My dog is a repeat offender

fox-runr · Nov 15, 2010

He bit again. 
I only see one option at this point. This is so hard...He so young but he just goes berserk. 
And you never know what will set him off. 
I feel horrible,but I truly feel that it isn't a matter of if...it's when. Dh wants to talk to another animal behaviorlist. I said. That of corse they'll say " we can help". They don't have to deal With the dog's misdeeds 
I'm tired of apologizing to people, feeling awful, dealing with police in one instance. Am I a horrible person in that I want to do this on last hard thing, so I don't have to worry anymore or feel so guilty that I can't sleep at night

clare · Nov 15, 2010

I'm really sorry you're faced with such a tough decision. <img alt="sad.gif" src="http://files.kickrunners.com/smilies/sad.gif" style="width:15px;height:15px;"> We had to "retire" my dog to mom's house after she bit Lena in the face. Luckily it wasn't too bad of a bite, didn't break the skin. But we couldn't risk keeping her, especially with a second baby on the way. Ellie Mae just wasn't used to babies and it was stressing her out. DH wanted to put her down, but I managed to talk mom into taking her. Now she's relaxed and happy and I know she's safe and sound. I hope you can figure something out for your dog.

airehead · Nov 15, 2010

I'm so sorry. This can be so painful!!
 
We had to send my girl to the big kennel in the sky this summer after she developed dementia. (big shock to me--I had no idea dogs could get dementia)
 
Anyhow, she started biting and had never bitten anyone ever--she was ten. And we never knew what would set her off. She started biting especially when startled. One day she bit me in the face, while I was in bed sleeping. It was a mistake, as she was going for little dog, but it was the beginning of the end.
 
What you are going through hurts so bad. Especially when you've tried everything and are at your wit's end.
 
 
 
Is there medication he could take?
 
 
I am so sorry.

Tech Tee · Nov 15, 2010

We had this problem. Nicest big dumb lab in the world. Kids would abuse the crap out of her, lay on her, dress her, tease her.
 
But, when it came to the fence..watch out.
 
She would let you pet her, she loved it. but, when you pulled your hand away, she would bite. Doggie psychologists tried to give some "she wasn't ready to stop being pet" thing. I think she was just crazy.
 
One neighbor knew, and frequently would pet her, and knew how to pull his hand away with out getting bit.
 
Well, they moved, and the first day the new people moved in, they were outside, the dog came over to the fence, and the new neighbor pet the dog. My wife saw, "Noooooo"...too late. The dog bit her. Since it was about the 5th time this dog had bitten, albeit only ever over the fence, we decided the next time it could be a little kid. We put her down.
 
It sucked big time. That was 10 years ago. My 18 year old still probably thinks we took her to a "dog farm for dogs that bite". I'm sure if she thought about it, she would figure it out....
 
Never an easy decision.

theia · Nov 15, 2010

I've been very lucky to adopt two dogs who behave like perfect angels, so I can't relate to a biting problem.
 
Please consider putting the dog up for adoption with a no-kill shelter. They will work very hard to place him in the right environment. 
 
(((doggy)))
 
Good luck. I hope you can work this out.

GaReb770 · Nov 15, 2010

Very tough decision. Unless you can keep the dog isolated from people which isn't a good idea either, there are not a lot of alternatives. Maybe keep him crated when visitors are around?

Stitcher · Nov 15, 2010

Call Ceasar Millan.
 
I'm not being facetious.......see if he or his group can help.

clare · Nov 15, 2010

I was talking with mom about Ellie Mae today. She bit mom's boyfriend on the weekend, made a mess of his hand. She was at the door wanting to go outside. He went over to put her on her lead and she bit him. *sigh* So I guess she hasn't quite gotten over this biting yet. Mom said every once in a while she'll snap at her or the boyfriend but this is the first time she's actually broken the skin. And mom's boyfriend is like the animal whisperer, he deals with animals really well. So I dunno. She'll be 13 next year.

fox-runr · Nov 15, 2010

I've thought of giving him up for adoption...but I am conflicted if a dog has to wait for years in a shelter. I would not give this dog to anyone right now. 
When I got him, I tried puppy classes, he was awful. Another dog owner even said "if that was my dog I'd swat him". He sat and barked the whole time and tried to hide behind me. First visit to the vet she said, he was very fearful and we had to start training. We had him boarded and trained for two weeks to get him used to people and dogs. He appeared to do well with people, not dogs. After his first bite we had him worked with again and when we saw him, he was playing with other dogs. I guess we started to trust him. 
Hubby wants to talk about it tonight. I think he wants to see another behavior therapist. 
Sigh. How many bites is too many? I say ONE and this pup is WAY beyond that. 
2 people have gone to the ER...(one didn't break skin and was dramatic, but this time he bit down). Unffornuately, he is not my dog, I am just the person that has to deal with him and his misbehavior. This last bite came after neutering, so, no, that doesn't,'t help.

