Children walking dogs...

I walk my dog 2-3 times a day, and what annoys me more than anything is seeing young children walking dogs they have no control over.

I'm not trying to be argumentative but, it just seems to be quite a big problem where I live.

I have a Rottweiler 12st 3lbs. He is a big dog, but I am absolutely confident in that I have absolute control over him at all times. If I say "sit" he sits. When he sees another dog out on a walk he sits without having to be told, etc.

But a couple of times, there has been a young child taking their dog out on a walk in the moors - their dog is not on a lead. I sit with my dog patiently while I wait for the child to get their dog and put them on a lead.
Either their dog runs towards me and tries to attack my dog or the kid can't run after or verbally command their dog.

I just wonder what other people think about children walking dogs? And if they have children of their own, if they let them walk them without supervision.

I mainly get annoyed because, as dogs not on the lead approach my dog, he - naturally - puts his guard dog head on and could easily defend me and himself in this situation - but being a Rottweiler, it would somehow be made into his fault. This actually happened not that long ago when a young girl walking a Jack Russell couldn't control or run after it and it wet straight for my dog. My dog got very aggressive (but didn't bite or anything like that - he knows better) and her parents came to my house saying my dog was to blame. NO. They were to blame for letting their child walk a dog she had no control over.

I know this is a bit of a long rant - but most of my friends don't have and have never had a dog so I don't get to rant or discuss these kinds of things very often...

Also, sorry if this offends anyone - it's not meant to..

This is a tricky one for me because when i was younger i always used to walk the dogs and did most the trainning with them. They were better behaved for me then my parents in fact

That being said when we are out now in the park we do see kids with dogs they have no control over and it is worrying. My dogs are fine with others but there are some that are not and how would a kid cope with that?

I think maybe its one of those things that has to be taken on a case by case basis

Oh this is a subject so very close to my heart!!

When I worked in boarding kennels the rule for several years was no children allowed in the kennels, let alone walking them.

Once the kennel owner had her own child, everything changed..............for the worst. Sense went out of the window.

There were so many near accidents, and also real accidents, due to small children being allowed to walk dogs. They just do not have the perception of danger; the attention span, or the strength, to cope with even a small dog.

I will refrain from endless anecdotes but suffice it to say........small children + walking dogs..........NOOOOOOOOOOOOO.

Thanks for that...

Finally people who understand what I'm talking about..


Usually the only feedback I get is that I must not like children ! lol

'There were so many near accidents, and also real accidents, due to small children being allowed to walk dogs. They just do not have the perception of danger; the attention span, or the strength, to cope with even a small dog.

I will refrain from endless anecdotes but suffice it to say........small children + walking dogs..........NOOOOOOOOOOOOO'

Was going to voice my opinion but you have done it for me. Completely agree with you. Gill

I agree with you mainly as it worries me when I see children with dogs and I always avoid them to be honest.... but, I walked my old English Setter from the age of 11/12 on my own.... she was great though and I was pretty sensible, not at 15 though when me and my friend took her on a 3 - 4 hour walk through the woods and ended up at my Grandma's... I got told off as I hadn't told anyone...

The Dogs Trust does not allow any child under 16 to take any of their dogs out for walks, either as a voluntary dog walker, or as a potential rehomer. If a family come to visit a dog & take it for a walk, the staff always tell the family that the adults must be holding the lead. Despite this, I often see families in the park next to the kennels & the young child is holding the lead. And this is with a dog that they haven't got a clue about, not even the familiar family pet!

On one occasion I saw a child of about 9 or 10 holding a DT collie X on a flexi, with mum & dad looking proudly on. Another dog owner threw a ball across the park, the DT collie X shot after it, the child was dragged along the ground, dropped the flexi lead, which promptly wrapped itself around the dog's legs. The dog panicked & bolted across the park, & over the road. How the traffic avoided this dog, I don't know. I put my dogs on leads & went after the fleeing dog & managed to catch it on the forecourt of a petrol station where it was shaking & quivering. The flexi lead had cut it's leg & there was blood everywhere. I took the dog back to the DT, where I saw the family talking to the staff, with the child still in tears & a grazed knee.

