Dog bite advice please

[Wineoclockinwales]

Hi everyone, this Is my first post. We have 2 dogs a 7 year old Jack Russell cross we have had since a pup and a 9 year old yorkie rescue that we have had for a year. I also have 3 children the youngest age 8 has been bitten by the Jack on her cheek. She will be fine I have cleaned the small wound that had broken the skin but wasn't bleeding applied cream and cuddles and she is now asleep. It is going to bruise I can see that already. It was unprovoked, dog was sat next to her and she reached out to stroke him, no growl just snapped. Really unsure what to do next. I would tell anyone else to put the dog down but it's our family dog and that makes it more difficult. Any advice on how you have handled a simaler situation would be lovely x

Were they on the sofa?
I know dominance theory is discredited now but we found that our dogs behaviour improved when we banned him from the sofa.
Our trainer said that there are some dogs you can allow on the sofa and some you can't - he actually mentioned Jack Russells as being a breed best kept on the floor.

I would just tell the children to keep their faces away from the dogs head in future . My mum has 2 JRT X borders , they are 15 this Christmas so pretty old and the girl one is completely untrustworthy and my DC ( who are 17+ now) always knew not to get too close to the teeth end . With older DC it should be quite easy to manage and ensure dog is separated from any visiting children . Hope your child's face heals ok .

hopping , I have to disagree , that is absolute bunkum , and I say that as the owner of a sofa dwelling JRT X ( patterdale) .

Thank you both for your replies. Dd was sat on her bedroom floor and the dog was on her bed. She said she reached to stroke him and he bit. He had growled at me for the first time earlier in the day when I was putting things in the boot of the car and he jumped in. It could be dominance . I am not sure how to resolve it. They are not allowed on the sofa, are fed by me in the utility with the door closed, sleep in a crate ect. I thought that was the right thing to do .

Could he be unwell ?

If it's out of character for the dog I would say a trip to the vet for a check up is in order.

It is completely out of character for him. He is a very social dog and we have had him since a pup. I will consult the vet tomorrow to see if there is anything underlying.

One thing I can guarantee it isn't is dominance, Why Won't Dominance Die?

Vet check required. Also needs eyesight checking.

There is no such thing as dominance, it's not dominance. If it's out of character and he had growled at you earlier that day, also out of character, I would suspect an underlying medical reason and take him to the vet.