Teach dog safety rules in schools says expert

An animal welfare expert says teaching children how to deal safely with dogs should be a compulsory subject at school.

Natalie Waran, professor of animal welfare at Unitec, says banning dog breeds considered dangerous in Britain has not reduced the number of dog attacks there.

Guest speaker at the New Zealand Companion Animal Workshop, attended by more than 100 delegates in Nelson this week, she said teaching children how to interpret the signals and behaviour of dogs would produce better results.

Research had shown children aged 4 to 6 decided on a dog's feelings by looking at its face rather than its posture or movements, which meant they could misinterpret a dog's signals.

"They might perceive a friendly looking dog and therefore want to hug it or pet it, but if the dog is scared or anxious it might respond by biting as a defence mechanism," she said.

Professor Waran said United States research showed dog bite injuries were the second most common injury to children at accident and emergency departments after softball injuries and were estimated to cost over a US$1 billion ($1.44 billion) a year.

Children should not be left alone with dogs because it was impossible to predict what an unsupervised child might do.

- NZPA