Our dog bit DS. What next?

[newnamefortoday]

NC for this one. Our JRT bit 4yo DS on the foot at the weekend. Not terrible, but a huge bruise, puncture wound, visit to minor injuries and antibiotics. We’re not sure exactly what happened, dog was in the garden, DS climbed on the gate as he has done dozens of times before but this time the dog bit his foot as he put it through. Just heard a snarl then a scream. Dog knew exactly who it was as the gate is between garden and house, not the road. It would have been much worse had the gate not been between them. We also have a small baby. We are obviously considering dog’s future and keeping him separated for now. He snarled at my mum this week and caught my ankle snapping at me last week. He’s always been a bit of a grumpy terrier but has never bitten before so we’re considering all possibilities. He’s quite old. Lots to think about but with a small baby we can’t take any chances. What would you do next, apart from taking dog to vet to check for pain etc? Would you expect any follow up from SS or HV through the hospital?

@Sitdowncupoftea I agree.

you might not want to hear that @newnamefortoday but your husband doesn’t sound like he’ll go for pts. This could really damage your relationship if that’s what you insist on. I get that this is very serious but explore all options.x

The dog could get to your child. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Your child may have banged the dog with his foot causing the dog to react. You’ve said you don’t really know what happened so it’s not proper supervision.

What tests did the vet do?

My 20 yr old son was also bitten by our dog yesterday.First bite in 8 years of ownership and we're seriously considering the dogs future. In our case it's a very severe startle reflex. I can't imagine how much worse it would be if he was a small child and you must feel awful.
Best wishes with your decision making and your child has to be the priority.

I would probably pts unfortunately. I wouldn't pass on a dog that had bitten/threatened to bite as you just don't know what will happen to them. I wouldn't want to pass on the problem as unfortunately once a dog has bitten it is more likely to do so again in similar situation.

Don't take any chances, rehome or put down. When I was 6 my next door neighbours 2 year old had to have 45 stitches after the family dog bit his face and ripped his cheek off.

I breed JRT and PRT. I have toddlers and baby.

I separate the kitchen to keep muddy paws off carpets, but they run freely aside that.

The fact they were apart outside suggest this was a working type arrangement, perhaps like here, DH farmer, separate dogs to house dogs. I'm not sure. What's the set up indoors?

But yes, terriers can kill a child. I would really want to know more from you about the dog, the set up, what dog was used for, exercise etc. but ultimately dog is trying to tell you something about the child, so remove it and personally, I would PTS for a child bite. But I would rehome in very narrow circumstances if dog had been separated for a reason, eg, working dog, not socialised, unwell, unfit, etc

Sounds like a proper bite not a playful snap. With young children, I'd err on the side of caution and remove or speak to vet.

@LoveInNashville the vet did standard flexion/arthritis/vision tests. We haven’t gone down the blood test/scan/brain scan route yet as they’re expensive and we don’t have a huge budget with new baby so wanted to consider things first.

@sheepandcaravan we don’t have working dogs, just a garden which is fenced off from the patio.

That injury is quite bad. Is your child now not scared of the dog and dogs in general after the shock? Poor thing.

Even if you didn't have a small baby. What are you waiting for? DH would be gone with the dog also (literally)

When my dog bit my son I got him rehomed. I was fortunate that I knew our local rspca officer and specified that there would either be no kids or teenagers.

Our dog bit my brother on the face when he was 4. I don’t remember much except that he had to go to hospital for an operation to fix the damage and the dog disappeared. The dog was of course PTS. Don’t take the risk of a more serious bite.

This dog is a very serious threat and he has to go. Personally, at his age and his deteriorating temperament, I would have him put to sleep. He's a danger to anyone, but especially your children. I wouldn't allow the dog anywhere near them.

For the dog's sake, I would not rehome it. You don't know how someone who doesn't love it will react to being bitten. Unfortunately PTS unless a dog can live comfortably with a muzzle

@Algbu6 that’s my problem. It’s not too far off husband and dog. In fairness, he knows. He’s just hoping there’s a way out, which I can completely understand. I have my own dog from before we were married and I’d be beyond devastated if it was her.