The parents were very cross that the DT had allowed them to take out this dog with no warning about it's behaviour. It was kindly pointed out to them that they had been told NOT to allow the child to hold the lead. As I had witnessed the whole incident, I was asked to say what had happened, mostly so the staff had more info on the dog's behaviour. I couldn't stop myself from pointing out to the parents that they were lucky their child only had a grazed knee. Their actions in allowing their child to hold the dog's lead could have lead to that dog losing it's life! They seemed suitably sorry after that & left ~ probably to try their luck at the RSPCA!

Another point in a child being responsible for a dog is the insurance. I bet many insurances would be invalid if a minor was supposedly in charge of a dog that attacked another dog, or bit a person, or caused an accident.

This annoys me to!!!!

No way would I let a child walk a mediun/biggish or misbehaved dog! Or ANY dog unsupervised! I wouldn't let any child walk either of mine just incase something happened.

I work for a rescue and in the rehoming contract it says that the dogs (akitas) must never be walked by minors (under 16yr olds) alone.

I think this depends on the child the dog and the enviroment they are walking in. I got my first lab at 11 and i was soley responsible for its care. We never had an incident where i couldnt control my dog.

I would say it can depend. I grew up walking the family dogs - big GSDs, but this was usually with one parent and over the private land we lived next to, and this was on-lead. The dogs were very well trained, not reactive or anything.
I owned my previous GSD, a dog-agressive/reactive 35kg bitch who was VERY strong (as a puppy, she dragged me across the car park of our training class because my mum had gone in without us ) when I was 16. I soon learnt the need to keep her under control and double ended leads and headcollars became my friends, I kept a muzzle on me just incase, and she was never off-lead unless I was 100% sure the area was secure and no one would interupt us. She never attacked another dog, never went missing, and the one person that did get a little frightened by us (I'd just have to bump into the one dog owner with a GSD phobia around the corner of a narrow footpath, wouldn't I? but still, Prue was on-lead, nothing actually happened other than a lunge at her dog), I did the polite thing and caught up with her on the next walk to apologise and explain the situation, which she was fine with. At 16, was I an adult or a child? I had a job, I paid for her, she was my responsibility, but I couldn't go out and get a credit card or get pet insurance in my name. If I was a year younger, would I have been criticised for it? Two years? Infact, I probably get people judging me now, because I'm a shorty and don't bother with much makeup, which doesn't help with my young looking face, I got asked whether I wanted an adult or a child ticket at the cinema last week So who knows what goes through people's minds when they see me barefaced, in jogging bottoms and a hoody, walking two large dogs.
I would really judge it on the dog/person/situation, it's fact that a large breed is usually stronger than a smaller dog, so a hyper, reactive or untrained GSD being walked by a child is going to ring more alarm bells than a Jack Russell. However, a well trained, nonreactive Great Dane kept sensibly on-lead, and perhaps with a headcollar for safety, with a sensible teenager might be more under control by the child than an off-lead Chihuahua walked by a group of kids distracting each other, that might cause havock in the local park by running up to strange dogs and causing scraps. Infact, I'm sure there are lots of teenagers with better trained dogs that I'd rather bump into than some out of control dogs with dippy adult walkers not paying attention to their pet leaping all over my dog-reactive one. I was actually a bit of a situation when I was 16 with said dog-aggressive GSD mentioned above, where a 30+ year old woman refused to recall her dog when mine was sat calmly next to me while I shouted ahead to explain she was aggressive and could she pop her dog on-lead for a minute while we passed. The woman was the one who copped the hump, threw a paddy and, after I just marched past with my dog on a very short lead hoping her dog had the sense to steer clear, she actually chased me to call me names. I certainly know who was the more mature one in that situation!