Is there anything I can do If I suspect my neighbor of child neglect and abuse?

Question

One of my neighbors has 2 children one is 3 and the other is 1 or 2. There are a few reasons I am worried about these children. First off they don't seem to be as far along developmentally as they should be, the three year old can only say one or two words clearly and is nowhere near being potty trained, that just seems a bit odd seeing how he is not mentally hindered in any way. Second off these children seem to constantly be sick with things like stomach viruses, infections, rashes, and others of the sort. They also have strange accidents, like a few months ago the three year old lost his 2 front teeth by supposedly jamming a sippie cup in his mouth too hard. That just doesn't sound right to me. This woman gets a disability check because she is mentally unhealthy, and I do not think that she should be caring for children. Am I crazy for suspecting abuse and neglect? and If these children are being hurt, who do I contact about it??

Answer 1

I would listen to your gut here. Contact your local child welfare organization and share with them your concerns. I am not sure what happens from there. But as a member of the community, it is really the right thing for you to do. It is very good of you to be keeping an eye out for them.

Answer 2

Well, I know plenty of 3-year-olds in good homes who aren't potty trained. It may make some people crazy, but I don't think it's evidence of neglect. And if you look at some of the questions on here from concerned parents, a number of kids do talk late, too, and it doesn't mean they're being neglected or abused. Nor does the mother's mental illness by itself make her an unfit mother.

Do you see the mother caring (appropriately? inappropriately?) for the children? Are they left unsupervised? Are they dressed appropriately? Do they appear to be being fed appropriately? Are the children going to the doctor for all these viruses, infections, rashes, etc? I don't know if you have kids, but kids do get sick pretty often even if they're in good hands ... and maybe these kids have underlying medical conditions you don't know about that make them particularly prone to illnesses. I would find an opportunity to ask what the doctor said about their illness du jour, or what medications they're taking.... As long as they're being treated by a doctor, I wouldn't worry that viruses and such are coming from abuse or neglect.

Injuries, yes, would make me worry, and the tooth story does sound odd. But I have to tell you from personal experience that I once knocked out my own tooth putting a recorder in my mouth too hard when I was getting ready to play, so nothing's impossible. If there other "strange accidents", then yes, I'd definitely make a call to the authorities to check it out. But based only on what you said, I'd probably just watch them closely. It's a terrible thing to take a child away from a parent ... and I don't mean to the parent, I mean to the child. Sometimes it's truly necessary. But don't start that process in motion just because the mom has a disability or her kids are late bloomers or prone to ear infections or whatever. Do start it without hesitation if you've noticed other "strange accidents" beyond the one you mentioned.

Answer 3

I disagree with kleighsmommy. You should not mind your own business. I work in CW and although it can be an inconvenience to have to chase down families and check out bogus calls, I would rather go to a home and find nothing wrong and have the report be false than find a child being abused.
The children that you are describing remind me a lot of so many of the families I have served. Children do have random accidents but there are too many discrepencies here. These children at a minimum should be checked out for failure to thrive. It seems that she is not meeting minimal standards of supervision. No child should ever have a sippy cup knock out teeth.
Call Child welfare to have this looked into. At a minimum even if she is doing everything right they may still be able to offer her some assistance with the verbal skills and maintaining these children's health.

Answer 4

You would call CPS child protective services. That is really sad. Im sorry you have to worry about a complete strangers children:( My dad didnt talk until he was 5. He knew how but his brothers teased him for the way he sounded and he chose not to speak. Boy's are harder to potty train than girls, they just aren't interested, so it is common to be that old and in dipers. You are right about the 2 front teeth thing, who's children would have that happen?? honestly? Have you seen the inside of their house?? I bet that is where the sickness comes from, It obviously sounds as if this woman doesn't wash her kids either. Poor things. CPS wont tell them you called. It can all be done private. They will have a private meeting to get info and then take on from there. My friends mom works for that and deals with things like this alot. Good luck.

Answer 5

You should ring the appropriate authorities (look in the front of your phone book) and just tell them your suspicions. If the kids don't go to preschool or kindergarton, no one may be aware of the problems.
Often these kind of people are struggling and happy to get some help. Perhaps all the woman needs is a little bit of support from some organisation.
if you don't report what you suspect you could be deemed negligent down the track if something bad did happen to one of the kids. You owe it to yourself to say something to someone. Then what they do with the information isn't your responsibility anymore.

Answer 6

call Child Protective Services (CPS) and complain. you can do so with out giving your name. For the sake of the children, call. I would if I suspected child abuse. Of course, I'm required by law to do so, i'm in childcare. I have done it on one occasion. Many times there is just an investigation, but sometimes they really find things and the child is removed. I would sleep a lot better at night, knowing I helped a kid( maybe saved their life). You would hate to wake up one morning and learn that there was an "accident" that caused the child to really be injured or worse. Call. Trust your instincts!

Answer 7

CPS, Children Protective Services

Answer 8

Before you call CPS, why don't you try talking to the mom and getting to know her? I had CPS called on me by an angry neighbor because she thought I wasn't feeding my children because they looked underweight and because my youngest was "always sickly." Well, yeah she's always sickly because she has a health problem. At 3, its fine to not be potty trained. Its not child abuse for a child to be developmentally delayed. If the mother is disabled, the children could very well have a genetic issue also. If you do talk to her, or do know her well enough and you are really concerned about the children, then call CPS. But don't do it just because you don't like her.

Answer 9

You need to contact social services ASAP if you truly think these children are being neglected/abused. Not only could the children be abused, but the older could have some developmental challenges (autism?). They may not be getting the medical attention they need if they are having so many problems.

Answer 10

Call your local cps and local police department and make a report and let them check it out. If they think the children are being hurt and neglected they will take the kids away and get them the care and love they need.