bananacake, I would encourage you to be very proactive and cautious with your dog. Showing avoidance behaviors like running away and hiding (very late signs of distress, actually) means that your dog is under stress when he is being chased and grabbed. Once his stress threshold is pushed to a certain level, he will react with a warning growl, snap, or bite. No dog is "child proof". However, you can definitely help to raise that threshold by rewarding your dog with petting and praise around kids, or feeding the dog treats while a child is petting him gently or roughly. Unfortunately a "neutral" experience (just being around kids) will not decrease his stress threshold - you must actively pair it with something *positive* that he enjoys in order to teach him that being touched or prodded by a child is safe and even enjoyable. It is very important that we respect the very real fears that our animals have, and work with them to find a safer comfort level, not just rely on a dog "knowing better" or being a "good dog" to keep our children safe.