Genuine question: how do dog owners cope with the idea their dogs can turn at any time?

[Simblythebestie]

Have always wondered this and I'm honestly not attempting to be goady. Do you ever wonder about your dog - particularly a large breed - turning and biting you and causing damage to you or your kids? The idea of this would terrify me and is one of the reasons we'd never got a dog. Do you always know what they are thinking when they are looking at you? That's something else I've always wondered about. Or do you feel you know a dog after you've been living together for a period of time?

People do turn, by the way. They aren't always loyal forever! They can change their behaviours and develop not so nice character traits.

We have two Labradors. I grew up with Labradors and all our dogs are gun dog trained (even though they are not used for working).
We take dog ownership seriously, so we have educated ourselves on their body language and needs.
We chose the breed because they are smart and have a lot of emotional intelligence. They’re so loving and calm.

I could die in a car crash. But I put my seatbelt on to try to mitigate the risk.

I don’t worry about it because I know that they (mine) won’t. I have retrievers who are as gentle and soppy as they come.

I had a dog (spaniel) years ago that would turn and snap with little or no warning, and it was terrifying. It turned out he had a brain tumour. I think I’m pretty good at reading dog body language after 30 odd years of having dogs. There are definitely some I know that I’d avoid on walks.

it’s the same with people. I worry more about a person on public transport bringing out a knife (which I have seen happen).

I spent a lot of time training my dog and trying to understand dog behaviour and warning signs.
Hes supposed to be a breed that is energetic, determined and small. Often people have been bitten by these dogs but they’re small. So I put a huge amount of effort into training him.
Mine appears to be a crossbreed, medium sized, dopey as anything. I do trust him completely with my children but I didn’t get him until my youngest was 7 and old enough to understand to leave the dog alone. I think the dog really understands me too. Eg first thing in the morning I come downstairs, he comes to see me, sees I’m busy with kids/breakfast and goes back to his bed. Waits his turn! He’s also terrified of the cat so he’s got common sense.

I choose my family dogs carefully by breed and temperament. Genetics do play a big part in how your dog turns out.

What do you think men are then, aliens or divine?

Humans are animals.

For those of you who have gentle cuddly velcro dogs I can imagine it must be very relaxing and lovely for you! And I'm sure they do really feel like part of the family. I'm not a dog basher at all I think it must be a great life pleasure to have one it's just not for me as explained above.

I worry more about random men in the street than random dogs I meet in the park.
As for my mini schnauzer she’s more likely to lick you to death! I have literally never met such a gentle loving dog - and I’ve known a lot of dogs! But we know a lot about dogs in our house, we can read their body language and understand their signals. We didn’t get our schnauzer until ds was 7.

Our big dog (40kg) could do lots of damage. But he's so mild in temperament. He picked up his feet when he saw a mouse on our stairs. We still muzzle him for everyone's protection, including his, if we go to the vet and he needs a painful procedure. The fact that he cries but still wags his tail at the vet is reassurance to us that he isn't prone to biting. But he's a dog, so we don't take the chance.

Puppies who are well raised learn bite inhibition. They start off as viscious land sharks and learn to modify their grip. Our puppy is almost 7 months old and I only have to say 'gentle' if she gets mouthy, and she releases her grip and licks my hand.

The vast majority of people can’t read dog body language. Almost every single dog that “turned” would have been showing very clear body language that it was uncomfortable in the seconds or even minutes up to that point. People that get dogs, especially large, powerful breeds or anyone who has children, really must educate themselves around dog body language. E.g a waggy tail does not necessarily mean a dog is happy.. in fact it can mean the opposite, but this is easy to tell if you can read the rest of the dog’s body language alongside.

By using common sense and interacting with my dogs in a way which limits the risk of them being aggressive.

I grew up with a medium/large sized dog. They weren't a violent/banned breed. But I remember when playing tug of war they would get very wild, and I remember thinking ah, I better respect this animal. It didn't make me fearful of them as I knew 99% of the time they were fine, but having a glimpse of their wild side, I understood that if push comes to shove, this bond they have with their humans wouldn't mean much.

When our elder dog was a puppy, a few dogs would growl at him.
So I reseached dog behaviours and communication on the web and learnt how they communicate with each other and body language.

From experience: dogs usually give a warning growls and show teeth. The growl can be low and fierce if this makes sense. Usually our dogs get up and walk away whilst giving you a dirty look.

I've learnt to the read their body language, understand their barks: happy, protective etc and what triggers them or if there are in pain. I still don't 100% trust them with small children as they are unpredicitive as well.

Generally the main reasons for dogs to bite are pain or fear.

I have definitely learnt a lot about his body language from playing with him and watching him play with other dogs. He growls when we play tug but that is definitely a playing thing and not aggressive. If he plays with a smaller dog he often 'handicaps' himself by lying down and lets them win a bit. His friend Angie who is much smaller he always lets her pin him and stand over him although he could overpower her if he wanted. Some of his dog friends they wrestle and look as though they are biting one another but it's all reciprocated play. If he doesn't like or is wary of another dog his body language is completely different: he goes stiff and draws himself up to his full height and trots like a show pony. If he likes a dog he often lies down or puts his head low and is relaxed.

It's less easy having a big dog because you do have an awareness that they are inherently more capable of doing damage than a tiny one but that makes me pay more heed to training and managing him than if he was a small dog. I honestly never ever do let him run up to people in parks or sniff people when on a lead because I realise that rightly they would be scared more than if a toy poodle did that.

I should hope that people have some idea that a Cane Corso or a Doberman is not a 'starter dog' and is for people who are experienced and don't have small kids but some people are dumb.

