Putting a dog down if it bites??

Guys, I just want to know your opinion on this subject.

A friend of a friend of mine recently had a baby. The baby is about 5 months old now.

Well, soon after they had the baby, their dog began acting strange where he would start to bite or threaten to bite people if they alarmed him. Usually he is not an aggresive dog at all. Although they did rescue him from an abusive home.

Anyway, he bit 2 people (one child) in one weekend, as they had both startled him (not broken skin or anything). And they decided to have him put down because they didn't want him to bite their baby one day.

Is this the norm for biting dogs? I feel so awful that more couldn't have been done to help him be less aggresive.

What should be done in a situation like this?

Other than rehoming them, they did what they were advised to do. Aggressive dogs are not fun to retrain and with a baby, I doubt they would have time. Sad really, the dog was probably responding to the smell of the baby which can make some dogs crazy plus the lack of attention suddenly given to someone else.

I think in this particular situation, they should have rehomed him after getting an assessment from a behaviourist. Though scary and certainly a behaviour to be cautious about, this was a new and likely reactive behaviour.

He could have been wonderful in an all adult/experienced home.

When I was born my parents had a little poodle. When I was a month or so old I was sitting in the 1980 equivalent of a bouncy chair. Priss was growling and nipped my foot. They decided to have her put to sleep. I don't know if this is true, but I've always heard that once a dog crosses a line of aggression, it is virtually impossible to turn them back.

While it's not really fair to the dog, it certainly isn't fair to a baby or child to possibly have to live their life permanently disfigured because of an aggressive animal in their own home.

Originally Posted by AnnasMom

I don't know if this is true, but I've always heard that once a dog crosses a line of aggression, it is virtually impossible to turn them back.

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This is absolutely false but a prevalent myth, nonetheless...
Also, there are different types of aggression and each have to be addressed appropriately...Ie, Territorial aggression, food aggression, play aggression, fear-based aggression.

And is the aggression a new behaviour? What's the cause?

I wouldn't advocate a dog with aggressive tendencies be placed with children or in a home with unexperienced owners either though.

There are plain old deemed "viscious" dogs (due to temperament, how they were raised or even breeding) but these are in altogether other category altogether.

I feel so bad for the little guy. The owners are heartbroken about it too. They won't even talk about it because it upsets them so much that they had to do that.

The sad part too is, they weren't there with him during the needle. Poor guy.

Aww-that is too bad. Poor doggie.....I had a rat terrier that was a great dog all around, except one night I had a girl coming out to babysit and her mom came with her, and for some unknown reason, he nipped her leg(he got her good too) never bit again, or anytime before that-just that once. I didnt have him PTS because well, I guess I just didnt want to. I also had a boxer a few yrs back(well when I was pg) that had somehow got parvo...and luckily he survived it, but was NEVER the same! After we moved, we decided that having him PTS was the only option, because he literally didnt like anyone anymore, and I wasnt going to have that kind of dog around a baby-too scary!!

Such a sad story, but I do think that they needed to remove him from that situation - although whether they could have rehomed him instead is debatable.

He should have been rehomed...
This quote is totally right on
This is absolutely false but a prevalent myth, nonetheless...
Also, there are different types of aggression and each have to be addressed appropriately...Ie, Territorial aggression, food aggression, play aggression, fear-based aggression.

And is the aggression a new behaviour? What's the cause?

I wouldn't advocate a dog with aggressive tendencies be placed with children or in a home with unexperienced owners either though.

There are plain old deemed "viscious" dogs (due to temperament, how they were raised or even breeding) but these are in altogether other category altogether.
...
I have a territorial dog ..

My big girl...an intimadating 90 lbs of solid muscle...has bit me & broke the skin more than once. Everytime we were playing & she tried to dominate me. Everytime I had one specific toy in my possession. I burned the toy & we haven't had an incident since. We were honestly considering re-homing her because of her issues. Turns out it was my fault. We chose not to do anything until we had thoroughly thought through the situation. I am so glad we did because she is quite the character.


However, at the HS, we had a 75 lb. brown mix. The best guess was GSP & Lab...really no clue otherwise. He never did anything, he was just scary. You know that look? He would just stare at you...no growling, nothing. However, he kennel fought with any other dogs. He couldn't be let out until all other dogs came inside. He was definately cat aggressive & kid aggressive. All around unsafe & not adoptable. The volunteer who has never been scared of a dog was scared of this guy. If looks could kill, she would be dead.

My DH was around 4 yrs old when he was bitten severely by his grandmother's poodle. The dog just turned one day and bit his top lip. He had 17 stitches and 2 plastic surgeries to fix it. His family didn't have the dog PTS and about 3 yrs later the poodle bit his 1yr old cousin and damaged him for life. He lost 85% of use in his left arm.. they still didnt have him PTS..they rehomed him. about 8 months after that, he attacked a baby. They finally PTS the poodle..
They did everything they could, rehomed, retrained and he kept doing it.

I've had 3 experiences with biting dogs and never had them put down. All 3 times there was a very good explanation behind the behavior. I do not believe a dog should be killed just because it will not behave the way we want them. If the dog has a history of biting people, it should not be around children. It is sad that an animal has to be killed because it was probably the human's fault it turned out to be that way anyway.

