[kilibry]

I am so sorry you've had to go through with this. I really hope you can work with Jasper. If you can't, people will be here to support your choice of putting him to sleep. Before you put him down though, please get him checked by a vet, he may have a medical issue!. If your up to it, work with him, it may help and you may be able to trust him again. I don't know though as he's your dog. I actually own a fearful dog who will bite and sadly has bitten, I now don't trust her around strangers at all, especially children. I am lucky enough she loves me (I trust her %100 with me and even I know she could nip me if I did the wrong thing) I know she's fine with my family, friends but I know if they do the wrong thing, she could nip/bite. It is sad I stress about her and I can't trust her around my niece/nephew because I do believe she'd have a go at them, depending on the situation. So, what I'm saying is you may always hold that fear of not trusting your dog %100 and that's a bad thing to deal with when your dog has to live around kids. My girl only ever gets my attention unless there's a real good reason for anyone else needing to handle her. I get so upset some days but I don't have the heart to let her go.. She now has to learn to love my new bf, even letting her meet him, I was worried she'd go for him BUT in saying that, I have seen her go through some awesome progress and I'm proud of her. I am learning about her more so I know how to handle her and so forth. My girl is way worse off then your boy and that's why I highly believe he has a shot at this problem being worked out.

[Kingerix]

To hell with a behaviorist and a vet, just put the damn thing down. I have experienced a dog biting a child and there is no excuse for it. I was lucky that my kid was wearing a hoody under a leather jacket and it only bruised his arm. But as soon as he told me what happened I went out an culled the bastard on the spot. There is no excuse for biting a human ever. All that behaviorist crap is just making excuses for the dog and prolonging the inevitable. Cull it now and avoid future problems.

I know it may seem cold but I agree with this response. I think that there is NO reason to allow a dog who would snap at a child to stay around..even if it is sick or sore, what about next time it doesn't feel well?

[kilibry]

To hell with a behaviorist and a vet, just put the damn thing down. I have experienced a dog biting a child and there is no excuse for it. I was lucky that my kid was wearing a hoody under a leather jacket and it only bruised his arm. But as soon as he told me what happened I went out an culled the bastard on the spot. There is no excuse for biting a human ever. *All that behaviorist crap is just making excuses for the dog and prolonging the inevitable. Cull it now and avoid future problems.

*The behaviorist 'crap' isn't just making excuses. Behaviorist can help people understand there dogs/there behaviors more, there are some things people miss or don't understand. Some dogs with aggression issues can live a long, happy and safe life. Maybe it's a touchy subject since I own a fear aggressive dog but dogs deserve more of a chance rather then just being put down. If the dog is unstable then yes, I agree, put the dog down. I wouldn't be agreeing to that though if the the dog didn't have to be around kids.

[Kingerix]

*The behaviorist 'crap' isn't just making excuses. Behaviorist can help people understand there dogs/there behaviors more, there are some things people miss or don't understand. Some dogs with aggression issues can live a long, happy and safe life. Maybe it's a touchy subject since I own a fear aggressive dog but dogs deserve more of a chance rather then just being put down. If the dog is unstable then yes, I agree, put the dog down. I wouldn't be agreeing to that though if the the dog didn't have to be around kids.

But, Tahlia, the dog DOES need to be around children and it is NOT ok to rehome an aggressive dog. It is unsafe to have the dog near children ...so the dog needs to be euthed.

[Abanijo]

I would have shot that dog myself the second he bit the baby. And he would have had a come to Jesus moment when he tried to lunge at me earlier.

[Alexeryy]

Don't make that dog another person's problem. Put it down. No room in this world for a dog that will bite at a baby.

Unoriginal is right. There is something wrong with the dog. That's not normal.

As much as it's killing me to say this (And oh how it is!) Hotchkiss is right. Making it someone elses problem is not the right answer.

[immewaycypef]

As much as it's killing me to say this (And oh how it is!) Hotchkiss is right. Making it someone elses problem is not the right answer. Man you could have just re wrote something similar to her post.
To hell with a behaviorist and a vet, just put the damn thing down. I have experienced a dog biting a child and there is no excuse for it. I was lucky that my kid was wearing a hoody under a leather jacket and it only bruised his arm. But as soon as he told me what happened I went out an culled the bastard on the spot. There is no excuse for biting a human ever. All that behaviorist crap is just making excuses for the dog and prolonging the inevitable. Cull it now and avoid future problems. I like the way you think!

[kilibry]

But, Tahlia, the dog DOES need to be around children and it is NOT ok to rehome an aggressive dog. It is unsafe to have the dog near children ...so the dog needs to be euthed.

