Tractor Safety with young kids around?

[tommcintire]

I have a 2 year old daughter, and I am thinking about safety "habits" I can adopt now to make myself safer when working with the tractor, etc when she is a few years older. Right now, she is always directly supervised when outside, and also is a bit scared of the tractor. But, given that she thinks Daddy is awesome and can do no wrong, that will change.

So, the question I pose to the community is what do I do to make myself a safer operator with a young child on the property? Here's what comes to my mind:

• Teach her that she stays away from me when I am operating, period. When she is older (10 or 12), then I can teach her how to communicate with me and me acknowledge her and motion her to me if needed.
  
• Always look before backing. If she is outside and nearby, make sure I identify where she is before moving, as opposed to "I don't see her behind me"...
  
• When parking, always use the parking brake, always lower and depressurize hydraulics, take out the key, stuff like that...

Your thoughts? I want to make these habits second nature before she is more "independent" and outside playing on her own...

Thanks!

-Tom

 

[ericstac]

That pretty much covers it. You need to drill rules into her head about how to act/behave while you are operating the tractor but kids are kids and they will be kids so you have to train yourself to be on the look out and to expect them to be right behind you or in front of you or next to because if you don't then when you least expect it she will be there.

I have three boys, 8,5,6 month..

I also have a 2 month old Deere. But I have talked to my kids about how to behave even before the tractor because I would do a lot of work around the property with the Jeep and trailer. So they understand the importance but sometimes they will not be paying attention or they get worked up and too excited that they 'forget' the rules.. I try to never forget my rules and as long as that stays true there will never be an issue.

 

[ISU DEERE]

Tom

I will tell you, you have to almost have eyes and ears on all sides of your head. I have three daughters ages 7, 5, 3. I am constantly looking as to where they are, and where they are going. I tell them if they need to get my attention don't run towards the tractor but stand and wave their arms until I see them, and when you are constantly looking for them anyway it doesn't take long to get my attention. Our oldest is very responsible and if I tell her to keep and eye on the other two for a minute or two she can manage that. When I move the tractor and park it in a different spot I lower the loader and the three point with ballast box because our three year old is very curious and if she would lower the loader or three point she could smash her sisters or me. I also take the key out and put in park. When I park I also try to park it so that it is somewhat level and won't roll if they would happen to get on or if the park brake would happen to fail. I may take this all a little too far, but I don't want to leave anything to chance. There would be nothing worse than if one of them or anyone would get hurt.

 

[CurlyDave]

My once-young kids are grown and gone, but my simple rule is that my dogs are inside the house before I will even start the tractor.

 

[Danno1]

• Teach her that she stays away from me when I am operating, period. When she is older (10 or 12), then I can teach her how to communicate with me and me acknowledge her and motion her to me if needed.
  
• Always look before backing. If she is outside and nearby, make sure I identify where she is before moving, as opposed to "I don't see her behind me"...
  
• When parking, always use the parking brake, always lower and depressurize hydraulics, take out the key, stuff like that...

How about- no friends over to play when you are doing tractor work. Sooner or later you'll get her to pay attenion, but you never know about the friends.

Also, can you install a reverse beeper? That would help too.

Edit: Teach her to always approach the tractor fr the side, never the front or especially the rear.

.

 

[dodge man]

It sounds kind of cruel, but until she hits a certain age, don't let her outside when mowing unless mom is with her nearby. There is something about mowing that really attracts kids, they love it. I can still remember when someone in my town backed over his sons foot and he lost the foot. The kid is fully grown and is doing great, but it was a traumatic experience for the dad and the kid.

That said, when my kids got a little older (5-6 years old) I would let them ride on my lap at times. It was only on the flat areas, with no trees and not very much turning and I always had a death grip on them. There are probably a dozen reasons this is not safe but I did it anyway. It seemed safer doing that for a little bit and then having them lose interest, than having them always wanting to get up close and watching me mow.

It won't be that much longer and you will be watching them mow.

 

[tommcintire]

All good suggestions, and I appreciate them. I especially like "you only approach from the side". Hadn't thought of that, but it makes sense, as that is the angle least likely to be an issue.

We have a lot for her to learn about as she grows older. We have 3 horses, which she loves dearly, and they seem to understand that they need to be especially gentle around her. That said, we are very cautious with her around the horses. We are always "right there" and make sure they horses are in the right temperment... Nothing like watching her out in the paddock with us with her little green boots on and her shovel "helping" muck the paddock.

-Tom

 

[AndyMA]

I have a 2 year old daughter, and I am thinking about safety "habits" I can adopt now to make myself safer when working with the tractor, etc when she is a few years older. Right now, she is always directly supervised when outside, and also is a bit scared of the tractor. But, given that she thinks Daddy is awesome and can do no wrong, that will change.

So, the question I pose to the community is what do I do to make myself a safer operator with a young child on the property? Here's what comes to my mind:

• Teach her that she stays away from me when I am operating, period. When she is older (10 or 12), then I can teach her how to communicate with me and me acknowledge her and motion her to me if needed.
  
• Always look before backing. If she is outside and nearby, make sure I identify where she is before moving, as opposed to "I don't see her behind me"...
  
• When parking, always use the parking brake, always lower and depressurize hydraulics, take out the key, stuff like that...

Your thoughts? I want to make these habits second nature before she is more "independent" and outside playing on her own...

Thanks!

-Tom

I think these are dangerous "rules".. Kids need to be inside when your are operating..PERIOD Kids of those ages don't have the brains and thought processes to obey your rules. That applies to all kids are yours aren't any different. Please change your rules before it is too late.

Andy

 

[Ken Cunningham]

I absolutely agree with andyma, the kids should not be allowed in the yard at all while using the tractor. My three year old was told all the things mentioned here. One day i had just loaded the bucket and started to back up looking over my right shoulder and she was standing right there. If I had looked over my left shoulder i might not have seen her. Dont take chances with your kids, make em stay inside! PERIOD, END OF STORY, FINALL WORD

 

[jas67]

All this needs to be considered with more than just tractors. Now that I have a small child (now 4 1/2), the simple act of backing the car out of the garage can be hazardous; especially for those with taller vehicles like SUV's, trucks, and minivans. When dealing with small children and pets, they can be directly behind you, and you not see them in the mirror.