Yesterday's tragic death of a four year old child at the hands of the family dog in Converse is prompting animal experts to warn parents that your dog may be cuddly, loyal, and wag its tail when you come home on the evening, but at the end of the day, that dog is still an animal and has to be treated like one, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
Shannon Sims, Assistant Director of San Antonio Animal Care Services, says dogs large and small are inbred by evolution to have animal reactions and animal behaviors, and to respect dominance and take advantage of submissiveness.
"If there is anybody in your home, like a child, or an elderly person, who can't establish that 'Alpha' relationship, they should never be left unsupervised with those animals," he said.
Sims isn't surprised that the victim was a child who was playing in his own yard, and got too close to the family's 'large mixed breed dog.
'"One thing we see all the time is that animals are twice as likely to attack a child, just due to the size," he said.
Sims is also worried about the trend of people buying large dogs to act as a deterrent against burglars."
Go to the store and buy a home security system," he said. "It will be cheaper than feeding and caring for a dog, and will be safer in the long run."