Should I report this dog for biting DH?

[heldinadream]

Posting in AIBU for full range of opinions.
We live in a village. We’re having our bathroom done so are temporarily without a bath or shower, and some people we know (but not well) very kindly said we could use one of theirs, we’ve got a key and freedom to come and go.
All good and lovely. Incredibly kind of them.

They have a very large garden and a dog that runs free in the garden.
I went a couple of times to use the shower and I wasn’t comfortable with the dog, who looked at me suspiciously and followed me, so I stopped going and I’ve managed without and also spent time away so I can shower elsewhere (yes it’s taking a ridiculously long time but that’s another story!).
Anyway long story short my DH, who has happily gone there probably a good 20 times now, was chatting to one of the parents of one of the owners a couple of days ago and the dog approached him and bit him, through his trousers, unprovoked in any way as far as I can tell, skin not really broken but a massive blood clot thing just under the skin and a bruise.

Obviously DH – completely unfazed, because that’s him – has told them, they are upset and apologetic but also were concerned that we don’t report it, AND have admitted it’s not the first time dog has bitten. Second time IF they are being straight with us. DH not only happy to let it go but fully intends to go shower again and just says he’ll avoid the dog if necessary! I’m like – how? What if the dog follows you?

The people themselves are almost never there when we go, by the way.
The more I think about it, the more inclined I am to want to report the dog. But – it is in its own garden. And I really don’t want to upset these people, who are both nice but also pretty kind of powerful locally – unlike me, I’m an invisible sort. But I’m cross they think it’s ok to have the dog run free and yet gaily say to people to just come in, and presumably people who deliver stuff have to run the gamut of the dog, too.
AIBU to even consider reporting the dog?

I wouldn’t report it. The dog will be killed & it was in its garden. I’d feel too guilty.

Personally I would always report a dog bite.

The fact that it occurred on private property is irrelevant as the law changed several years ago.

Do you know if they always keep it on a short lead when they take it for walks OP?

There's every chance it might meet any passer by with joy or ignore them entirely outside its own home, when it wasn't on guard and behaving like a normal member of its breed. Whilst it may be a dog of unstable temperament - we don't have enough info to know from this post - a nip to a perceived 'intruder' at home from a guarding breed does not automatically translate to savaging children in the local park.

Re-read the OP. The DH was not alone. The owner's parents were also there.

Maybe give them their key back and stop using their bathroom

Completely agree. A dog was loose bit me, had done it previously and was loose on street without owner. Nothing was done.

I wouldnt make bad blood with someone doing you a favour.

Can you talk to the owners and say you don't want to report but feel very uncomfortable knowing this dog could bite anyone and potentially a child unprovoked and in order not to report the owners need to take the dog for behavioral training?

Do they walk the dog on the lead and with a muzzle? Think that would determine my view on it.
I never ever want to see a dog put down, but previous posters are right about it potentially hurting a child in the future.

A large dog that has bitten at least twice and the owners regularly leave the gate open whilst it’s outside unsupervised? Who the fuck is voting YABU to report that?! Baffling. Report.

Agree with this.

The victim blaming on this thread is unreal.

Well surely it's your husband who is being unreasonable to go back if you think it'sa huge deal?

If I was your neighbour I would never do you a favour or try to be kind and then there's no chance of upsetting you.

I don't think you're being the least bit unreasonable. I love dogs but this would make me really anxious. The fact that it's done it before and got out to run loose makes it worse, the next person it does it to might not be so lucky. It might not have broken the skin but it's managed to bruise him through clothing, and that's with the owners present? Not great.

YANBU. It doesn’t matter that the dog was in their own home.

It is violent, aggressive, unpredictable and needs to be put down.

I wouldn’t want help from a neighbour who thinks it’s acceptable to keep dangerous animals.

People get very weird about dogs.

Good grief, no, don't report it. The dog bruised your husband's leg while he was on its owners'private property. Would you report them if they left a garden tool lying around and your husband tripped over it and bruised his leg?

Any dog is capable of causing some amount of harm in some circumstances. Just say 'no thanks' to your neighbours' very kind offer if you aren't able to tolerate any small risks their property might hold for you.

This is the wrong place to post. People on here are extremely strange about dogs. Every chance someone will come along to suggest you take your DH for behavioural training and consider putting him to sleep

Great everyone's happy. The OP's husband was willing to go back so he's not concerned.

Well no, I’m sure they wouldn’t be so happy about having to give up their dangerous dog.

If the OP doesn’t report it and a child gets bitten they would be equally as responsible for knowing there’s a dangerous dog and not acting upon it.

If the dog owners cared so much they would have addressed the situation already given the previous bite. They haven’t, so they only have themselves to blame.

Not the same thing at all but...
We adopted a dog when I was a teenager from the local dogs home, he was a very large breed and after a few months became very protective of our house and especially of my younger brother and I.
He was muzzled whenever we went out, and we didn't have visitors without putting him in his crate first.

The woman who lived next door (terraced houses) had a son who was a drug addict, one day when I was 16, I was alone in the house, her son came stumbling into our house by mistake, our dog attacked him quite badly, luckily he managed to get back outside and close the door but he was in hospital for a while and was physically scarred for life.
His mum did everything to try and get our dog put down but the police wouldn't even entertain the idea, because essentially her son was trespassing.

I do remember them warning us though that if our dog went on to attack a family member or any other visitor we'd invited into the house then it was pretty much dead certain that he'd be destroyed and my parents could be prosecuted.

And the 'what if he attacked a child' always seems to come from a complete failure to understand that each dog is an individual and presents his/her own particular range of risks. This dog bit an adult man who repeatedly (from the dog's point of view) 'invades' its property. That is a very specific set of circumstances. If I panicked and bopped a man that I mistakenly thought was following me, for example, would it mean that I might attack a child?

Bitey dog gets put to sleep
No they certainly don't. Aggressive dogs, who jump on people or o

Oops! Or other animals, pin them down, attack them, causing serious damage or worse do get put down, not those who just nip a stranger in their house.

This.