and on the chest and touch the dog on its back and sides.
Although her methods have ‘‘ruffled a few feathers’’, she believes they will decrease the number of dog bites, especially those on children.
‘‘In the late 1990s internal affairs, SPCA, dog control and Massey uni did a study that said, if you greet a strange dog you should touch it on the chin and chest,’’ Clough said.
‘‘Times have moved on and logic says, let alone new research, you don’t want to be touching a dog anywhere near its face.’’
Clough says children should be touching strange dogs on the side and back.
Clough hopes the trust will help cut the number of bites by 50 per cent by 2020. Visit petfat.co.nz for more.