Our dog bit ds in the face and drew blood

[Differentusernametoday]

please be kind, I am really shaken and need some support.

We have an 11 month old springer. We have a few issues with him, mostly anxiety related, and are waiting to see a behaviourist. I don’t trust him because he has growled at us before, and has bitten my hand and snapped at me, although to be fair both times I feel we’re partly my fault. This afternoon, he was on the sofa bed put down for guests - ds2saw him and told him to get off, apparently dog growled at him, ds tried to move him and dog bit his face and has drawn blood. Currently waiting in a&e now. Ds2 is devastated and knows he should not have tried to move him when he had already growled, and blames himself. I feel like I have reached the end of the road and I can’t live with a dog I don’t trust, but it will break ds3’s heart if we rehome him, but in some ways it will be a huge weight lifted. What would you do?

You need to get rid of that dog.
I say this a a committed 'dog' person. I have had a dog my entire life, apart from the odd 6-month periods in between one dying of old age and getting a new rescue.
If a dog has bitten once or is showing any signs of aggression towards a people or children, is HAS to be removed from them.
It's also not your fault that it has growled or bitten you or your child. The dog has got aggression issues and needs to go to home where there are no children and an experience adult can try to train and keep it controlled and relaxed.
Also, my son was bitten by a dog in the street recently and needed a visit to the hospital. Due to policy, they insisted that either we did or they reported it to the police as it was a safeguarding issue. We did report it to the police and the police issued the owner (who had already admitted to us that the dog 'didn't like children', so she clearly knew it has bitten or shown aggression towards children previously) with a warning. I assume the hospital with discuss the same with you-either you report it or they will.
Get rid of the dog please, to a good dogs home, there will be many people out there, who will look after it.
I wish your child the best with healing.

I grew up in a house with 7 dogs, and have never been bitten!! We had 2 yorkshire terriers, a king Charles spaniel, a crossbreed, and 3 German Shepard's.

But I got taught how to behave around dogs.

@JenGin is right. This is not an aggressive and out of control dog, but it is an anxious and poorly trained dog in a situation where it is dangerous to the children in the house.

I'm sure I don't need to say it again OP but you must remove the dog from this environment. He needs to go to a specialist, to an experienced dog owner who has a good understanding of behaviour, or back to the breeder. Or put to sleep as a last resort.

What is wrong with you?

Your child definitely isn’t at fault he should be able to move around freely in his own home, it’s just unfortunate that the dog isn’t safe to be around children

so many dogs don’t like children and find them loud but most just avoid or ignore I have a dog that just goes and finds a quiet corner anytime there are kids in the house even if a baby accidentally pulled his hair would only yip and someone would intervene.

did you buy the dog from a reputable breeder? And was it well socialized as a puppy? If not you could potentially consider another puppy in the future it’s unlikely you’d have issues

but I think you definitely should rehome your dog at 11 months old I’m sure it would easily find and bond with a new owner.

Rehome so it can bite other people???

Euthanise asap. Be responsible.

You need to rehome the dog immediately. I'm no dog expert but I imagine he's too old now to train around your children, and it would be grossly irresponsible to continue having a dog that can bite a child's face in your home.

Not helpful I know but I would have got rid of the dog after the first time it bit someone - wouldn't have waited for it to bite my child. I thought dogs had to be put down if they bite?

Don't get another dog if you cannot keep a eye on your kids and them!

FFS I have a dog which bit someone once, I got it from a rescue centre, it's in an adult only home with adults experienced with dogs and has never bitten again. He's a kind, loving dog who is now happy compared to when I first got him and it was obvious he wasn't suitable around children.

Places like Spaniel Aid often rehome young dogs to working homes. When I got my 5 month old springer from them I was an Estate Manager in the Lakes. He had free reign of 4,000 acres. A farmer friend has taken a dog and is out all day. Another has taken a young cocker spaniel from them and it’s now a very well trained gun dog. There are plenty of suitable homes for a 11 month old Springer with experienced working homes where they can thrive.

Can't disagree with you! I don't know much about dogs but I do know they shouldn't be biting family members , maybe issues with dog handling here.. or the dog just naturally doesn't like kids ?

