dog scratches

[schoolnursejennie]

today a student came in with dog scratches all over his neck, arms, and hands. according to the aide that brought him in this is an ongoing problem. i am new to the school and have only been there for 3 days. i cleansed the scratches and put band aids over them. i made a note to call home to discuss this with his parents but there was a lot of drama afterwards concerning a pencil point in a students palm plus a state report i have due in a few days, and the dog scratch student got lost in the shuffle and i unfortunately forgot to call home. the aide told me that she and the teachers have called home about this problem before and the mother sees no problem with it, she says they are just "playing." does anybody have any advice? if i call home, what can i say to convince the mother that his not normal behavior nor is it acceptable? thanks i really appreciate it.

[brownbook]

Really depends on a lot. Are the scratches deep and bleed easily?

Perhaps it is a new puppy/dog and this is just normal playing. It is normal for young dogs to tussle, wrestle, play, and their claws and teeth can unintentionally scratch during play.

I don't really see it as "not normal behavior" and think it might be self limiting as the puppy grows out of this behavior.

However if the scratches are relatively deep and or this continues over a month or so I would think another call to the parents would be in order.

To be honest I'd be more concerned that the dog is not being well trained than that any harm would come to the child. You could tell the parents you will need to contact animal services if the child continues to come to school with scratches.

Again I don't know how bad these scratches are.

[schoolnursejennie]

the scratches appear to be superficial; however, it is not just one or two. there are A LOT of them...the ones on the hands and arms don't concern me so much as the ones on the neck. i just feel that that's a particularly vulnerable area, especially so close to the eyes. i don't know if it's a puppy or full grown dog. the student is autistic and it is hard to get information out of him. also, the student picks at the scabs that form so the wounds are constantly being reopened. today he came in with multiple scratches and scratched off scabs without any band-aids on them and they were not properly cleansed. i'm new to school nursing. is this a cause for concern or just a kid who plays with his dog?

[brownbook]

Really, REALLY, tough call. The dog may be a good intervention/therapy for the child.

Maybe let the parents know the scabs and bleeding are causing a problem. Ask the parents if they have ideas how to train the dog? Or let them know of dog training classes in the area?

Is it possible for a public health nurse and or animal control officer to assess the home? Hopefully they would go out with an open mind and ideas how to limit the scratches, dogs can be trained. As opposed to harsh, "we need to get this dog out of here" attitudes.

[Jolie, BSN]

My concern would be related to scratches on the face, head and neck which would indicate that the child is not being taught how to play safely with the puppy.

I don't know this child's level of understanding or communication, but would ecnourage you to find some resources on safety related to ANY child playing with/petting a dog.

I once owned a very large dog, who was a sweetie, but due to his size, I insisted on training for my family, and taught all people who approached us NOT to pet without asking, always to allow the dog to sniff the person's hand first, and NEVER, for anyone, not even my family, to place their face near the dog's face.

Perhaps you could speak to the parents along this line, and encourage them to discuss this with their vet and/or a dog trainer.

I love dogs and would never want a child to be harmed by one. I'm afraid this child may be set up for a bad encounter with his puppy/dog if he somehow startles or unintentionally frightens the dog.

[Purple_Scrubs, BSN, RN]

It is hard to say without seeing them. Is this the kind of scratches that just raise the skin up without the skin being broken, or are they open wounds? If it is the former, I would not worry about it. I have sensitive skin and I get those when I roughhouse with my dog, and it usually takes about a day for them to fade so if I were to play roughly with him daily, they would pretty much always be there. If they are actual open, bleeding wounds, then I would talk to the parents and let them know it is a risk for infection, and at minimum insist that they cover the wounds with bandaids before the student comes to school. Once they have to spend 10 minutes every morning plastering the kid with bandaids for a few weeks, they will either get the dog trained, or monitor the play more closely. The dog might just need a nail trim too!