When Do You Draw The Line When A Dog Bites?

[EGAR]

This kind of behaviour needs strict conditioning and the dog should be placed into more experienced hands with no other dogs around IMHO.

 

I have pts'd 3 dogs in over ten years of rescue - all three due to exetreme human aggression. I will not rehome a dog who has shown aggression but, depending on certain circumstances, the dog will live out his or her life here.

[Jacobean]

It depends on the individual dog and the circumstances involved.

 

Sheena my collie x has bitten me no end of times, once quite badly. All have been due to fear and uncertainty. The bad one was when she was in a fight with Issie and me parting them both. I've turned the corner with her and she hasn't bitten me for the last 6 months. I don't believe she ever will again.

 

If I was in the same position as your friend I would be working with the dog so that in future this stops. As he/she is doing.

 

There are some dogs that arrive in rescue that are damaged mentally and it is better for them to be pts for their own happiness sadly.

 

It certainly sounds as though the dog can only be rehomed to someone who can deal with the aggression issues as this could possibly happen with a new owner later on. To start with I would take the dog out and avoid going anywhere near other dogs to get him/her used to walking with me and take the heat off. If they see a dog in the distance then change direction etc. I've done that with dogs that are scared of others to save them distress. The dog sounds as though it has fear aggression. They quite often feel vulnerable when stuck on a lead as they don't feel able to defend themselves from other dogs. If the handler gets stressed when they see other dogs and say to themselves oh boy here we go that carries down the lead to the dog and can set them off. Obviously though this is just an assumption. It's hard without knowing more if this is actually the case. Would be interesting to know what breed it is.

Edited December 20, 2007 by Jacobean

[Fifer]

This subject interests me enormously, because we only take spaniels who have behavioural issues.

 

To give you a bit of the picture, I have had, and have been involved with, dogs for over 55 years. I was always interested in behavioural problems, but got fascinated in dogs with problems because I took on a "dog aggressive" dog, (my 3rd rescue) after my first rescue dog died. He made my life hell and also that of my 2nd rescue dog, whom he bullied quite mercilessly for 1 or 2 months until I discovered serene-UM, put him on the top dose and slowly but surely he improved. Eventually I was able to reduce the amount .......... then I was offered another dog from the same rescue, this one had a frightening bite record and was under threat of PTS for human aggression. This dog had bitten just about everyone, his owner, the owner's wife, groomer and an assistant etc. First week, I got bitten (didn't move a muscle till he let go!) then there were battles between the 2 new dogs, but mostly I began to realise the second dogs problems were down to fear and uncertainty. It required heaps of dedicated work (and patience!) and has taken 10 months, but now he is the most loving little dog you could ever find who meets and greets visitors with a waggy tail and has finally learnt to play. He never bit me again after that time, though my ex partner seemed to be more of a target! The male groomer I use has had a grump from him but he has not been bitten, to the point that the dog was clipped last time without a muzzle.

 

I do think that the individual is very important, but someone else mentioned finding the trigger and that is the key to changing the behaviour I believe. I will always try anything new or old fashioned, which offers the dog just one more chance.

 

I got my two dogs from a rescue, however the same rescue has destroyed a dog within an hour of it arriving after a two hour journey, without it being given time to relax and acclimatise. It had been fostered with a family with children without biting anyone. So what I'm trying to say is, I don't think you can generalise about where any rescue would draw the line even within the one organisation there will always be different decisions made for different scenarios.

 

For ourselves, we have had 3 dogs in now since we took our first 9 weeks ago, one has been rehomed successfully (a confident working dog where there was once a nervous wreck), the second is ready to leave when the right home comes along (an aggressive puppy who is now a loving and exuberant pup) and the third we are making substantial progress with, but they are all slow work by very nature.

 

I am personally dreading the day (which I know will eventually come) when I have to admit defeat with a dog whose "wiring" is wrong! That will be a very sad and sorry day.

[menage_a_trois]

As someone who is working hard (and succeeding, thank goodness) with a people-agressive rescue dog, I would like to add that I found it really difficult to get help from behaviourists, trainers and clubs. I was really lucky to finally find a club with a trainer who could help us. Previous to this, I met with unanswered emails / phone calls, exclusion from clubs, and inappropriate advice. One `trainer` forcibly wrestled my muzzled dog to the ground, and as a result she is understandably suspicious of trainers. I understand from speaking to our dog warden that the problem is growing, as fewer people socialise and train their dogs, and I have found the `compensation culture` problem make dog clubs wary of admitting aggressive dogs.

However, I think my greatest concern is to protect the unsuspecting public. Basket muzzles are a wonderful invention! I would recommend your friend use one - if only because if someone else gets bitten by her dog, he could be pts.