I understand that. I agree with yo mostly. if health issues have been ruled out and he cannot ever be trusted at all around the kids. I also don't think a aggressive dog should be re-homed.

[immewaycypef]

I understand that. I agree with you for the dog to be put down if health issues have been ruled out and he cannot ever be trusted at all around the kids. I also don't think a aggressive dog should be re-homed.

I have a fear aggressive dog and I'm not a softy on the subject.
If my dog started going after it's family or un provoked I would have her put down.

[Ebjjrxrd]

I didn't realize there were two of the same threads. Like I said in your other thread, if it was my child the dog bit, I would put a bullet between his eyes myself. And again, I am sorry that you have to deal with this.

[payowlirriply]

I understand the reasoning behind auto-euthanizing a dog that's bitten a person, especially a child. Believe me I do. I don't agree, but I understand. There are a lot of dogs out there who would seemingly never bite a person so make room for them. I understand this mentality.

The issue I have with some of the posts is the tone that; the dog's aren't right or they can't ever be fixed or trusted.

This I couldn't disagree with more. I haven't kept a tally of the dogs' I've worked with that have bitten, but the only PTS case I have was an apparent case (diagnosis of a few vets, even though it's not something you can exactly test for) of Springer Rage. All the biters I've worked with were dogs that bit because their owners drove them to do so. With some education, patience and devotion those owners righted their ways and the dogs are happy, healthy and as trustworthy as a dog can get.

A dog doesn't know that a baby is special. Sorry. You can say that Fifi knows your baby is special, she doesn't. UNLESS you've trained her to know that (using proper methods). I would venture to say that many people with a hard ass attitude actually have ticking time bombs who have merely had their behaviours suppressed to the point that anytime they could snap.

What you think is "unprovoked" and what your dog view as "unprovoked" are two very different things for those that aren't willing to admit their dogs are not four legged furry Eintsteins or genetic robots programmed to "not be human aggressive" so they'll never display any type of instinctual behaviours towards a human (meaning intending harm or not).

I'm not saying to have the mentality that once a dog bites a person/child is proposterous! Or inhumane, because I don't believe it is. I don't agree with it, but I understand and see why people think that way.

But to make statements that imply dogs should know that babies/kids are untouchable instinctively or to say that this dog bit while unprovoked (he very well could have displayed multiple signs before snapping, he could very well have been guarding his bed and he did not continue to attack or draw blood) is very misleading, false information.

Behaviourist crap has done a great many good deeds for the dog world in the past 15-20 years. The front runners have shown that dogs are capable of amazing things if only we would take the time to learn how to learn with them. If you don't want to spend that time, to educate yourself on dog behaviour/training that's fine, but it isn't crap. I have no interest in breeding dogs, of any breed, but I don't say reputable breeders who dedicate their lives to researching their bloodlines are idiots and their work is bullshit.

[Narcodran]

Excellent post from K9 Love and Teal.... A very hard situation to be in, but make sure that you don't let the baby around the dog at all.... Consult a behaviorist that is bully breed savvy and can evaluate him and see if there is anything going on. Also, a vet visit to rule out any medical issues. Best of luck to you.. as Teal said, a very hard predicament to be in. I'm sorry this has happened to you, but I'm glad the baby wasn't injured badly.

[Alexeryy]

I understand what you're saying K9 Love. They are after all,only animals and will behave as such. Saying that there is "something wrong" with dog for biting does seem to be denying nature.But, I think most people (myself included) look at it as "There is something wrong if my dog did that". for instance, a dog resource guarding is really no indication of the dog having a problem,it's only natural. There is something wrong if my dog guards shit from me as he damn well knows better. By "me" I mean any human in my house,my child included. And he better believe there is a huge fucking problem if he even so much as growls at her,I don't give a fuck what his dog reasoning behind it may be.

[payowlirriply]

Yes! I agree chloe!

If Hades snapped at me when I walked by his bed we would be having a discussion... A one sided discussion... He never has to date of course. The kids, heck I wouldn't blame Hades if he growled or snapped at my niece and nephew, when they were younger they did some pretty annoying, bratty things (until they got in shit! lol), but he never did. So relatively stable, but not all dogs are so rock steady when it comes to that stuff. You can breed for rock steady temperaments as much as you like, but there will always be that one dog that fucks up a whole line of dogs, because as you said, it really is nature some of the time, and you can't completely erradicate what makes a dog a dog.(This breed in particular isn't very old in comparison to other breeds that still have genetic throwbacks from hundreds of years ago!). I don't care how good of a breeder you are, anomlies are going to pop up, dogs are all going to have different tolerance levels and some tolerance levels won't be discovered because they've never been in a predicament for them to emerge.