The dog is 11 months old. It can easily be trained still. I suspect the OP hasn't got the time for this, though, with young children and would have to constantly keep an eye on it until its issues have been dealt with by a professional. It probably isn't realistic.

Absolutely no reason to have an 11 month puppy with some anxiety/fear issues killed as a first choice, though.

Too much sympathy for the dog in this post. Biting a child in the face = put down behaviour imo. Your kids come first. Rehoming it might mean it bites some other child.

Have you had dogs before? What made you choose a springer? A springer is a very, very active dog that needs a lot to do mentally and physically, and although they are lovely, they can be really highly strung and a bit obsessive (there's a reason they often make good police/army sniffer dogs). And bored dog is an anxious dog - this sounds much more like a nervous and defensive dog than an aggressive one.

Your dog is insecure in your home, and would be better off with another owner. He is snapping because he's anxious and stressed. If he's snapped three times and twice it was 'your fault' and the third time it was because your son tried to move him when he was already growling, that suggests that as a family you are not suited to owning a highly strung dog. It's not fair on the dog or on you.

"Ds2 is devastated and knows he should not have tried to move him when he had already growled, and blames himself." He is 2!!! He does not understand.

I can't believe you've tried to blame your child for this. This is your fault not training the dog.

The dog clearly thinks its top dog by being higher (on the sofa) than DS so has taken charge.

That dog shouldn't be put down but needs to be rehomed by someone who can actually take the time to train it.

This is coming from someone who also has a dog.

I’m sorry this has happened to you. I’m also sorry as I have not had time to read all the comments.

Please ignore comments which mention putting the dog to sleep, I disagree wholly with this, it’s still a puppy at 11 months and (no offence) but it clearly hasn’t had the right training/socialisation. With time and an experienced trainer, the behaviour can be reversed.

I would like to ask - did you have the dog from a puppy or was it a rescue?

Please pass the dog to a spaniel rescue charity who know the breed and can help it. And please don’t get a puppy in the future.

I hope your son is okay.

I would pts. Hope your dc feels better soon.

It is your fault for not training your dog properly and not ensuring that you manage access to your children. Your dog gave a warning. It was ignored. A dog who has guarding issues is trainable. If you can't commit to training then rehome it. Any vet who euthanises a healthy puppy should be struck off or prosecuted.
And OP. Never EVER have another dog.
That is being kind to you, your family and your dog. You want MN to give you permission to kill your dog. What a shit show this site is.

Rehome so it can bite other people???

Euthanise asap. Be responsible

Couldn't disagree more. My DSus has a DDog that had some interesting behaviours before she got him including aggression and shitting in the toddler's toy box.

You'd be hard to find a more relaxed and happy DDog now and I trust him implicitly with my (older) DC.

A famous dog trainer said an anxious dog is worse than an aggressive dog.

With an aggressive dog you know it’s aggressive and it will let you know too and you would treat it as such but an anxious dog often doesn’t give warnings and can switch at any time.

I am a dog lover.
My favourite breeds are certain bull breeds and Rottweilers, so I am not anti dog in any way but I would not keep this dog if I were you.

Yes it warned you it was going to bite so you/DS may feel a bit responsible but this dog is unhappy and none of you will ever be able to give it what it needs, now that you are all wary of it (which is going to make its anxiety worse).

I would say rehome it by giving it to a rescue that has a behaviourist.

The fact that the dog growled before it bit is a positive thing as it gave you a warning first, so not all hope is lost.

Your dog could make an excellent working dog or to a family without children.

Attempt to rehome through an org who can work on their behaviour and make sure new owners are aware

If not able to, put down sadly

This is a perfect example of people not understanding dog behaviour, not understanding an individual dog’s boundaries etc and consistently ignoring all the warning signs.

Bending/leaning over a dog who is eating/sleeping to kiss or cuddle them is ridiculous. So many of these dogs are being set up to fail.

Ive never understood why it’s reasonable to expect perfect and placid behaviour from an animal despite however many of their boundaries/comfort/patience levels are breached. But humans can snap/shout/defend themselves when harassed or feeing threatened.

Some people are much better off not having dogs

This is 100% good advice.

OP, your son should not be blaming himself.