Cocker Spaniel bit my husband

[Lottie231]

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?

Regardless of the various analysis on this post the dog is a risk to you all and needs to be absolutely kept away from your child

If you are happy to keep on living with the level of risk he poses (even if he goes to a behaviourist) you cannot and should not trust him around other children for a start

This is why I say that with a dog who has drawn blood, putting to sleep has to be considered, as it may be the most compassionate option.

Any rehoming is going to further distress an already unsettled animal. Best case scenario would be going to a foster placement with experienced carers who can rehabilitate. But when those placements are full, it may not be an option.

Shelters are often full of dogs who are difficult to place, and the environment is a noisy, uncomfortable source of additional stress. And it's not easy to get a dog in to them. They're so busy dealing with emergencies (owner death, strays, severe abuse) that they often have a waiting list to surrender a dog.

PTS is not the scenario anyone wants, but sometimes a vet visit at home to sedate and euthanise is the kindest option left.

I would only allow my two year old to interact with a dog that has shown a disposition to reactive or aggressive behaviour under my close supervision. When I say close supervision I mean the kind of supervision you would give a small child in a paddling pool or the bath. Saying that I left my late girl alone with my three year old to go and do stuff around the house but that dog was bomb proof. I will probably never have another like her sadly.

See a Behavioural specialist. We had a cocker (rescue) who had a history of aggression. We spent hours training and socialising with a lady who was amazing and it was completely transformative. Your dog doesn’t trust your husband - he feels insecure around him and therefore frightened. Your husbands’ behaviour around the dog is likely to blame - the dogs’ reactions to your husband can be changed by your husband changing his behaviour. Seek help! ASAP. X

I will add agree keep your dog and child completely separate for the time being. Don’t take any risks whatsoever x

Once you have ruled out anything physical it’s worth speaking with a behaviourist before deciding what to do next.

I assume that you don’t leave your 2 year old unattended anyway.

I can't believe you have to ask.
For crying out loud.

The dog can't stay with you - it may be that it can't be rehomed. If your husband is the only person he reacts like this to maybe just, but in reality he may well go through a cycle of rehome and being given up, so sometimes PTS is the kindest thing.

Rehome before the dog bites one of you again and causes sepsis.

If anyone will take it, of course.

Speaking as someone who's 2 year old got bit on the face by a family dog recently. It only takes a split second for it change everything. It was the first time the dog had bit anyone and was completely out of the blue. You've had warning signs. I beg you get rid of the dog.

No he doesn't. He needs rehoming to a quiet, adult only person who has experience with spaniels.

id take him myself but I'm not in a position to at the moment. Sadly. But there will be someone out there that's perfect for him.

@Lottie231 but sadly that's not your house with. DH that's obviously not got any experience with spaniels and is making the problem a thousand times worse, a toddler & no one looking after his ears properly.

im really sorry because you obviously love him, but for his sake he needs a new home. You don't have any family who would be able to have him for you?? If not you definitely need Spaniel Aid rather than a general rescue.

This is non-negotiable with a small child, you must rehome the dog. Or pts potentially depending on the level of aggression.

i have known a few cockers who are quite reactive i know it wont be popular but the over breeding makes them very highly strung. you seriously need this dog rehomed he should be checked to make sure he is not in pain but also you need to be aware your child is at risk. sadly the reality is this dog may be put to sleep

you have 2 options.

1. You can keep your dog and child separate, engage a reputable behaviourist to help understand your dogs body language, triggers, and to help teach you how to work through/manage them. This will probably also involve a vet visit for a pain relief trial to see if there is something causing pain leading to this reaction.
2. You can rehome him.

I personally wouldn’t rush to rehome without at least trying to understand why he has these behaviours, but I don’t know how practical it is for you to keep your child and dog separate.

It absolutely isn’t irresponsible to keep him, if you can manage the situation properly.

Thank you so much everybody for your replies. I am overwhelmed by the responses and I really appreciate your time, even if you have criticised me- I will take your comments on board. I will absolutely not have my boy put to sleep. He has done so much for us over the years and helped me through the darkest of times. I do agree with what people have said about warning signs, he has only ever bitten or reacted when we reach for his collar- so we will stop this straight away and I will make sure my husband does too. I’m going to increase his exercise (he already has an hour a day but he is super energetic!), and stimulation/training. I’ve already taken him for a vet check, but I’m also going to contact a behaviourist and do everything I can for him. My dog has not shown and signs of aggression at all to myself or my son, but I would clearly never leave them unattended together. My husband is also on board with giving him a chance. I can’t bear the thought of him being somewhere else and looking for me. Wish me luck!

