i say it's unfortunate b/c it could have been prevented.it doesn't qualify as an "accident" really b/c it could have been prevented so easily.
this mother will never forgive herself. it would be impossible to try.
i called TJ in a complete melt down this evening. barely able to sob out the story below.i'm sure i scared him to death. i'm sure he wondered what i had done to little tj to be stammering thru the following statement:
"all's i can say is that no matter HOW BAD of a mother i ever think i am, no matter how frustrated or tired or annoyed i get with my son, i will always find comfort in knowing that when my child is awake so am i.he is never left unattended."
of course he didn't say i was crazy or upset over nothing. i'm sure he wondered why i took it so personally to have not even known the family responsible - but our child is around the same age as the one in the story. i know what my sons limits are.as well as his capabilities. and they are great. advanced enough that he needs to be watched at all times when he is awake.
this mother slept while her 18month old son wandered outside into the backyard where there was a pit bull tied up that the family was watching for a friend.(a different news story reported the dog was also pregnant)
the dog attacked and killed the child.
reporters stated "he had been dead for a while when the mom found him."
how does your kid wake up and you not know? i know at this age not all families use a baby monitor but i still do. and i hear every peep teege makes. i can even hear him suck his thumb if the volume is up loud enough.(this boy must have been in a toddler bed and not a crib.teege hasn't even tried to climb out of his crib.i don't see how you would miss knowing that your kid could do something like that though.so he must have been in a regular bed and just got himself up)
but how do they get outside without you knowing? i don't know about most 18 month old, but teege is 17 months and can hardly reach the door knob, let alone turn it. why wasn't the door locked? i wonder if it was a sliding door. that would be the only way teege could open a door was an unlocked sliding door that he could just push aside.
and last off all: where was the mother during all of this? how does your child just start wandering the house without anyone knowing? toddlers are not quiet creatures. he was bound to be babbling up a storm. and probably hungry.teege would have been very fussy/loud to be up all alone with nothing to eat.it was almost the middle of the day.and she was still sleeping. and now her baby is gone forever.i just don't see how much of an accident this really could have been.i'm not saying they set it up or did it on purpose at all, but there are just things you do as a mother to keep your kids safe.random mindless things like locking all the doors.or covering all the outlets.or putting down the lid on the toilet seat.
who are we as parents if we fail to keep our kids safe? what are we?
is my house 100% baby proof? no.but i damn sure don't leave my kid around any open doors unattended.are all my doors always locked when he's up? no. but he's never left in a room by himself. i even drag him to the bathroom with me.
AND if i'm going to leave him unattended for any amount of passable time he goes in his crib with toys, or in his completely baby safe room with the door closed to play, or i put up the baby gates so he is confined to one area before he's officially off my radar. and even then my ears are completely open!!
i don't feel sorry for her. i can't. i'm furious at her. that poor poor baby! there was just so much that could have been done to prevent this. and she can never take it back.
i posted a news link if you wanna read it. there's not much info other than what i already said.
i wonder if she'll get in to any trouble.child endangerment/neglect or anything. seriously, even if your kid can get in and out of his own bed shouldn't they at least be in there with the door closed so no harm befalls them before you know they're awake? teege always goes to bed and the door gets closed. at least that way if he does ever decides to climb from his crib he is still confined to his room til he is let out by me.
http://www.keyetv.com/news/local/story/Mother-slept-while-Luling-toddler-was-mauled/U-nXA1kWuUu4-LlBqDhuVA.cspx
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5 comments:
That is so horribly tragic. While I feel bad for the motherand know she will never be able to forgive herself, I can't help but wonder, like you said, how she did not hear anything. I mean, not to sound crass, but it couldn't have been quiet. How did no one else hear anything? And like you how, how did he get in the backyard? An accident I can understand, but that is downright neglect. It's the same way with people with pools who don't watch their kids. We had another toddler drown this weekend in a backyard pool. Third one already this year. I can't wrap my mind around how it happens.
both of our back yard neighbors have pools.but one couple has grown kids and the other kids are atleast like jr high age. that is so sad. if we had a pool -with small kids running around -the back door would remain locked at all times unless we were all outside together! no ifs and or buts.
common sense ppl! snap in to it! i wouldn't be caught dead keeping someone's pitbull -no matter how docile it may seem-with small kids in the house. it's too big of a risk. and though the dogs ownder has agreed to put the dog down that won't bring the little boy back, and well - the poor dog!! i mean, she was probably just trying to protect herself. i've watched teege around our dogs and he can be pretty mean without meaning to be.if the dog was indeed pregnant like some of the articles say she was just protecting her home for her babies.AND the articles also say the dog wasn't known to have violent nature of any kind. but like i said, female dogs take on a whole different personality when they are expecting. i know i do!
and now the dog will be put to sleep.
it's just such a sad incident.
The dog's owner shouldn't have to agree to put the dog down. The dog was in the woman's care, on her property, and in her yard, which makes it HER responsibility, according to state law. While it's a noble gesture on the owner's part, it is hardly the solution.
shades - i agree. i was waiting! wondering what you would have to say on the matter. definately not the poor dog's owner's fault -certainly not the solution to the problem. watching your kid would be sure to put an end to most/if not all dangerous instances.
it's just a shame. for the baby and the dog.
What horror. I can't even imagine! I agree that it's ridiculous that the dog owner is being punished - my parents' dog has snapped at kids who sneak up on her or pulled her hair, but never more than that. If she were pregnant? Who knows!
Also, I can't imagine how the mom slept through it. I used to baby-sit my cousin's son when I first moved back to Pittsburgh. He was 3 at the time and I used to take naps with him in the same bed, I was so paranoid about him waking up. I would curl around him on his mom's bed, stroke his hair or forehead until he fell asleep, and then doze myself. If he so much as MOVED I knew.
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