I think most people that come here with these questions though haven't really put much time into training in general so maybe that just needs to be clarified with people. That it would be absolutely unacceptable behaviour from my dog, because he knows better.

I mean, I honestly understand the mentality though. I really do. Even if someone hasn't put time into training their dog and it bites, I may cringe and wonder if that dog could've been stable and happy with some training, but ultimately dead dog vs dead child, it's no question.

[Dayreive]

If it were me, that dog would have been dead, because I would have killed it. Especially a 9 month old baby!

[lLianneForbess]

i was in a similar situation as you are in. My first child and my second child both got bitten by our dog ( he was not a pit he was a German mix. ) It was not like him at all. So i took him to the vet and it turned out he was sick with a bladder infection. the dog was only 3 years old when he did this , and we had him for more then a year when it happened. He never did it again after..

So maybe JUST MAYBE there is a reason for it, he was probably just giving the baby a warning to back off.. SO try to check him out first.. or you will spend the rest of your life wondering what you should have done or could have done..

But in the meantime keep the dog away from the kids period. If your other half will not talk to you about this then you take the matters in your own hand. I know it should be worked out by two people. But in this case you have children to worry about and he is being selfish for acting like this.

Hope it all works out

[pataagusata]

To hell with a behaviorist and a vet, just put the damn thing down. I have experienced a dog biting a child and there is no excuse for it. I was lucky that my kid was wearing a hoody under a leather jacket and it only bruised his arm. But as soon as he told me what happened I went out an culled the bastard on the spot. There is no excuse for biting a human ever. All that behaviorist crap is just making excuses for the dog and prolonging the inevitable. Cull it now and avoid future problems.

I agree 100%

---------- Post added at 10:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:19 PM ----------

I understand the reasoning behind auto-euthanizing a dog that's bitten a person, especially a child. Believe me I do. I don't agree, but I understand. There are a lot of dogs out there who would seemingly never bite a person so make room for them. I understand this mentality.

The issue I have with some of the posts is the tone that; the dog's aren't right or they can't ever be fixed or trusted.

This I couldn't disagree with more. I haven't kept a tally of the dogs' I've worked with that have bitten, but the only PTS case I have was an apparent case (diagnosis of a few vets, even though it's not something you can exactly test for) of Springer Rage. All the biters I've worked with were dogs that bit because their owners drove them to do so. With some education, patience and devotion those owners righted their ways and the dogs are happy, healthy and as trustworthy as a dog can get.

A dog doesn't know that a baby is special. Sorry. You can say that Fifi knows your baby is special, she doesn't. UNLESS you've trained her to know that (using proper methods). I would venture to say that many people with a hard ass attitude actually have ticking time bombs who have merely had their behaviours suppressed to the point that anytime they could snap.

What you think is "unprovoked" and what your dog view as "unprovoked" are two very different things for those that aren't willing to admit their dogs are not four legged furry Eintsteins or genetic robots programmed to "not be human aggressive" so they'll never display any type of instinctual behaviours towards a human (meaning intending harm or not).

I'm not saying to have the mentality that once a dog bites a person/child is proposterous! Or inhumane, because I don't believe it is. I don't agree with it, but I understand and see why people think that way.

But to make statements that imply dogs should know that babies/kids are untouchable instinctively or to say that this dog bit while unprovoked (he very well could have displayed multiple signs before snapping, he could very well have been guarding his bed and he did not continue to attack or draw blood) is very misleading, false information.

Behaviourist crap has done a great many good deeds for the dog world in the past 15-20 years. The front runners have shown that dogs are capable of amazing things if only we would take the time to learn how to learn with them. If you don't want to spend that time, to educate yourself on dog behaviour/training that's fine, but it isn't crap. I have no interest in breeding dogs, of any breed, but I don't say reputable breeders who dedicate their lives to researching their bloodlines are idiots and their work is bullshit.

This is a ridiculous. A baby is absolutely no threat to that dog and snapping at it for no reason is unacceptable.

Put that dog to sleep immediately.

I'm not talking out my ass and just talking the talk either. I just put one of my dogs down today. Was the hardest decision I ever had to make.

Oh and most of the time, the behaviorist is crap. It's a field filled with half assed people who claim to have credentials and know little to nothing about actual dog behavior. Are there some good ones? Yes. The idiots by far outnumber the good ones though.

