I agree. Dogs are Not to blame. Sometimes its the owner of the dog or the parent of the child. Far too many kids are allowed to climb on their dogs, pull and tug on them, dress them up, drag them around by their leashes, nearly strangle them while trying to hug them, poking and hitting them. Parents allow this. Unfortunately, either their dog lashes out when they have had enough or the child uses the same behavior on a less tolerant dog. It is our job as dog owners to keep the environment for our dogs safe and as stress free as possible. And it is our job as parents to teach our kids how to properly interact with our dogs and others dogs. If the child is too young or incapable of treating a dog properly, then extra supervision or separation is required. We need to have responsible dog owners and responsible parents.
I am going through this myself and i am trying to do the very best i can to keep both my dog safe and others. My dog is an 11 year old miniature schnauzer and has was always great with my kids, however he is not intolerant of my grandson and other little kids anymore. I dont know if this is just a progression with age or triggers that have changed. My dog seems to have fear driven aggression that is unpredictable. He has never bitten but he will go after their feet or legs like he attacks the vacuum cleaner. I kind of feel like i didnt see some of the signs leading up to this that i should have. I believe there are small signs that as dog owners we sometimes overlook that preceed an incident. Sometimes these are over a long period of time or sometimes happen rather quickly before they lash out. Things like, hair raising, yawning, pulling away, hiding, tucking tail, turning their head, excessive paw licking, digging, panting, clinging to you. Its hard sometimes when you want to know what is behind a behavior or reaction that your dog has. I know i have wanted so much to help my dogs with their issues as anxiety in dogs is tough sometimes.

i love puppyes do you.

With dog behavior, context is very important. In a situation involving children, I would get help from a good professional trainer. A trainer can observe our dog, read his body language, learn his temperament and routine, as well as come up with a safe plan for retraining.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/

With my dogs, I always have them on-leash and supervise very closely when there are children around. I do not let them meet fearful children, or overly excitable children. I protect them from negative encounters, and only let them meet calm people that they can greet successfully. The more positive encounters they have with people, the more comfortable they will be around people, and vice versa.
http://shibashake.com/dog/my-dog-is-friendly

I also do people desensitization exercises with them, on-leash and in a structured environment, to raise their reactivity threshold, and help them associate people with positive experiences.

While I am doing retraining, I make sure to always keep my dog below his instinct threshold, so that he does not keep practicing his aggressive behavior. I put him on a leash before guests enter, and I use distance to weaken the “other people” stimulus. Then I slowly practice desensitization in calm, structured, and safe way – using a very secure leash and no-slip collar. Sometimes, people may also use a basket muzzle for added safety.

When children are involved, it is best to do training under the direction and supervision of a good professional trainer.

Hello Amanda,

Did something change over the past month that triggered this behavior? Does he growl all of the time when she is near? Does he only growl when there are toys around? Does he only growl when they are playing?

A sudden behavior change like that usually arises from some trigger – some change to the routine. The more we can understand what the cause is, the better we will be able to retrain and redirect the behavior.

When there are kids around, I always have my dogs on-leash so that I have good control of them. I only allow greetings when everyone is calm. I also have very clear people-interaction rules that I teach to my dogs, for example no jumping and no mouthing.

If my dog gets overly excited, and starts to jump, I no-mark the behavior and bring him away. Distance helps to weaken the strength of the stimulus and helps to calm him down. Once he is calm, we can try again. Here is a bit more on people desensitization exercises.

When it comes to aggression issues though, it is best to get help from a professional trainer. Dog behavior is highly contextual and it helps when a trainer can read the dog’s body language, evaluate his temperament, identify what is triggering the behavior, and come up with a safe plan for retraining the behavior.

Yeah, sadly it is always the dog that gets blamed and the dog that has to pay the ultimate price.
http://shibashake.com/dog/why-dogs-attack