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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

Cocker Spaniel bit my husband

112 replies

Lottie231 · 28/12/2024 21:17

We’ve got a cocker spaniel who we’ve had for four years.

He’s been aggressive a few times over the years. Mainly when he’s poorly (e.g had an ear infection) and hides in a bush in the garden or under the bed. When we try to coax him out to come inside and go to bed he has lashed out & growled when we reach towards his collar, sometimes biting.

Recently he’s gotten worse and has taken a particular dislike to my husband. He’s always been a bit excited/bonkers and jumped up on people when they’ve come in the house (we have tried and failed to train this out of him). Anyway, one day he was particularly excited and he was jumping up on my mum and my husband told him to get down, he reached for his collar to pull him down and my dog just flipped. Really attacked my husband and drew blood from his wrist.

Now every time my husband goes near the dog he seems unsure. My husband really wants to re-home him (we have a 2 year old). He says it’s only a matter of time before he bites my son. I feel in an impossible position because I love him. We are having rows over it. Has anybody been in a similar position?

OP posts:
Eyesopenwideawake · 28/12/2024 21:53

Fishandchipsareyum · 28/12/2024 21:52

Get rid of the animal. Humans safety comes first.

Yeah, kill the dog because the human couldn't be arsed.

Cadburymonster · 28/12/2024 21:54

You need to take him to a vet ASAP. If he's hiding it's because he's in some sort of pain.

Christwosheds · 28/12/2024 21:58

The one Cocker I knew well would bite out of the blue. He had “Cocker rage” I think ? He was a reddish gold colour, I think it is linked to coat colour in some way.
This sounds more like pain/fear related though, that he was really hurt when grabbed under the bed (ear issues are very painful) and now associates being grabbed by the collar with possible pain.
He needs a vet check asap. Talk to the vet about a behaviourist if nothing seems awry physically, and talk to someone knowledgeable about the breed about rage syndrome. Then you can make an informed decision about what to do.

lightsandtunnels · 28/12/2024 21:59

Goodness OP I can't actually get my head around you asking strangers for advice on this.
Your dog has shown aggression on more than one occasion and has bit your DH drawing blood.
Your 2 year old and the rest of your family, DH included, should be your priority in this - without question. The dog has to go.

LoveMySushi · 28/12/2024 22:00

Gymmum82 · 28/12/2024 21:34

Do not rehome and aggressive unpredictable dog. Have him put down. He’s attacked your husband and will absolutely bite your child. He needs putting down

Sure, get a dog, fail to train it and then just put him down..
Jumping up is the most basic thing to ttrain away. It literally takes a week max. Sounds like OP just wasnt bothered until now because its become worse.

Definitely sounds like hes in pain. I would have him checked properly

sillysmiles · 28/12/2024 22:04

Do you understand why the dog reacts like this. Reading your post it sounds as though you can't see simple behavioural reasons and have failed to understand your dogs needs.

You invade his space and have given up trying to train him. The first step is accepting that you and your husband are at fault. It sounds like your husband has no understanding for the dogs signals

I don't think you are the right home for this dog (or any dog) until you understand basics about dog behaviour.

If you are removing, contact a reputable rescue but rescues are brimful.

Have you had a behavioural trainer come to your house?

Annettebee · 28/12/2024 22:05

I have a Cockapoo who became aggressive with other dogs in the home.
After many vet checks an xray discovered his back legs were shot and he needed 2 operations. He is still occasionally grumpy but nothing like before.
It's a horrible situation to be in and I would tell your child to give him a wide berth until a solution is found.

Shoezembagsforever · 28/12/2024 22:07

CharliePickle · 28/12/2024 21:27

I think the poor dog should be taken for a vet check, it sounds like a pain issue to me.
@Cucumberpickler there are more owners that should be pts than dogs, usually ones with attitudes like yours. I agree that maybe the dog shouldn't be around children, but really?!

This. Seriously!

Michelle12A · 28/12/2024 22:08

The dog attacked your husband. How are you even remotely alright with this?

