GA - Man Swats Boy For Grabbing His Kitty

[Sonya610]

Respectfully BBM.

No, not if an adult lay a hand on my child: Hell, No. I would go at them if I felt my children were in danger.

But...Yes, when other children in the sandbox, etc. swatted my children. Yes. No hands-by me on the other child. No way. And if my toddler, child struck back-I would verbally correct them (my child). No hands. Use your words. Call an adult, etc.

In a vet's office the kid should have been under her direct control at all times; vet offices are dicey places with potential high drama. The man was irritable, the cat was stressed, the child was hyper and obnoxious, the mom was letting the "rest of the world" raise her kid.

Bad situation all around. The mom should have been minding her child, and when a slightly embarrassing situation took place because she wasn't minding her child she NEVER should have called 911.

The kid wasn't hurt and wouldn't even remember this. The mother was the offended/embarrassed/injured party here.

 

[epiphany]

FWIW, a swat on a child's behind isn't hitting. The swat causes the child to be a bit shocked and maybe a bit embarrassed but isn't harmful. We are not talking about physical abuse here. This is most likely the only discipline this child has ever received and I hope he remembers it the next time someone tells him the word, NO!

If I want to teach my child/children that no adult, nor authority figure, nor family member has a right to lay a hand on him/her-not a one of them-unless in self-defense, IMO, I cannot support any adult laying a finger on another's child.

I want/wanted that lesson ingrained in my children. In order to get that message across early and to teach my children to speak out about that: no adult is allowed to physically discipline you in such a manner-with their hands, however lightly-there is no justification for an adult to lay one's hand on you. Period.

 

[jjenny]

If I want to teach my child/children that no adult, nor authority figure, nor family member has a right to lay a hand on him/her-not a one of them-unless in self-defense, IMO, I cannot support any adult laying a finger on another's child.

I want/wanted that lesson ingrained in my children. In order to get that message across early and to teach my children to speak out about that: no adult is allowed to physically discipline you in such a manner-with their hands, however lightly-there is no justification for an adult to lay one's hand on you. Period.

Well if you are going to ingrain in your children that no authority figure has a right to touch him or her-what is going to happen if you have to take your child through TSA?

 

[epiphany]

Well if you are going to ingrain in your children that no authority figure has a right to touch him or her-what is going to happen if you have to take your child through TSA?

I believe that a parent or an adult trusted by parent should be there with child. Same as with a pediatrician. A parent teaching the child, as he/she develops, doesn't end in a decade or even in the early-mid teens. Needs to be addressed and re-addressed according to what child/teen can understand and can take in. It's work. That's parenting. Not advocating excessive fear or disobedience. Healthy understanding that the child's body is his/her own. No hands on you by other adults. No secrets asked to be kept by you by other adults. They learn to distinguish. They learn through being able to communicate with the parent. MOO

ETA: Harder on the parent/s who raise a kid who will respectfully challenge adults/authority figures.

 

[LunaticFringe]

Okay, maybe he shouldn't have swatted the kid, but as a cat owner, and being that I love my cat more than most humans?? If someone allowed their child near my cat, who just had surgery, you better bet I'm going to yell at the kid to get the h$#% away from my cat! Oh my nieces have been swatted for going near my cat when my cat didn't want to be bothered and when they bothered her and came crying to me about her scratching them, I told them they deserved it. Children, a lot of them, do not know how to handle animals nicely. They don't realize that they are not toys. They are living, breathing, feeling creatures.

I feel a lot worse for the cat then I do the kid!

MOO

I'm a cat owner too.I would have done the same thing you would have.I would have gone a bit futher and told the child that if he didn't stop that a big monster was going to come out from under his bed and eat him during the night.And I wouldn't have been smiling either.