UPDATE: As I
mentioned in the
comments that I
initially posted
with this video,
based on our
dog's
extensive
training,
temperament, and
exceeding
(
more)
UPDATE: As I mentioned in the comments that I initially posted with this video, based on our dog's extensive training, temperament, and exceedingly gentle previous interactions with the baby (which are shown in our other videos), under our close supervision, we did not perceive that there was any realistic risk of harm to the baby by allowing her to try to take a bone from the dog. In contrast, a handful of visitors apparently strongly believed that we were putting the baby in imminent danger in this video.
Although I disagreed with those visitors' comments, based on those comments, I contacted the dog's trainer about the video and about the nature of the interaction shown in the video, as the trainer is specifically familiar with our dog's training and temperament. In short, based on her specific experience with our dog and other dogs, the trainer agreed with me that it's unlikely that the dog would harm the baby -- and in her opinion, the dog was not exhibiting any signs of stress or irritation in the video that would lead her to believe that the baby was at any risk of harm during that interaction. That said, she cautioned that a dog's "resource guarding" instinct cannot be 100% bred or trained away, and that a dog's tolerance for someone taking its resources can change over time as the dog develops and ages. Because of that, she cautioned that just because the dog is tolerant of such behavior now does not mean that he'll be so tolerant of such behavior in the coming months. So, particularly while the baby is so young, the trainer conservatively recommended against allowing the baby to take anything from the dog's mouth. Moreover, we intend to follow that recommendation -- so rest assured, we will not allow the baby to interact with the dog again in the way that's shown in this video.
Although I wish the detractors had been a bit more constructive and less alarmist in their comments, I do ultimately appreciate their concern, and I learned a little something from it. So, thank you.
Originally collected by
fetching...
(
less)