Arcticlife · 28/12/2024 22:09

carly2803 · 28/12/2024 21:32

dog needs to go

either rehome without children (go through a rescue) or put the dog to sleep

knew of a couple of readlly nasty spaniels

is he red or golden?

Came here to ask the same question, if dog is a red (or golden)... Also google "ladder of aggression" OP, and I advise that you get super familiar with the micro level of dog body language. Then at least you have a chance at catching the early warning signs. Key point, definitely do not approach this dog whilst it is asleep. So common for bites to happen in this scenario. (And goes without saying that whilst you're trying to decide what to do next, your child and dog cannot be in the same room).

Edenmum2 · 28/12/2024 22:10

I know you love the dog but he's clearly not happy and you need to protect your child. It's hard, not saying otherwise

TheFormidableMrsC · 28/12/2024 22:14

This happened with a neighbour's dog and he did become aggressive with the toddler. They had him PTS. It was the right thing to do.

PowerTulle · 28/12/2024 22:14

He’s always been a bit excited/bonkers and jumped up on people when they’ve come in the house (we have tried and failed to train this out of him). Anyway, one day he was particularly excited and he was jumping up on my mum

With kindness OP you haven’t tried with this dog. Crate or shut in another room, before guests come in the house. Excited, out of control dogs who have already shown aggression should go absolutely nowhere near visitors or children.

Working cockers are hard as nails to train out of aggressive behaviour once it’s gone this far. And any rescue worth its salt won’t rehome with a bite history like this. Sadly I think PTS is the safest way to go for everyone including the dog.

Stardogchampion · 28/12/2024 22:15

You need to protect your child. We had a cocker spaniel when I was little, she bit me badly on the hand, my parents kept her a while longer until she eventually bit my brother on the face, after which they re-homed her. It's not worth the risk, the dog is clearly aggressive.

TheFormidableMrsC · 28/12/2024 22:16

Annettebee · 28/12/2024 22:05

I have a Cockapoo who became aggressive with other dogs in the home.
After many vet checks an xray discovered his back legs were shot and he needed 2 operations. He is still occasionally grumpy but nothing like before.
It's a horrible situation to be in and I would tell your child to give him a wide berth until a solution is found.

The child is 2 years old. Have you had a toddler?

Shoezembagsforever · 28/12/2024 22:19

Gymmum82 · 28/12/2024 21:34

Do not rehome and aggressive unpredictable dog. Have him put down. He’s attacked your husband and will absolutely bite your child. He needs putting down

Really!!

I mean fgs surely can't there be a better way out of this?

MauveVelcro · 28/12/2024 22:21

Vet check then rehome or PTS. And don't get another dog unless you're willing to train it.

Jumping up and zero recall, meaning you're dragging the poor thing around by the collar to get it to go where you want is really very poor. And no, it's not inevitable and it totally avoidable if you do even the basics of training.

SomethingElse73 · 28/12/2024 22:22

PTS

RenaissanceBaby · 28/12/2024 22:25

Definitely rehome without a shadow of a doubt. We had an aggressive cocker as kids my mum should have rehomed the first time it growled at us. Little shit ended up taking a chunk out of my sibling. I have no idea what she was th You’d never be able to love with yourself if you could have prevented your little one being bitten but didn’t.

SErunner · 28/12/2024 22:26

Gosh the number of people on this thread jumping to PTS has really shocked me. There have been clear triggers each time he's bitten from what you've written, it doesn't sound like they have come out of the blue. Echo a pp you shouldn't ever reach into where a dog is trying to hide to pull them out - even the most mild mannered could react badly to this depending on why they are hiding. He's become fearful of you handling his collar which has probably provoked the subsequent reaction.

I would do some research and get a good behaviourist in - there are a lot of terrible ones so you really do need to do some proper digging into it otherwise you can end up thinking that option has failed when in fact the person was just useless.

Other actions to take:

  • use stair gates as needed to segment your home so that your child is never with the dog unless you are present and the situation is very well controlled
  • when you do have the dog in with you as a family have a lead on him and consider use of a muzzle, constant monitoring of the situation and ensure energy levels calm
  • invest time in basic training on a daily basis
  • have the dog on a lead every single time someone comes to the door so you have control of the situation without using his collar, or restrict access to the door when people are coming in
  • train your child to leave the dog alone and respect his space. No interaction unless you say so and are controlling it.

