Our dog bit ds

[ASheepInWolfsClothing]

Both ds were playing on the trampoline when our 1 1/2 yo rescue staffie jumped up and wanted to get in on the action, he bit one of the ds's and when he pushed him away dog went to do it again.
He didn't break the skin but left a mark, ds who is 16 is afraid of the dog now and younger ds who has asd is finding it hard to let go of what happened.
We have only had him a month at this stage and are first time owners so how bad is this?

[Beamur]

People with lots more experience than me will come along shortly and hopefully give good advice.
But, in my own experience - I have a rescue dog too, although not a staffie, my dog is highly excitable and any amount of shrieking (even happy noises) can get her over excited and giddy - we have to be careful not to let her be overstimulated. We took her sledging once and she tried to get on the moving sledge and bite (not aggresively but out of excitement) my DP, we also never playfight at home as it bothers her and she will nearly always jump up at me and mouth me.
So, if your dog is easily hyper, you might need to think about keeping her away from situations like this - it doesn't necessarily mean she is a dangerous dog. Our dog is otherwise very gentle, but cannot be around too much excitement.

[MrsZoidberg]

I have a GSD who is now 3. When he is excited he mouths still - luckily he's got good bite inhibition so it rarely hurts and then only if he catches you wrong. Hopefully that is all this is.

There are different types of "bite". This sounds like puppy mouthing - which should have stopped by 1.5yrs BUT if a rescue dog wasn't taught that this is wrong, then you can't blame the dog. This can easily be trained out of them as there is really no malice involved. The second attempt was probably still in excitement if this was mouthing i.e. part of the game.

Nipping and biting with lunging are obviously more serious, and would need a professional to assess.

Obviously we cannot know as we weren't there what this was, but please do not panic.

Ask DS not to show any fear (easier said than done, I know), and to try and treat the dog the way he normally did. But be on guard to make sure no one does get hurt.

Other than this incident, has there been any other worrying things?

I would just try and act normally, but keep dog and kids seperate if there is likely to be any excited shrieking, until you've had him a bit longer and can start to read his signals a bit better.

[TangoSierra]

Agree with MrsZoid

[ASheepInWolfsClothing]

Thanks for replies I do expect it was mouthing mrs z , frightening for the kids because it's not the first time but ds said it was stronger than before.
it's hard to keep kids and dog separate though no a big house although outside is large and secure.

He came to us with a detailed history, he has had 1 owner a family with kids. The reason they returned him to the shelter was he shadow chases, he is so focused on catching the shadow or reflection on the wall or floor that he is impossible to distract , in fact something must have reflected on my ankle just now because he went for it and it hurt!

Am on phone so slow to type!

[Cuebill]

I would get some help and advice on this in rl. Does the rescue have a behaviourist you could ask for help.

Shadow chasing is a sign of stress and does need to be treated appropriately. If not the dog can move onto more difficult behaviour.

The dog may have been over threshold with the Dc's on a trampoline but that can still be behaviour that can be trained and changed. As you are first time dog owners I would either contact the rescue for help or try the APDT who will deal with these behaviours daily and have a suitable strategy for you to work on.

ADPT trainers in your area

[ASheepInWolfsClothing]

Thanks cuebill,
we have spoken to the people at the rescue and they assure us we are doing all the right things. It's a case of distract, distract, distract . He has lots of toys bouncy balls, chewy things and 2 kids who want to play but he has no interest in them or the toys .
The behaviourist said he may not grow out of it , they reckon he was left alone for long periods of time with nothing to do and that's what led him to shadow chase.
We have made no inroads at all in the last month and when we are sitting in the dark at night I think I love this dog so much! I just want to do my best for him.
Ds has been upstairs since earlier.

[Booboostoo]

This sounds like a problem for RL not a forum as you need an expert to assess the dog. Are you going to any training classes with him? Keeping his mind active may help and it may give you more tools on how to interact with him. Is he crate trained? A crate is a very useful tool for keeping a dog safe and away from exciting situations until he learns better how to handle them.

If I was going to be 100% honest, on paper first time dog owners and a dog with separation anxiety and possible aggression problems is not the best combination. I am a bit surprised the rescue paired you up and hope they are offering you the support you need to make this work.

[MrsZoidberg]

A month is still early though. Agree with the RL help so its good you're talking to a behaviourist.

It's wonderful that you are helping this pup, and are not willing to give up on him.

In a weird way, this could be a breakthrough. You said that he wasn't interested in anything but shadows but today it seems like he really wanted to join in.

I sympathise with the issue with the DS. I have a 15 year old, and my mouthy one nipped him, it was meant and drew blood. 18 months on, DS and him have just had a fantastic game in the garden involving a hose pipe, so I have exhausted wet smelly dogs and son Your DS will come round, it's just been a huge shock for him.

When your DS starts relaxing again you could involve him in training, feeding and walking and hopefully they'll soon bond.

[ASheepInWolfsClothing]

Thanks everyone! I just needed to get it out I think, I am less confident now than I was a month ago tbh and feel that i may have bitten off more than i can chew but I am trying my best I just hope it's good enough !
Getting a dog was a year in the planning so not a whim, we visited him at the shelter twice and his issues didn't seem so bad. Sorry I'm rambling now. I suppose what I'm trying to say is that I was fully prepared for the usual doggy things chewing stuff , pooping in odd places , walking him hail rain or shine. Just didn't expect this.

Anyhoo I'm checking out classes and hopefully we can get past this

[Cuebill]

I am sure that you have not bitten off more than you can chew but it does help to have a professional guiding you through this behaviour. A month is very early and you still all have to get used to each others ways.

I would involve your DS in the training then he will feel more confident that he can deal with any behaviour your dog may throw at him. eg a leave it command, or a settle command or just a solid down may help your dog in times of excitment.

There is a great book called control unleashed which is mainly based at agility dogs but it helps any reactive or over stimulated dog to be more in control of their actions and shows other behaviours for the dog to offer rather than unwanted ones. This may help with the shadow chasing and also it would give your DC more commands and behaviour to ask from the dog.

[LookBehindYou]

Agree with everyone else. It would probably be a good idea to keep the dog away from such exciting activities - doubt much could beat a trampoline! She's still getting to grips with things so calm is probably good right now. I don't think you've bitten off more than you can chew. It's been a pretty full on afternoon but a huge learning curve. You've only had him for a month and you're still getting used to each other.

[TantrumsAndBalloons]

I have had 3 rescue staffys, 1 of them was left on his own for long periods of time and he was pretty much scared of everything when we got him aged 2.
Whenever the DCs used to run, scream, jump, whatever he used to get amazingly over excited.
He did a bit of mouthing also, it took about 3 months, dog training classes, and trying to drill into the DCs head, to distract the dog with a toy if he got over excited at first. It can be hard work, especially with older rescues but you will get there.

Get lots of advice and training from experts and everyone in the family deal with him the same way and you should be ok.