You should know I'm all for supporting the puppy and think it displayed perfectly normal puppy behavior, but the above statement is not technically true. Some dogs are much more trustworthy with children than they are with adults. And a dog's level of safety within its own family does not necessarily extend to those outside its family.
But don't you think, because it's a puppy, and still too young to make the more subtle differentiations, that if it were aggressive, it wouldn't be a circumstantial type of aggressive?
The funny thing about this is that Aussies aren't often said to be the most ideal pets for families with small children, because it does have such a strong herding instinct, and is very reserved, as per the breed standard. Darwin still gets strong lessons in "NO BITE," and he's six months old as well. I had him around my two young cousins, (ages five and eight), and had to watch him carefully -- not because he's aggressive, but because he's a great deal stronger than he looks and if he gets it into his head to jump up, he'd knock those little girls clean over. They have to be very well socialized around kids.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that if the puppy was aggressive, I think he'd be a lot more unpredictable and untrustworthy.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2006-06-09 12:57 am (UTC)But don't you think, because it's a puppy, and still too young to make the more subtle differentiations, that if it were aggressive, it wouldn't be a circumstantial type of aggressive?
The funny thing about this is that Aussies aren't often said to be the most ideal pets for families with small children, because it does have such a strong herding instinct, and is very reserved, as per the breed standard. Darwin still gets strong lessons in "NO BITE," and he's six months old as well. I had him around my two young cousins, (ages five and eight), and had to watch him carefully -- not because he's aggressive, but because he's a great deal stronger than he looks and if he gets it into his head to jump up, he'd knock those little girls clean over. They have to be very well socialized around kids.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that if the puppy was aggressive, I think he'd be a lot more unpredictable and untrustworthy.