I find animal body language a lot easier to read than humans' - I've been around animals since birth, but didn't have nearly as much interaction with people (well, not ones that weren't aggressive/abusive/neglectful at any rate - so I'm great at working out if a human is seriously thinking about lashing out physically, not quite so much at whether I'm wasting my time asking for a payrise or if they actually like me).

DP didn't have that experience or knowledge, so couldn't tell whether a dog was happy, relaxed, excited, uneasy or feeling threatened. So he'd feel more like you - because a dog would be speaking an entirely foreign language to him and he'd be unable to communicate back..

Personally, I have a maximum size preference in dogs which reduces the scope of harm one could cause in the event of illness, injury or fear - or just bowling me over in excitement that I was there. But the principles are still the same - understanding body language, understanding needs and knowing when to say 'Nope', which includes not exacerbating the situation so that attacking is a viable/the only reasonable response in the mind of the animal.

The trouble comes where people have no idea about animal behaviour or health and put them into situations where the wild animal response has no choice but to come out, instead of the overlay of domestication and socialisation we've managed to create on the surface.

Many of us in exceptionally stressful situations are surprised how we respond, whether it's fighting, running like fuck or freezing - that's where our animal instincts have broken through the veneer of respectability. Animals are no different; we can be a friend, a threat or food, depending upon what we tell them. A cow will kill you because you're a threat to their calf or because they're scared and you're in the way. A horse can kill you because you're a threat to them or they're trying to get to run away. A cat will fight like a demon because you're a threat to them and they can't run away, any bigger and you'd be food if you triggered their instinct. A boar would kill you in the right circumstances, as would a bear.

None of this changes the fact that other humans are the main threat to people in comfortable lives - but these are animals. They're not people. So you treat them as dogs with the awareness that underneath the snoring on the rug or yabbiting on about the squirrel outside, they are an animal with no greater intelligence than a preschooler, just with much bigger and sharper teeth.

I have a whippet.

Easy to navigate having a dog- you have rules so if something happened you can get away- rule in this house is never have your face near the dog and he’s not allowed on the couch or chair beside people. He’s not allowed in if people with babies are visiting and is on the lead or in another room when toddlers are here (more Because of what they could inflict on him😅)

This is sadly very true. The number of pictures you see of people letting their toddlers climb all over the dog with the comment 'they are just so tolerant!' If you can read canine body language you can see that the dog is looking extremely uncomfortable.... Canine Arthritis management website suggests that a significant number of older dogs have undiagnosed arthritis, a painful condition. The child gets bigger, heavier as the dog ages and treads on a sore joint and the dog finally snaps, in pain. The owner then trots out the line 'he just turned one day'....

I bet an awful lot of dog owners wouldn't recognise the early signs in the canine ladder of aggression.

OP as an adult all of my dogs have been rescues and all large dogs, 40 kg upwards. We don't have kids ourselves but for DH and us, we have never worried about our dogs turning on us out of the blue one day.

I have a large dog. He's a pointer. Like other gundogs, they are bred to work with humans and they tend to be reliable, affectionate, sociable and very trainable. My dog will happily allow any of the family to take a toy, or even a treat, straight out of his mouth. He was a bit scared of the dc's school rabbits and school tortoises when we looked after them .

He's been attacked by another dog twice and did not bite back. He absolutely is physically capable of seriously hurting someone, but nothing could be further from his mind. Yes, you know what they are thinking when they look at you, and from their body language. On rare occasions if you do something he doesn't want you to (e.g. go to give him a bit of a cuddle and he is feeling a bit sore or tired) he will give a gentle rumble to say 'nope, not in the mood'! He would probably escalate to a less gentle rumble if necessary.

Any dog can be aggressive but there's plenty you can do to minimise the risk:
You can choose a breed less prone to aggression,
you can obedience train your dog,
you can supervise your dogs interactions with people and other dogs and remove them if they seem frustrated or scared,
You can prevent children from teasing your dog and teach them respectful behaviour towards animals,
You can exercise your dog to reduce it's anxiety,
You can socialise your dog to tolerate some of the things that typically cause anxiety (crowds, bicycles, noise etc)
You can interrupt your dogs prey drive by getting it to do something else.
My dog used to chase cyclists and joggers so I call him me for a treat when we see one. Now the association is so strong he sometimes comes to me as soon as he sees them, before being asked.

I can't believe some people are comparing men with dogs. I hope your fathers, brothers, partners, sons, nephews don't find out what you really thing about them

OP, stories of dog attacks ie a couple
in their sleep, there will have been a trigger, it's very very rare for a dog to attack completely unprovoked, triggered. Also, bear in mind very few of these cases are very reported accurately and always sensationalised.

I think it’s all about risk assessment. I’ve had our lab from a puppy and she is always treated with kindness and respect. She is sweet and lovely and communicates with us in her own way. I think it’d be really unusual for a dog without a history of trauma and a gentle temperament to suddenly turn on owner tbh

My dog is 7, not once have I ever thought he will turn on us. He’s a black labrador, soft as shit, loved just as much as we love our child. I have given him a safe, loving home. I don’t fear he will ever turn on us, not got a bad bone in his body, wouldn’t hurt a fly.

Dogs can sense your fear/panic, it would rub off on them if you constantly acted weird around them, they would easily pick up on it.

What a lot of nonsense.

Yet another thread trying to imply that all dogs are potential blood-thirsty killers.

The majority of dogs are good-natured and love their owners and listen to them if they have been well trained.

Enough with the anti-dog threads...