My dog bit dd today (not badly - not broken the skin). Help me decide....

[debbiewebweb]

I don't know what to do. Our dog bit our 5 year old daughter today quite probably unprovoked. She fell down in front of him and I assume it woke him and he bit her hand (I was just inches away but didn't see or hear anything until dd started crying). I am of the opinion that a dog that bites someone should be put down - but I was thinking of the type of bite that draws blood - or am I just making excuses! The dog is 11 years old and I could make excuses that he was woken suddenly or his eyesight is failing or he's turning into a grumpy old man. But I have a 2 year old too and if I do nothing and he bites again, only worse, I've only got myself to blame right! I'm not over reacting am I, or am I ???

He is old, was woken with a start and nipped rather than bit-I would not put a dog down for that. I would however try to make sure he has somewhere to sleep undisturbed so it does not happen again. And as always, never leave him or any other dog unattended with children.

I need to make it clear that I assume he was sleeping, he was certainly lying down in front of where she fell and it seems the only reason I can think of.
Thanks for all your advice - it varies as much as my own thoughts do, its very difficult.
Am going to sleep on it and see if things seem clearer in the morning

It just is not worth the risk. The dog can quite happily be re-homed to the right home without children.

With a five year old and a two year old, how can it be worth the risk?

4 years ago my DD1, aged about 2, stumbled over our sleeping Great Danes front paws in her new hard leather shoes. He woke up with a snap - didn't get her but it frightened the life out of me.

After a sleepless night, we decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. The dog is now 7 and DD1 is nearly 6 and they are the best of friends. He hasn't done it since.

He does have a beanbag upstairs where he can slope of for some peace & quiet.

It's your call, but if you genuinely think your DD caught him unawares then I think you should get him checked by the vet and give him a chance. Make sure your DCs know to leave him alone when he's sleeping and find him some 'old man' space in the house where he can be quiet.

And I'm taking his breed into account - admittedly if he'd been a terrier or a Rotty then I wouldn't give benefit of the doubt.

it is hard gettting a dog that his bitten rehomed,when our grandson died thinks were really bad,it was awful, any way dd neighbour came round to tell us dog was digging nr fence and dd dog bit her, not too bad small arm just broke surfaceskin went straight to vet to put down, he refused to he said hes not aggressive,hes depressed ,the lady stepped into his terriotry ,i was not happy but he refused, we have tried and tried to rehome but no one wants a dog that bites. but he has not done again, to be honest i dont think my dd could have coped with him going it would have pushed her over the edge completely

Califrau, your post is really refreshing. I hope your ds is ok now xxx

I agree with the "it is not a bit but a nip" posts

I understand your concerns though, what if next time it is a bite?

Very difficult situation

With an older dog like yours I would be tempted (very) to see it as a case of his needs changing as he gets older. He probably has a few aches and painns and feels a little nervous of the children knocking in to him.
My first response would be to see if you can organise the household, esp, his sleeping arrangements, in such a way as to be sure he can rest without fear of being approached. Do you have a crate -- our dog sleeps in one and really loves the security it gives him?
I also agree that there is a big difference between a full on bite and a surprised and defensive nip.
Having said that, cockers are known for agression of this sort, and if you really felt anxious it might be wise to think of putting him to sleep if nothing else worked. At eleven that might be more realistic than re-homing.

Whats the chances of your dd falling very close to the dog and it made him jump and he snapped because of that.
Not intentionally biting.

I find it hard to see why an 11 yr old dog who hasnt done this before would suddenly start.

Is he unwell at all?

It all seems a little clearer today. I think we're going to give him the benefit of doubt, but keep a real close eye on him for any signs of illness or dominance etc and put the word out to a few people we know and trust that if they were considering another dog soon, could they consider ours. We'll have the vet check him out next week too. Our dd has been snapped at a couple of times in the past, but like a few other posters she recognises that it was because she stood on him or she pulled him etc. What upset her this time, is as she says she 'did nothing to him and he just bit me on purpose' . She doesn't seem upset with him today though and there's no bruising so it was just a nip

any chance of going to dog-training?

No point just giving up the pet cos it does something wrong - try to fix it

No dog is untrainable - even so called "dangerous" dogs - at this very moment, my mum has a Retriever and German Shepherd, both of which let my 5yr old ds run around / stroke / lay on / cuddle in their beds etc etc

Think about training - it will help

I'm not sure you've read all my posts lewisfan, but our dog would also be happy for both my daughters to run around / stroke / lay on / cuddle in their beds etc, but that didn't stop him this time and it doesn't stop me worrying that he will do it again out of the blue.

Ask your vet to recommend a local behaviourist when you go to get the booster. Mine recommended one who I plan to use if the Dogs Trust can't help much due to them being 30 miles from where I live. My dog is 9 now and nervous around strangers, we always make sure we protect him from small kids running up and sticking their hands out to stroke him as that makes him nervous, but I'd never dream of getting rid of him. As other posters have said, intention to bite would have inflicted serious damage and wouldn't have been one quick snap.
The problem is that children don't have the same quick-ish reaction to a snap that adults have, but they learn quickly not to go near the animal again (I sure did, our collie hated me when i was born until a few minutes before it died when i finally got to stroke it). I'd say you're best to make sure the dog has his own space to escape and sleep in comfort. At his age, peace and quiet is mostly what he'll want.
And make sure the vet checks him over for eyesight or hearing problems, though chances are it was just the shock of being woken up with something suddenly in his space.

Sorry, it's very hard as a doggy person to understand the thoughts of those who can so easily say to get rid of it, my dog is part of the family so I intend to make sure we all find a way to live together - I made the commitment to giving him a home as a rescue dog and will do everything in my power to make him feel secure enough not to bite a child which helps everyone in the long run.

Why not invest in a dog crate - somewhere where your dog can sleep undisturbed, with no chance of being trodden on or fallen on or otherwise awoken? Like all of us, older dogs need their kip as they age, and time-out in a quiet den of his own will work wonders.