[payowlirriply]

Oh and most of the time dog breeders are full of shit. Specifically APBT breeders? Oh man don't get me started. They're a bunch of hicks who do NOTHING with their dogs, tie them up outside, rant about how their dogs are "game" (even though they've never fought) and every other weekend cart them off to "dog shows" where they walk around in the ring like refridgerators in the hopes that people think the athleticism of their dog is a direct representation of their genitalia. /Sarcasm (Once again, that is sarcasm, just putting the shoe on the other foot). I agree that there are bad dog trainers/behaviourists out there, I'm going to assume from your tone your implying that I'm not a "good one", I won't argue with you that's pointless, but I will say I've made a living off of rehabilitating horses and dogs since I was a teenager so my clients must be pritty dumb! Just because there are bad trainers, behaviourists or breeders in the world does not discredit the profession/hobby/science.

Does it?

If it does than you are a terrible breeder. There is no hope of ever outshining the ones that do bad, so you should just stop what you're doing. Gets your panties tied doesn't it? That's how I feel when people discredit the truth behind dog training and understanding dog behaviours. I live it and breathe it everyday. I've seen more "bad dogs" first hand than many will see in a lifetime, some of which were turned around in a matter of WEEKS with the proper handling.

I never used the word "threat". A dog that's resource guarding does not just guard from potential threats, this is where there's a huge gap in misunderstanding.

If the dog bit the baby for coming near the bed that does NOT necessarily mean that the dog was scared the baby was going to take his bed. It can with some dogs who are fearful, but not always. When a dominant dog growls at another for nearing them while they eat, they aren't afraid the dog is going to take it, they're asserting their dominance and the level of comfort they have with how close the dog is while they eat. If the dog doesn't listen and keeps coming in the dog escalates. Unless the dog is shown that that behaviour is unnecesary and unacceptable the dog will continue to do it, because it backs the other dog up, the behaviour works. Dogs can very easily be trained to reduce their thresholds to nill with food or other guarding tendencies, some dogs never have an issue sharing food with another dog, some dogs do, it's just the way each and every dog is. Some dogs need to be trained specifically to understand that correcting children (which is what this bite sounds like) isn't acceptable. Some dogs don't. Some dogs are genetically unstable and can't be fixed with training. You don't know unless you see the dog in action. For all we know this dog displayed signs of being uncomfortable with the baby dicking around near his bed. He may have been displaying signs for a few minutes (forever in dog terms) and still that baby didn't listen.

I'm sorry that you had to put a dog down. I had to put a dog down due to health reasons and it's never an easy choice, and there is no reason to think any of my posts are directed towards you... well other than this one.

Like I've said before and I'll say again, I understand the mentality of euthanizing a dog for biting. I get it. I can't explain enough that I do, but in my experience, hundreds, maybe thousands of dogs now, with dozens of bite cases there is a reason that I can understand, label and train with sucess to avoid further incidents from occurring. I'm not saying this dog can be fixed. I'm not saying this behaviour is acceptable. I'm not saying to give this dog away to someone with kids and close your eyes and hope for the best.

I'm saying that there are knowledgeable, educated, HONEST people out there who will know after seeing this dog first hand if it can be helped, either by the owner, a trainer or if it's time to PTS.

If the OP decides to PTS sure I'll wonder if that dog could have been helped, but I wouldn't ever judge someone after the fact for making a hard decision. Not everyone has the time or resources to deal with difficult dogs and that's something I understand.

[streMunford]

I would have shot that dog myself the second he bit the baby. And he would have had a come to Jesus moment when he tried to lunge at me earlier.

I would have done the same thing, myself, but some people get very attached to their dogs.

[Alice_Medichi34]

The thing that would be an even bigger red flag for me is that he growled at you while you were trying to do a routine thing with him. You're supposed to be the boss and he's supposed to know that. A lot of the posts are focusing on the baby, which was a scary event to be sure, but it wasn't just a matter of the baby crawling near the bed; he also gave you the what-for when you were trying to take him outside at night.

I have no personal experience with this kind of thing myself but if it were my dog I would take him to the vet immediately and have a complete work-up done. Thyroid issues can contribute to sudden aggression and I remember someone on here said their dog was aggressive and they found ear mites; once the mites were treated the dog was fine. I'm sure there are a host of other things that can contribute to sudden aggression.

If the tests all came back clear then I would have the vet put him to sleep. It would break my heart terribly but a pit bull attack is not something anybody should risk. I also heard awhile ago that a lot of those horrible pit bull stories you hear are about dogs that already had a bite history.