GaReb770 · Nov 15, 2010

I've had dogs all my life, none that bit anyone although I have been bitten several times myself by dogs. I never report the dog bites. I verify the dog is current on its shots and treat myself. Nevertheless if your husband wants to try animal psychology one more time, nothing wrong with that. But based on the dog's past I would make sure the dog was in a kennel anytime it was outside and not just running around the backyard where it might get out. And if walking the dog, definitely muzzle it so people would not be tempted to pet the dog.
 
When you have guests in the house, lock him up either in a room or crate.
 
Some dogs are simply biters and cannot be trusted around people. Sounds like the dog is possibly one of those. If you try adopting the dog, his history is going to make him very difficult if not impossible to adopt and possibly increase his anxiety level or whatever is causing him to sometimes bite.
 
All the above being said, I actually agree with your husband if he is willing to try more behavioral therapy.

fox-runr · Nov 16, 2010

Keep your fingers crossed and say a prayer for my four legged friend.....there may be an option that is better than the others. A person with an older dog of the same breed that went through a biting incident. Maybe a new environment and a mentor...maybe...maybe 
I'm thinking maybe someone here has already sent some prayers <img alt="wink.gif" class="bbcode_smiley" src="http://files.kickrunners.com/smilies/wink.gif">

4boysmom · Nov 16, 2010

Tough, tough decision...
 
I used to work for a vet. He was older and had seen clients through numerous dogs. He said that as a general rule, if a client had one sweet dog, all that followed would be sweet. If they had one biter, the rest would be biters, too. However, every once in a while, a "sweet dog" family would adopt a dog taht turned out to be a biter and no amount of training could fix it.
 
We had one client adopt a known biter. A cute little male tan and white cocker spaniel named "Carmel". Sweet little thing--except it hated kids. Not a problem, this client's grandkids were all grown. Except, one day a friend stopped by with her grandchild. Uh huh... the dog was brought in to be put to sleep. It was covered in blood. Not its own.

Mrtambalynman · Nov 16, 2010

Two bites and one a legit hospital visit. The dog appears to be a liability to you. I'd lean towards euthanasia - surrendering it to a kennel just passes on the responsibility and potentially will result in someone else getting hurt. I would be very concerned with keeping a known biter - who knows what will happen the next time and what the repercussions may be.

fox-runr · Nov 17, 2010

<div class="quote-container">Quote:
<div class="quote-block">Originally Posted by Mrtambalynman <a href="/forum/thread/71148/my-dog-is-a-repeat-offender#post_1962803"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style="border:0px solid;"></a> 
Two bites and one a legit hospital visit. The dog appears to be a liability to you. I'd lean towards euthanasia - surrendering it to a kennel just passes on the responsibility and potentially will result in someone else getting hurt. I would be very concerned with keeping a known biter - who knows what will happen the next time and what the repercussions may be. 
 </div>
</div>
 
Not to make light of the behavior, the legit visit was not for treatment of the bite, it was for preventative, when she talk to dh, a doc, he said she should be updated for tetanus...no stitches were needed. My husband thought it looked like a scratch. It definitely was a small bite 
Her husband called on my son's cell phone, very odd, I only heard some of it, but after the call and previous calls to the breeder and the person that was helping of with this issue, he agrees to put him down. 
My husband, not much of drinker, then proceeded to drink a bottle of wine. There will be more tears tongight..and then we can heal. I think dh saw the liability issue, I think the phone call was about money. We already said we'd pay for the er visit.

altoids · Nov 17, 2010

I am so sorry, this is going to be difficult.

Mrtambalynman · Nov 17, 2010

FWIW I think its the right decision based on what I've heard here. 

<div class="quote-container">Quote:
<div class="quote-block">Originally Posted by fox-runr <a href="/forum/thread/71148/my-dog-is-a-repeat-offender#post_1963027"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style="border-right:0px solid;border-top:0px solid;border-left:0px solid;border-bottom:0px solid;"></a> 
Not to make light of the behavior, the legit visit was not for treatment of the bite, it was for preventative, when she talk to dh, a doc, he said she should be updated for tetanus...no stitches were needed. My husband thought it looked like a scratch. It definitely was a small bite Her husband called on my son's cell phone, very odd, I only heard some of it, but after the call and previous calls to the breeder and the person that was helping of with this issue, he agrees to put him down.My husband, not much of drinker, then proceeded to drink a bottle of wine. There will be more tears tongight..and then we can heal. I think dh saw the liability issue, I think the phone call was about money. We already said we'd pay for the er visit.</div>
</div>

coachie · Nov 17, 2010

My dog suffers from DGS - Deadly Gas Syndrome.
 
Whoah dude!
 
And it doesn't even seem to bother him, he's not embarrassed at all.

4boysmom · Nov 17, 2010

I think you are doing the right thing. You started with puppy obedience classes. You've done follow up obedience work. You've talked with the breeder. You have done all you can. Finding him a new home is just passing the problem on to someone else. Frankly, I don't see that you have any other options.

airehead · Nov 17, 2010

My dog is a repeat offender

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