Animal Safety
Teaching your children how to get along with dogs is important for their own safety
STOP DOG BITES BEFORE THEY EVEN HAPPEN
Dogs don’t understand that biting people is wrong. Dogs often bite when they are scared or trying to protect themselves. In order to prevent being bitten by a dog, we all need to understand: • How dogs are feeling. • How to approach known
and strange dogs safely. • When it is safe to approach or interact with a dog – and when it is not.
HOW TO ACT AROUND DOGS
DOGS YOU KNOW • Teach your children to play with your dogs while they are still puppies – and do so yourself. This will help to socialise them and ensure they are not scared of people, as this kind of play gets them used to having humans handle them. • Learn to communicate with your pets and teach your children to do so too. Dogs who have been trained will know how to behave around people. • Be sure to sterilise your pets. Unsterilised males may be more aggressive, and multiple pregnancies take their toll on unsterilised females.
If you are bitten, do not pull away! Hold still – and if you fall, roll into a ball by tucking you arms and legs in.
DOGS YOU DON’T KNOW • Teach your child to stay away from dogs he doesn’t know. This includes strange dogs that are chained or secured behind fences. • Teach your child to stand still and keep quiet when a strange dog runs towards him. Once the dog has sniffed your child and starts walking away, he can walk slowly in the opposite direction. He must not run away from a dog. • Your child should never tease, chase or throw things at animals. • Teach your child that he should never disturb a dog while it is eating, sleeping or feeding its puppies. • Never hit, kick or shout
at dogs. • Keep away from dogs that
are behaving strangely.
WHAT ABOUT RABIES?
Rabies is a virus that affects only mammals and most commonly occurs in dogs. The virus lives in the saliva of affected animals and enters the body through bites or the licking of wounds. Rabies can only be prevented through vaccinating our animals against it – once the symptoms of rabies appear, there is no way to treat it.
If you or your child are bitten by an animal, and especially if you think the animal has rabies: • Wash the wound immediately with running water and soap for 15 minutes. • Take your child (or your self) to a clinic or hospital for a rabies vaccination.