Dogs are lovely. Most of us agree on that. And so, sometimes, you might want to cuddle every single dog you encounter. Run towards that cutie and pet him. Just like some kids do when they see a dog.

But is a kid running to pet a dog they don’t know a good action? This question circled quite a lot of online folks’ minds after this viral tweet. A woman tweeted about blocking a 3-year-old kid from running toward her dog and left the people in her replies divided about whether she was right or not.

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The woman tweeted about a situation where she blocked a kid from running toward her dog to pet it

Image credits: Eren Özdal (not the actual photo)

A tweet in which a woman described a situation of a kid running towards her dog and her blocking the girl went quite viral. In it, she argued that kids should be told not to run to dogs they don’t know by saying, “If she isn’t on voice recall, maybe she should be leashed?” 

The tweet was posted by X profile @AbortionChat, which was created by Lynne Schmidt, a mental health professional, poet, and author. On this account, she comments on various topics,  from pop culture to reproductive rights and, of course, dogs. Currently, the account has over 7K followers.

Image credits: AbortionChat

She told the girl that kids shouldn’t approach dogs they don’t know, especially by running towards them

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The tweet quickly turned into a prompt for an online discussion. Should kids be allowed to run to dogs they don’t know? 

A lot of people in the replies under the tweet seemed to agree with the post’s author. They were wondering why parents tend to get mad when they get told to teach their kids about appropriate behavior with dogs, especially ones they don’t know. 

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The girl’s parent argued that she’s only 3 years old, which prompted the tweet’s author to say that maybe the kid should be leashed if they don’t understand ‘voice recall’

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Quite a few people even agreed with the OP’s sentiment about leashing kids. They joked that, in some cases, this can be the only fitting solution to uncontrollable kids. In the replies, there was also a person who was leashed as a kid. They said that they supported this message, as a leash is good for kids who tend to wander. 

At the same time, not everyone rushed to agree with the whole tweet. Some didn’t agree with the whole idea behind the post. Others at least partially agreed with the message, but they said that the OP chose an improper way to deliver it, as it came off as rude. Sadly, some even brought in the topic of abortions to hate on the author, likely prompted by the account’s name.

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This situation sparked the online discussion about whether kids should be taught to not run to dogs they don’t know

Image credits: Samson Katt (not the actual photo)

So, you might wonder what’s the answer — who’s right in this discussion? Should kids be allowed to approach dogs without any restrictions? Well, experts agree that a kid, before approaching an unknown dog, needs to always ask for the owner’s permission. Even if the dog is on a leash, asking first is always a proper move. 

Also, running towards the dog isn’t advised either. In fact, a kid (or any person, actually) should wait for the dog to come to them. This shows the dog’s willingness to interact, making the dog less likely to hurt the person. 

Image credits: amazeydazey

Then, when a dog comes nearby, a person should keep looking for certain signs that might suggest distress in a dog. Since such distress could cause an animal to bite. And, well, no one wants that. Some of these signs can include: 

• Raised fur along the back; 
• Tense body posture; 
• Growling; 
• A high, stiffly wagging tail. 

Image credits: kari_tacoma

So, we can probably agree that, in a way, the tweet’s author was right — kids shouldn’t approach random dogs. After all, dogs are animals, and sometimes, they act in a way we can’t anticipate. And it’s parents’ responsibility to instill this behavior in their children, no one else’s. Of course, maybe the author expressed her thoughts a bit harshly, but sometimes, only harsh remarks make an impression on people. 

People in the replies were divided about the answer — some argued that kids should be taught this lesson, while others argued that dog owners should take responsibility

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