My dog bit my son

[Mumoftwomonkeys1976]

I'm devastated. This afternoon our almost 2 year old Cavapoo bit ds1 16 on the mouth, hard enough that he had to go to hospital for stitches. He's never done anything like this before but now I feel as though I can't trust him at all.

I don't really know what my AIBU is, just wondered if anyone else has ever had this happen and what I should do next really. Ds1 is so upset and was more concerned about consequences for the dog than for himself.

I'd put it down

The dog growls as it's not happy being petted, which already makes it an unsuitable dog to be around children. The fact it's now bitten means it needs to be PTS

I would rehome your dog to someone who knows what they are doing and don't get another unless you're invested to training your dog and your children properly.

There is no such thing as a dangerous dog, just dengerous owners who don't train them to give it half a chance.

That's just bollocks. Of course there's such a thing as a dangerous dog, they're wild animals ffs. You can train it all you like, but you can never be certain and some dogs will be dangerous no matter what. I don't think that's certainly the case here. I'd be minded to give it another chance. Ddog bit dd after dd kept blowing raspberries at it despite ddog clearly telling her to bloody well stop it. Find out what really happened op and move from there.

I think your DS1's reaction tells you everything you need to know - he is upset and more concerned about the dog than the bite he has received. This to me screams he was buggering about and winding the dog up and the dog after warning him off snapped. if this is the case then the fault lies entirely with your DS and not the dog. Even my 3 year old knows to leave all dogs alone when eating/sleeping.

I wouldn't automatically PTS. You need to get some help though, maybe the vet might have some answers. I'd definitely try crate training, dogs need a place they can go away from children in their own space. The dog needs to be carefully monitored. I owned a vicious dog when my Ds (who is now 23) was young but he lashed out without warning. I gave him chance after chance but he had to be PTs in the end and it broke my heart but I couldn't trust him. This might be a different situation only you know how he generally behaves and if this is totally out of character

My Golden Retriever bit my DS2 when he was younger, like your case it was on the face, and stitches were required. To be fair we were in the middle of moving house at the time, and my dog was already unnerved with all the commotion.

However, i got a good behaviourist, and we all worked together, it never happened again.

I haven't read the whole thread but I'd put the dog's bed behind the sofa or somewhere dark and quiet where he can get away to his own space, too, OP.

I'm afraid, in this case, I'm in agreement with WHERESTHEL1GHT.
If he's more concerned about the dog, when it's supposedly savaged him, it speaks volumes really.
However, I hope he makes a speedy recovery, he must have got a nasty shock, regardless of what really happened.

If the dog does not like people going near it sometimes, and growls to let them know, I would be seriously considering if the 7 year old is safe tbh. You can tell a 7 year old not to do something til you are blue in the face but if they are in that mood..they will do it. Unless you supervise every second the 7 year old is near that dog, then I would be very worried and tbh, I would be looking at rehoming, to somewhere without young children.

If the dog growls to warn people to back off and people ignore that warning, it is not the dogs fault for lashing out. However..a 7 year old cannot be relied upon to stick to taking the growls seriously. And they need to be taken very seriously given the results of this incident.

I was bitten (on the back/hip) years ago and was told they don't stitch bites in case of sealing in infection. Is this diffe rent because it's the face? Dog was not pts and owner left me on beach to drive to the hospital myself

It's an animal that you can't understand or know as you can't get in its mind.

Your DS is your DS and you're putting the dog ahead of your son's safety. The dog bites. It's unpredictable. No longer safe. Will anyone even take a dog that has bitten someone?!

Cavapoos are known for this unfortunately - they aren't the cute fluffy dogs people think they are.
They can be really quite nasty ... there are lots of articles on the internet about the nasty side of cavapoos.

Growling as warning unless dog is ill or some unusual circumstance is concerning.

I grew up with a male dog who was very aggressive to other male dogs and in his time nipped (no stitches or broken skin though just restraining arms/wrists) a few people who he thought were attacking one of the family, so he wasn't a softy through and through but I rolled around with that dog, lay on his tummy like a pillow but he would never have nipped or bitten one of the family. He wanted to defend the family members, he was almost too loyal and defensive on our behalf.

If a dog regularly growls to be left alone I'm not sure of his suitability to family life especially with a 7yo in the house. Has he ever growled at your 7yo? If so that is very worrying.

they're wild animals ffs

They're about as domesticated as animals get.

Cavapoos are known for this unfortunately - they aren't the cute fluffy dogs people think they are.

It's the poodle in them.

To all those suggesting rehousing....do you actually know what happens at shelters when a dog comes in who has bitten a child?.. sadly I do and very often it does NOT bode well for the dog. If the dog sleeps on all the chairs in the house I would suggest his own crate when he can go when he's had enough and the kids are told to leave him alone when he's in his create good luck po

Did you get the dog as a puppy? From a breeder? Or somewhere else?

I don't understand why people think it is appropriate to have a dog in the same house as a child

When you say 'rehome', you really mean 'wash your hands by taking him to a rescue centre and let them put him down after you've left the car park', right?

Exactly. People need to be honest with themselves about this.

I don't understand why people think it is appropriate to have a dog in the same house as a child

Err, it's been a normal thing to do for millenniums. Do you usually have problems understanding simple concepts?

Agree with others who say that a dog regularly growling at family is very concerning. I've had dogs and known lots of dogs, none of them would ever do that, disturbed or not. A dog that growls is ready to bite.

they're wild animals ffs

Domesticated dogs are NOT wild animals, FFS.

The problem here has been caused by a) dog not been trained properly and b) 16 yo not been trained properly.

That coupled with the fact that it's a CKCS crossed with a poodle. I hate designer cross breeds anyway because of the lack of health testing but anyone who knows ANYTHING about dog breeds knows that this is a mindlessly stupid cross.