I had a rottie for 5 years. He was a big baby, and never hurt a fly up until a few years ago. My step-dad was away at work for long periods of time, sometimes weeks at a time. So Broc (the rottie) thought he was alpha when my stepdad wasn't around. He ended up putting a hole in my cousin's hand. We corrected that problem by having my stepdad stay home more often. He was fine until one morning I went to say goodbye to him and the room was dark. I startled him and out of instinct he bit. As soon as he realized what he had done, he was whining and trying to tell me he was sorry. He actually seemed to be worried if I was alright. Well I ended up with two holes in my arm, both needing stitches. We had him neutered and a few weeks later my mom was chasing my brother around the yard and Broc wanted in on the fun too. Thinking he was nothing but a poodle, Broc bit my mom's ankle in play and put a hole in her leg. We didn't have him put down, but instead we gave him to a lady who knows about animal behaviour. He has never bitten anyone since and lives happily with her.

My neighbours dog is on the dog bite register (took him snapping at 5 people before someone complained though), and I think the dog should be rehomed - he has separation anxiety and has an owner that works 50+ hours a week, and so he spends the day in someone elses house regardless of where she is, and has had 3 hols already this year (and he has snapped at people everytime she goes away). So in his case, I think it is down to his owner, not him - she doesn't even muzzle this dog, I have told her how irresponsible it is, and now he is on the register, one more reported bite and he will lose his life. She has finally (8 months after gettting him) consulted a behaviourist, so hopefully things will get better, but I dont think she is around enogh to try and re-train him. And the saddest part is that it is him who will suffer.

this really irritates me. IMO they should have called a behaviourist, tried some training...you know, at least TRIED something. just killing it seems like the easy way out to me. obviously if they try hard to help the dog, and it won't change, then something needs to be done - like rehoming it with people who have no pets. if it goes to that home and shows agression, then perhaps it's incurable and should be euthanized. but its like they didn't even try. poor dog.

Sounds to me like they should have tried one on one training lessons or a behaviorist before PTS. And I understand saying rehome the dog, but how many homes are available that will take a dog who has bitten?!?

I would not keep a dog who was biting with my kids. However, I would give it a chance by working with a behaviorist if I could. There is a lady near me who charges about $800 for totally training a dog one on one. Sounds like a lot of money, until you think about replacing a dog. The cost of the animal, and first year costs such as spay/neuter...I always tell people who say they can't afford her that they can't afford not to hire her!

What a sad story. Many years ago, my husband and I had our Shepherd/St. Bernard PTS for biting. He was from a shelter, and had been given Schutzhund (read "attack") training by his previous owner. The longer we had the dog, the more protective he became of me, and it reached the point where he wouldn't tolerate anybody walking on the same side of the street or raising their voice to me. We took him to a "dog psychiatrist" at a renowned veterinary school after he almost killed my brother (went for his throat); the dog had already bitten our next-door neighbor and my father. We couldn't have guests other than family members or said neighbor, or take the dog outside without a sturdy muzzle. The behaviorist advised us that the dog was beyond salvation, and his size (120 lbs.) and breeds were major considerations.
We were the famiy he was "rehomed" with, and I was very experienced with large (and supposedly aggressive) breeds. Sometimes rehoming just isn't the proper route to go, and can be very dangerous.
In your friends' case, I wonder if the dog was being overprotective of the baby? We had a child-loving Boxer for years, and he went into "guard dog" mode whenever our eldest niece and nephew or our neighbors' young children were present.

Originally Posted by DixieDarlin256

My DH was around 4 yrs old when he was bitten severely by his grandmother's poodle. The dog just turned one day and bit his top lip. He had 17 stitches and 2 plastic surgeries to fix it. His family didn't have the dog PTS and about 3 yrs later the poodle bit his 1yr old cousin and damaged him for life. He lost 85% of use in his left arm.. they still didnt have him PTS..they rehomed him. about 8 months after that, he attacked a baby. They finally PTS the poodle..
They did everything they could, rehomed, retrained and he kept doing it.

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This dog should not have been allowed around children or re-homed to a situation where they were present. He should have been re--homed into an adult only home and had an evaluation and strict training regime from an experienced trainer.

There are millions of poodles (and other toy or small companion animals) who are biting children because they aren't trained otherwise and its allowable behaviour. Its common and its horrible.

Originally Posted by jcat

What a sad story. Many years ago, my husband and I had our Shepherd/St. Bernard PTS for biting. He was from a shelter, and had been given Schutzhund (read "attack") training by his previous owner. .

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Argh. I didn't even have to read the rest of your post to know the story.
This is the worst scenario I can imagine! A Schutzhund dog being given to a family situation with owners unprepared (you should be a behaviourist/expert level if you want to live with these dogs) is asking for serious trouble..even fatal trouble....

What a shame. I would imagine that the dog bit in order to protect a perceived threat to the new member of its pack - dogs can become overly protective of their mistress whilst she is pregnant, and then of her and the baby after it is born. I hope your friend has not had this dog pts already, as some time and some help from a behaviourist is what it clearly needs.

And to be afraid that it will bite the baby, well, no child under the age of 7 (AKC and Veterinary Association guidelines) should ever be left unsupervised with any dog, including their own. That would take care of that problem had they been advised.

It also depends on the bite level. Like humans who have different `levels' of aggression, so do dogs. Were the bites warning nips or out-and-out hard, full-mouth bites? How did the dog behave before and after, and during, the bites? You say the dog was startled and therefore bit - the bites were not `unprovoked' then, in a sense.

The dog is adjusting to its new pack member and therefore should have been given the time and opportunity to adjust, with help, patience and understanding. Unfortunately with a new baby they probably just didn't have time, which is a shame, but not a crime.

Too many dogs are rehomed, abandoned or pts after babies are born. It is a shame but dogs - who give us everything - are often the ones to lose out (and lose out big time) once a new bub comes along. I wish people thought of things like that before they got a dog. I really do