Would you ever be able to forgive yourself if the dog bit your son? I know you say you wouldn't leave them unattended but how quickly could you react if your dog lunged for your son?
I wouldn't take the risk.
I'd rehome the dog with experienced dog owners who didn't have children. Failing that I'd PTS.

Can you guarantee your DS will never grab the dog's collar , even by accident? No matter how much you supervise, if he bites , he bites. It takes a second. Our old dog lunged as DD as she went past him in her walker. He was on the sofa so she didn't run over his foot or got too close or anything like that. Superficial bite luckily, but that was it for me.

Sorry, OP, but I really don't think keeping the dog is a good idea. You might love him, but you're not doing best by him. You're being selfish if you keep him - because you've not giving him the life he deserves.

Only an hours exercise a day for a cocker spaniel, grabbing him by the collar (and likely seriously scaring him in the process) - these are unforgivable mistakes that have resulted in a challenged, nervous, and reactive dog. The best thing for the dog is to be given to a shelter so he can find a home with a family who knows what to give him.

My mum's cocker is from Spaniel Aid. She was relinquished because of a bite history (one incident) when she was 5. The owners claimed she was aggressive, grumpy and 'would fly into unpredictable rage.' She was in foster for 6 months with no reported incidents. Then mum took her in. In the 5+ years my mum has had her, she's never shown any aggression, any reactivity, any nervousness. Why? Because my mum knows dogs. She knows what her dog needs. You don't. You have failed your dog and if you keep him, you'll keep failing him until you have no choice but to PTS.

Contact Spaniel Aid. Give your dog a chance to live in a suitable environment with a suitable family.

So how long do you think the OP should keep an unpredictable dog in the house with a very young child?

@adorablecat

second reply on the thread...

'wish me luck' No, what I wish is you'd give your head a wobble and put your kids safety first.

Seriously, this is why kids are getting attacked by dogs in their own homes. Parents aren't willing to actually put their own kids first and keep them safe.

Some people just shouldn't have dogs.

This dog may or may not become ‘unpredictable’ but up until now he has been totally and utterly predictable in his actions. His humans have failed to understand his signals and screwed up

He needs a more appropriate lifestyle and much better handling. Proper training and mental stimulation. And a more reasonable amount of exercise
whether the current family are able to provide that remains to be seen and as a trainer, I would have to say that a young child with a dog who needs micro managing is a difficult and stressful undertaking which may not be in anyone’s best interests. Keeping them apart is tricky at best and will lead to the dog being excluded for large portions of the day if done properly - not an ideal environment. Even the best management strategies can fail, so there is always a potential risk to keeping the dog

Kudos to the OP however for taking the advice on board. Good luck whatever you eventually decide to do

Any trainer worth their salt would have said to stop trying to get the dog by its collar and pull it. But for some reason your dh has continued to do this even though it was obviously a trigger. He’s only himself to blame for being bitten. Sadly rehoming would be difficult though you could try a breed rescue. Now he has a bite history who would want him?

if hed listened to the dog he wouldn’t have been bitten.

can you guarantee that the young kids aren’t going to reach for his collar? Bites can start to escalate once they’ve started so you need to either rehome now or ensure the dog isn’t put in this situation again or he will end up being pts.

Any trainer worth their salt will now instigate a very careful counter conditioning programme to change how the dog views someone taking their collar.
The aim in behaviour work is NEVER to avoid something entirely. It is to work in tiny increments to help the dog learn to accept previous triggers. That’s not to say we want the dog grabbed but to reduce the risks we have to tackle the source of the problem by desensitising the dog to it

Things you exhaust first: vet to find out root cause of his pain and fix it.
Care of dog- husband takes over all his care. Walking and feeding.
Dog psychology- watch him, learn his body language, if he is unhappy or in pain or scared.
Child and dog - keep them separate. Dog not allowed on sofa or anything face height to child. Give dog and child clear boundaries. Child to not stroke dog unless you're controlling it. Dog to have safe space away from child where child can't get him, like a crate. Dog not allowed child's toys or to steal child's food.
Once pain issue dealt with make sure dog is having at least 1.5 hours exercise a day, tire him out.

If, after all these implemented, dog still exhibiting unprovoked aggression, you have a neurological issue on your hands and it's back to vet who may advise pts or lifelong medication if treatable.

Also curious why dog always wearing collar?