My dog (who is now living with my parents since I moved to Melbourne) bit a little girl today. He bit her badly on the foot. It's not the first time he's acted aggressively towards kids. Our old next door neighbors son used to tease and scare him through the window and the damage was done from then.
The mother was apparently very good and won't be taking any action, but that doesn't change what's happened.
He's normally a beautiful natured little dog, he just gets frightened by children.
My mum just rang me and said I need to make a decision. I know what I should do. But I'm so heartbroken. He's the sweetest little dog and I love him so much.
I know what I would do but I don't think it is the answer you are hoping for
Our dog who was so lovely and gentle with our son went a little crazy in the space of 2 days.. She never bit anyone but was very aggressive.. Dh got home and made the decision and Shelly was put down that afternoon..
im sorry you're stuck in this situation hun, cant be easy
what would happen if you kept this doggie alive and took ur own child to your mums and something happened?
You could consult a dog trainer. Your vet can recommend one. It is possible that the trainer won't be able to help but it is also possible that they will be able to help.
In the meantime you need to put up dangerous dog signage and get a muzzle and one of the fluoro collars for if he is in public.
ETA - I have always said that if any dog of mine bit a child without severe provocation I would put them down but I'm aware that not everyone agrees with this stance and that there are other options.
Last edited by Phteven; October 11th, 2011 at 05:41 PM.
im sorry but i would euthenase. I am a veterinary nurse and have seen this first hand many many times. i feel for your parents being stuck in the middle as much as i feel for you and the dog.
if it were one of my animals i would euthenase with a clear conscience knowing that i had saved my dog from a lifetime of being terrified of essentailly nothing and protected children from harm. its the old cruel to be kind thing.
I agree with Onyx's last sentence. If a kid is being a little sod and pulling the dog's tail, taunting it etc then that's one thing, but if its visciousness out of the blue then no second chances. Given that you have said he has acted aggressively with children before then unfortunately and very sadly there would be only one option for me. I'm very sad for you and your parents - its a horrible situation to be in.
Aimz this is a really really tough call. my beautiful friend.
This is probably not want you want to hear but could you risk your dog having a go at your baby? If you have any doubt at all, then you know the answer to the big question.
I was bitten badly as a child by the "good natured" dog next door (I was 4 & just sitting on the top step, it came up to me, sat down & then the next thing I remember is screaming and being carried home covered in blood, the owners said I'd bugged the dog while eating, the blood splatters showed otherwise, top step was about 5m from where the dog food was), I nearly lost my eye only me flopping backwards stopped the canine puncturing my eyeball, it went down into the socket instead. They chose not to deal with the dog and a few years later (after we'd moved away) the dog mauled a child. The child's parents forced the dog to be put down.
this is mad in that my aunty is making a similar decision with her dog atm. she bit my aunt and dad. but to me shes a beautiful affectionate dog. the biggest hugs huni xxx
Hugs what a tough call to make. i hope you can make the decison that is right for you and be comfortable with what ever you decide.
My SIL has a dog who is a bitsa (kelpie, healer, shepard etc etc) and he has bitten or more than 1 occasion and to be honest I am disgusted that she has not had him put down as its not just once.
A friend had her dog put down because she growled and bared teeth at her DD, as made her uneasy as had never seen that side of her and had dog for many years.
A family friend had her corgi put down when she bite my brother when he was 13, 2 boys playing footy in backyard and dog wanted to play too, dog and brother went for ball at same time. My brother was upset as he said dog was just playing but she said she could never forgive herself if dog did that to someone younger and seriously hurt them.
We have a story with our little dog that was a rescue dog who was also deaf. She was three when we adopted her and had obviously been mistreated before we took her on. She had a fair few behavioural issues, which we expected given her background. One was around food. You couldn't leave food around because if she tried to steal it she would get quite aggressive. However, this was with us, since we were very careful to keep her shut away when we had visitors and food.
She still bit a toddler on the hand once, grabbing the child's apple. But she didn't do serious damage and the Mum was fine. She bit our DD once or twice in the same way. It never broke the skin. The worst bites were DP and I. She didn't like it when I handled her and she didn't want to do what I wanted. It makes her sound really bad when I say it like this - but in reality she was a very sweet natured dog and had only a couple of issues. Food and being picked up by her hips or around her hips.
We had a dog behaviouralist/trainer out to our house to visit and talk through what we were doing. She gave us some great tips, but basically said we were doing the right thing. Also that making sure we respected her space and when she growled would help. Training her a bit better helped too. We had noticed with the right attention and training she was already getting much better, much more mellow and manageable.
You can limit the dog's contact with other people while you try to work on his behaviour. Your concerns around what will happen when you move to Melbourne are justified, but again, the right amount of time and attention will probably help him. If you put the effort in and there is no difference in his behaviour after a period of time, then you can at least face the more difficult option knowing you've done your best.
We never regretted keeping our dog and working with her. She turned out to be a beautiful and delightful dog. She died earlier this year killing a red belly black in our backyard. We still miss her.
Was it a bad bite or more like a warning nip?
My friend's german shepard nipped me on the face once, blood was shed but it was clearly just a warning bite and it was because I'd gotten too close to her face and she got nervous.
I have a dangerous breed dog and he has never shown aggression ever but I am so vigilant with him when I take him out in public and I never let him near children just in case, (even though he is fine with DD, I never leave them alone unsupervised) so I think with your dog, if you were around to be very careful with him you could avoid having him put down, but it's a lot of responsibility to ask of your parents. It is definitely exhausting and never relaxing for me to take my dog for walks because I just have to be so careful.
I'm so sorry you are faced with a decision like this.
What's the right thing to do? :(
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sorry mate, s#it of a position to be in.
my beautiful friend.
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