Well that is unfortunate. Some dogs just aren't good around kids. I didn't let my younger German Shepherd around children until he was two years old and I knew for certain that he would be fine with them and would listen to me without question. I have found that young dogs and really old dogs just don't do too well with children (with the exception of puppies....puppies like everyone!). As I have said before though, it is not the breed. I don't know about him or his dog, but saying that he put the dog through obedience school says to me that there was probably a problem in the past that he couldn't overcome himself. I could be completely wrong though.The kid was walking between the dog and the porch. Completely unprovoked according to him (Chris) and witnesses.