This is in a similar vein to another thread on here but I really do need some advice and/ or slap round the head! We've recently re- homed a border collie after his previous owners moved house, we're his 4th home.
He initially settled in brilliantly and seems to be a happy dog. He does need some training with lead work, car chasing and recall however we are currently working on this.
The problem issue with him is that twice he has shown aggression towards the children- snarled in dd1s face and snapped at dd2s hand, no contact was made. We were all shocked and I am scared that he could do something worse in the future although there has been no further signs since this happened last week.
I guess I'm looking for advice as to what we should do, rehome or train. In the meantime he is currently on the waiting list of various rehoming shelters but they are all at least 8 weeks long! The previous owners will not have him back and we know no- one that will have him. He is currently crated when the kids and dog are around each other. We are all so sad about the situation and are torn with what we should do.
If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.
The doghouse
Wrong dog for us/ wrong family for dog?
MorrisPrancer · 21/05/2012 13:27
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Message withdrawn at poster's request.
He was a friend of a friend who moved into rented accommodation and couldn't take him. His sister had him but is a single working mum so was unable to cope. Before this is history is sketchy and unknown. Dog would have ended up in a pound if we hadn't taken him
Both myself and DH said that we could never do that to him as he doesn't deserve it. After reading on here what happens to some dogs then Facebook/ gumtree is also out of the question. Wish we had a crystal ball so we can see if he turns out to to be the family dog we thought or if he'd do better in a home with no kids.
Thanks everyone for the advice, wanted an outsiders viewpoint- clearly an Internet forum won't be making our mind up for us 
but it's still useful to hear others opinions. We actually had a behaviourist come over this afternoon who assessed dog- she was very taken with him, he put on the charm big time! He's actually a very calm dog, pretty much the opposite of a typical collie the behaviourist said. She said that we were doing everything right so far in regards to him and the girls- he has a safe space, they play ball outside, leave him alone when asked. Hopefully the nip and the snarl was the dog settling into a totally new way of life and finding out where he is in our family I.e at the bottom! Me and DH will be talking about this for while I think.....
He wasn't a working dog as such, just sat outside on the original owners smallholding left to his own devices. There's no nipping of ankles or bottoms or chasing/ rounding up behaviour of the kids at all. Not sure he has much of a working instinct- he likes to chill with his ball instead or have a snooze. Once we've cracked lead walking then classes are the way to go to socialise him and train him further. I think actually we've got a lovely dog but need to work through his ishoos, looks like it's going to be a happy ending in the Morris household 
QuietTiger 
at the picture of dog stealing football during a match! Was quiet nervous the other day as the local cricket team were playing in the field next to where my dog is walked- had images of him running off with the cricket ball! Thanks for all your further advice, the trainer is totally reward based and is experienced with collies, she's had many off her own. We think we've made the right decision and with further training will come on leaps and bounds. Couldn't open that thread though ...
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