Dog bites son.... Now what?

[Allegra]

Just pointing something out but maybe your dog bit your son because it was not feeling ok or felt threatened by your son trying to pet it when it didn’t want to. Again I express my view that you should not euthanize you dog but get it a trainer and take it to a vet.

Should the OP’s son go around blind, scarred, or permenantly injured because the dog isn’t “feeling okay”? Get real!

 

[MissRose73]

I would try training first as the last thing you should do is put the dog down unless the training & behavior modification do not work at all.

My sister was careful with her kids and dogs. Her boyfriend owns 4 German Shepard dogs and she watched them carefully whenever the kids were near the dogs as her daughter wasn’t fond of large dogs. The kids now get along well with the dogs and vice versa. My cousin owns 3 Dobermans and her 2 kids are good with the dogs and vice versa - the kids are watched, and the dogs are gentle giants. Both of them are examples of constant good training and treatment, and the dogs are well behaved.

 

[EasterJoy]

Just pointing something out but maybe your dog bit your son because it was not feeling ok or felt threatened by your son trying to pet it when it didn’t want to. Again I express my view that you should not euthanize you dog but get it a trainer and take it to a vet.

The dog’s behavior and clean bill of health have made it a legal liability, because it has given its owner notice that it will bite without obvious provocation. The dog might be amendable to training, but that black mark will always be there against it. The owners have to realize this liability in the way they keep it, if they keep it. They have to keep it away from other people.

 

[CB_Catholic]

I just cannot understand why people would even think it is ok to take the risk of keeping a dog that has bitten people twice and taking it to a behaviorist or for training. There is absolutely no guarantee whatsoever that training and behavior correction will work. Human beings are far more important than dogs.

A dog one time without provocation whatsoever attacked my 3 year old son as I was walking down the street holding his hand. I managed to get between him and the dog, but he left large claw marks down my son’s tiny thighs. The owner called the dog off and I immediately called the dog warden and the dog was taken and later euthanized. They don’t mess around with dogs that do this. The owner was livid. She cursed and swore to no end. Can you imagine??? The dog, a large German Shepherd could have seriously injured or even killed my son, and she was outraged that I called the dog warden.

I love animals and have owned dogs and cats, but no way would I tolerate a biting dog.

 

[EasterJoy]

I just cannot understand why people would even think it is ok to take the risk of keeping a dog that has bitten people twice and taking it to a behaviorist or for training. There is absolutely no guarantee whatsoever that training and behavior correction will work. Human beings are far more important than dogs.

A dog one time without provocation whatsoever attacked my 3 year old son as I was walking down the street holding his hand. I managed to get between him and the dog, but he left large claw marks down my son’s tiny thighs. The owner called the dog off and I immediately called the dog warden and the dog was taken and later euthanized. They don’t mess around with dogs that do this. The owner was livid. She cursed and swore to no end. Can you imagine??? The dog, a large German Shepherd could have seriously injured or even killed my son, and she was outraged that I called the dog warden.

I love animals and have owned dogs and cats, but no way would I tolerate a biting dog.

What tells me that this was not the first attack by this angry woman’s dog? Even if not, who can imagine being anything but mortified when one’s dog injured a 3 yo?

 

[severus68]

Need some opinions. We have a 6 lb Maltese dog. We’ve had him for over a year and he has …from time to time…snapped at our 7 year old son. I always solved the issue with punishment etc. well, 2 weeks ago he bit a woman walking by our home. He has never done this before! I scolded him and checked the woman. She has broken skin but was okay.

Now, the last 2 days he’s been snapping at our son again. He lunged at him this morning and broke HIS skin.

He is normally a great dog…loves our son (typically). We’ve taken him to the vet… No illness

What would you do? Our son sees him as a brother. I am thinking the dog may need to go…

Does your son know not to grab the dog, pull its ears etc. Young kids can play rough without meaning to hurt. Is the dog spoilt- many people tend to spoil toy dogs. The dog obviously needs firm training and handling. If you can’t do this or get someone to help, please don’t put it down. Find a Maltese rescue group to take him or someone without small children who can handle him.

 

[pentecostbaby]

Still appalled people in the Internet world think its okay to keep the dog.
I’ll spell it out: You are legally liable if the dog bites someone. That person can sue you for lots and lots and lots of money. They will win because the dog has a bite history and any court will consider it your fault for not having it destroyed.
Most rescues will not take a dog with a bite history.
Most people will not allow their children to come to your house if you have a a dog with a bite history.
Please do the responsible thing and euthanize.

 

[SamH]

What tells me that this was not the first attack by this angry woman’s dog? Even if not, who can imagine being anything but mortified when one’s dog injured a 3 yo?

Mortification followed by a healthy dose of fear might be called for if it were my 3 year old.

 

[EasterJoy]

Mortification followed by a healthy dose of fear might be called for if it were my 3 year old.

Heaven forbid that I owned a dog that traumatized a child and all I could think of was whether I could keep my dog or whether the child’s parent was going to get angry at me. If I weren’t mortified that the dog I was supposed to be responsible for hurt a little child, someone I knew to be too young to appreciate how to act around a dog and someone who might fear dogs for the rest of his life because I was negligent, I ought to be ashamed of myself.

True dog lovers handle their animals so that the people around them won’t have a bad experience with their pet and so will want to be dog lovers, too, but especially children. People tend to like pets, and pet owners ought to want to keep it that way.

This little dog is still capable of seriously injuring a person or someone else’s pet. He needs to be kept away from other people and their pets until he has been very thoroughly rehabilitated. If that can’t or doesn’t happen, he needs to be kept somewhere that everyone else is safe from him for the rest of his life. If that can’t be done, then unfortunately he’ll have to be put down. Let’s hope that doesn’t have to happen, but now that he has repeatedly shown that he cannot be trusted, others deserve to be protected from him, including his owner’s adoring son.

I would not give up on the dog, but the son in particular needs to be trained about how to handle him properly. The family also needs to be trained about what situations this Maltese should not be exposed to, considering the breed and this particular dog’s history and temperament. As the dog trainer Barbara Woodhouse once said, “I can train any dog in five minutes. It’s training the owner that takes longer.”

This situation ought to have been addressed the first time the dog started snapping, but of course hindsight is 20/20. What might have been done is no matter; it can’t be helped now. The issue absolutely must be addressed immediately, before someone else gets hurt or the authorities are called in and have the dog put down.