We had a dog that snapped at me, caught my hand with his teeth, when I went to pick up a ball that was next to him. Within a week he couldn’t jump on the sofa and they said he has pulled a muscle. He hadn’t. The following week he was diagnosed with bone cancer through bloods and xrays/scans, no doubt he had been in pain when he went for me. I’d advise more thorough testing. Presumably you have insurance as you have a dog.

@LoveInNashville we have the basic accident only. We live on a main road so have to have some insurance in case they cause an accident but we have two older dogs and full cover for them both is prohibitive for us at the moment.

you might not want to hear that @newnamefortoday but your husband doesn’t sound like he’ll go for pts. This could really damage your relationship if that’s what you insist on. I get that this is very serious but explore all options.x

Surely you’ve got this the wrong way around, @ED81. If DH doesn’t prioritise the children’s safety, then he risks damaging the relationship.

As I said upthread, DH is very reluctant to do either and it’s going to cause a major incident in my marriage

Would having your dog rehomed or pts cause more of an incident in your marriage than say, one of your children being maimed or worse? I think the quote from the vet is very apt "cry now for the dog, not later for the baby".
I suspect your dog has been quite happy just being with his people and now there are these small annoying creatures who hurt him, accidentally, or are noisy and he just can't cope with the change.
It's an awful situation to be in, but if my dog started to behave that way where I was worried it would seriously hurt one of my family, I would be looking at all avenues.

After a vet check, I would personally seek a dog behaviourist to come round and assess the situation.
Dogs are often scared of young children and can turn to aggression out of fear.
If you can find a good behaviourist who can teach the dog to move away from the children and to not be afraid then you may be able to keep the dog if you wanted to.
If you don't want to do that though then re-home. I personally could never have my dog PTS, that's not our place to decide.

We are in a similar situation to you, our dog was our baby until our real babies came along who are now 2.5 years and 3 months old. Our dog doesn't love them being around too much, she's growls when they're near to warn them away but no bites. We've been rewarding the good behaviour, keeping the dog away from our children and things are improving. Dogs get put pushed to one side when babies arrive and toddlers and children are scary to them - not saying you should keep the dog but PTS should not be the punishment IMO for a dog that could just be frightened and/or jealous.

Op it's your decision, but I still wonder why?

What's your house like, do they run together. Why was child and dog separate outside? Is dog protective of house etc etc.

Anyway that's the behaviourist in me.

As I say, a bite on a child in a well managed situation that you were happy with, with supervision and no health conditions, PTS

I just don’t think you can get rid of a dog when you’re not supervising it properly with children but also, you’ve described a few incidents within a short space of time having previously had none. It’s a big change in behaviour and potentially points to a health issue which needs thoroughly investigating. Bloods for a start. Dogs are expensive, you need to pay for tests and care when needed.

@SparklingLime this is so true 🤣 I am beginning to lose patience, believe me. This thread is my last test of my reasonableness before I put my foot down. I usually get there without a major incident in the end but this one is really testing things. In fairness, DH had a massive (I mean huge) family trauma a few years ago and the dog was a big part of his healing, so DH deserves a little more nuance in terms of his attitude, but not the reality of the situation and the solution.

@LoveInNashville I didn’t say we wouldn’t, just that we hadn’t and wanted to consider things. We are considering a behaviourist too, but it’s a fairly immediate problem with baby and DS and I’m not sure we have the luxury of months of time for retraining and socialising with the new baby. This forum is anonymous, so nobody is telling me what they think I want to hear. That’s why I posted, so I’m glad you’ve added your opinion, thank you for taking the time to do so.

I think seeing my poor child like that it would definitely be a no go for the dog. I don't think it's fair for people to say why was the dog left unattended with DC.

So people with dogs always follow both child and dog round? Ridiculous.