We have two dogs, one of whom has bitten me a few times and both of them have fought each other on rare occasions due to resource guarding (food, perhaps once a year). We have had input from an excellent behaviourist on a few occasions over the years. We now have a child but manage this safely and easily with some of the above strategies plus others. We had the dogs for 8 years before our child arrived - I wasn't going to rehome or PTS when we could take steps to ensure they still had a good life but our child was safe at all times. It's perfectly manageable if you create the right environment and put thought and effort into it, and lots of it soon becomes second nature.

Elizo · 28/12/2024 22:29

Lottie231 · 28/12/2024 21:17

We’ve got a cocker spaniel who we’ve had for four years.

He’s been aggressive a few times over the years. Mainly when he’s poorly (e.g had an ear infection) and hides in a bush in the garden or under the bed. When we try to coax him out to come inside and go to bed he has lashed out & growled when we reach towards his collar, sometimes biting.

Recently he’s gotten worse and has taken a particular dislike to my husband. He’s always been a bit excited/bonkers and jumped up on people when they’ve come in the house (we have tried and failed to train this out of him). Anyway, one day he was particularly excited and he was jumping up on my mum and my husband told him to get down, he reached for his collar to pull him down and my dog just flipped. Really attacked my husband and drew blood from his wrist.

Now every time my husband goes near the dog he seems unsure. My husband really wants to re-home him (we have a 2 year old). He says it’s only a matter of time before he bites my son. I feel in an impossible position because I love him. We are having rows over it. Has anybody been in a similar position?

If it’s all about the collar can you stop doing that? Sorry if that sounds a bit simple but my dog is not keen on being grabbed in that way. I always have to get her with a treat if she won’t come straightaway. Have you tried a behaviorist? I don’t know how easy it is to rehome

LandSharksAnonymous · 28/12/2024 22:30

You’ve made the most basic error possible - with your dog. You NEVER grab a dog by its collar when it won’t come. Ever. The dog clearly doesn’t trust you, and hasn’t for a long time. There’s no relationship between you. Contact Spaniel Aid and pray they can help.

Don’t ever get another dog. Anyone who has to get physical with their dog (pulling it by the collar etc) shouldn’t have one. You haven’t trained it. Haven’t adequately cared for it. Probably don’t even properly exercise and stimulate it. Another Spaniel sold to an inappropriate home.

fandjango · 28/12/2024 22:30

Unfortunately we had the same thing with our golden cocker.

He had issues with pain (trying to be managed by the vet) and the first time he bit me we should have taken serious action.

We convinced ourselves it would be ok and he bit me again. The second time was to my face and caused quite a bit of damage.

I can handle my face being hurt but if anything had happened to my child (4) I would never ever have forgiven myself.

It is a heartbreaking situation but our Vet said he would be unlikely to be rehomed as he had bitten. We had to have him PTS and it broke my heart.

Cinnabarmotheaten · 28/12/2024 22:32

Please please ask the vet for a thorough check as it sounds as if your spaniel is in pain and your husband should have used a meaty treat to coax him out not drag him by the collar poor dog. He was probably frightened and defensive.

If I had a young child at risk of a dog attack I would definitely rehome to someone who loves spaniels and has experience. Your husband must be so worried about more attacks and your child.

Our cocker is utterly gentle and non aggressive but he is mixed colour. They can be wonderful family dogs. Please give the dog a chance with someone else as if he was reacting to pain it may be able to get sorted out, Good luck OP.

NameChanges123 · 28/12/2024 22:33

"Anyway, one day he was particularly excited and he was jumping up on my mum..."

I just don't understand why dog owners allow this to happen. It's mostly unwanted attention and very unpleasant for the poor person being mauled and maybe having their clothes ruined (never mind the dog biting your husband).

This whole situation sounds wholly irresponsible and out of control.