Dog bit toddler -- should I be more worried?

[Anonymous]

Your dog is taking waaayyyy more abuse than it deserves. We use gates and an area the dogs can get to and the kid can't but from day one we have tolerated zero messing around with the dog. Why do you expect your dog to take this with no way to defend itself or escape an uncomfortable situation?! No hitting, poking, pulling, chasing (unless its a game for both of them) or layong on the dog ever. The dog deserves the same level of care and respect as the rest of the family

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: . ..

. . .

And, I agree with the poster who noted that you need to be concerned that your dog doesn't give signals before he bites.

I'm the poster who posted that and I wanted to be clear that I didn't say the the dog doesn't give signals. I said he doesn't give signals that the OP and her DH seem to be able to read. It's quite possible that running away from the child with the push toy would have been a clear signal to another parent, who would have responded by preventing the incident.

PP here. Yes, you did. I was sloppy with my response - sorry. I was trying to say that you made a good point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You need to protect the child. But you also need to protect the dog

We have and 8 year old shepherd type dog and an almost three year old kid. I have zero concerns about the dog but here are our rules

Kid is never alone with dog. Ever. Under any circumstances. If I have to pee, one or the other cones with me or they are separated with a physical barrier.

Kid is never allowed to hit dog. Ever. Under any circumstances. If kid does, immediate consequence is a trip to his room. Same as if he hits me. Has to apologize to dog, just like any other member of the family. No annoying, teasing, tail pulling, etc.

Kids job is to put food in dogs bowl. Dig learns good things come from kid. Kid learns responsibility. Kid isn't allowed near dog while dog eats.

Dog not allowed to run over child. Kid not allowed to run over dog. This took time to learn. For both of them.

Dog crate and dog toys 100% off limits to kid. Non-negotiable. Kid toys and crib off limits to dog. Non-negotiable.

I like your rules!

[Anonymous]

WOW. You are completely allowing your toddler to abuse and pester your dog. Dogs DO NOT like being hugged, or chased, or poked or squeezed, fallen on, BITTEN!!! etc. and it was only a matter of time before this happened. I have two dogs and a toddler and they are NEVER in the same room together, unless under direct supervision. Meaning DD is in my arms. Dogs are animals, domesticated are not, and you can never predict what will happen. You need to start being way more careful. Your dog will snap one day and could seriously hurt your child. Read up on it - most serious dog bites come from lovely family dogs who "put up with anything". Its cruel and unfair to the dog and your child.

[Anonymous]

I feel bad for your dog.

You should be reprimanding your kid more. Just because the dog put up with the kid's abuse doesn't mean you shouldn't have stopped it.

And then you write that your husband was ENCOURAGING the kid to chase the dog with a truck toy? That's ridiculous. You're teaching your kid bad behavior around pets and you're not doing enough to protect your dog or your kid.

[Anonymous]

The dog has tasted human blood and will need to be put down

[Anonymous]

I hate dogs. Seriously. And even I am astounded at the level of abuse that you've inflicted on your dog. It's absurd, cruel, and negligent. This wasn't your kids fault or your dogs fault - it's yours and your husbands entirely.

Find a way to keep them both safe or get rid of the dog. He deserves better, frankly.

[Anonymous]

OP has had the dog longer. I say rehome the kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The dog has tasted human blood and will need to be put down

I don't think so! I fostered an aggressive dog. This situation does not describe an aggressive dog. This dog did give warning signs. They might have been subtle, but they certainly were there. It might have been the way that your dog wagged his/her tail, moved her head, or other but with all of the abuse that your child gave your toddler, I would bet there were several warning signs. I understand that you are saying that you can't watch every single move, but the scenario that you describe went on for several minutes and you could have intervened when the warning signs (or your son's abuse started).

I suggest that you get a really good trainer and/or behavioralist, not to train the dog, but to train you to see his warning signs, if they aren't evident.

Given the circumstances you describe, it is not surprising that the dog bit or snapped at your child.

It always amazes me seeing people put their toddlers so close to dogs; we have a large loving dog, but I still have to remember that he is a dog and he cannot verbally communicate his feelings to me. As loving as our dog is, there are certain times when he is not allowed with our children (mealtime - though when the kids were in high chairs, he was a great vacuum cleaner). As your son gets older, youi need to train him to respect the dog. Your dog and your child can coexhist.

[Anonymous]

This thread just makes me remember this article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/02/magazine/the-dog-bit-me.html?_r=0

Consider it, OP.

And thanks PPs, I'll remember to keep reminding my son to respect our dog.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Someway, somehow, that dog has got to go. Never ceases to amaze me how otherwise reasonable and intelligent people don't get it about their aggressive dogs. I'm not trying to be man, andI get that you love your dog, but this head biting thing is serious as hell.

Doesn't sound like an aggressive dog. Sounds like the dog has been forced to put up with abuse for too long. OP is an irresponsible dog owner to allow this to go on. She's not only allowing the dog to be harassed but also putting her toddler at risk by not giving him clear boundaries.

[Anonymous]

Well, my sister bbsat our little 2.5 year old for three days while my husband and I were out of town. I asked her to--and she agreed--that the two were never to be alone in the same room, and if our tot starting aggressing on the dog, they had to be separated.

So, well, I guess I'm in the "freak out" camp. Her dog was patient and gentle... to a point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think that you need to change your definition of "supervising". Appropriate supervision of a toddler and a dog means that you are between them and watching, your hand is close enough to intercept before the child bites or hits the dog. It doesn't mean that you are in the same room and allowing your child to chase the dog, hang off the dog, and otherwise abuse the dog.

I would have a huge concern that your dog has just shown that he doesn't give clear warning signs that you can read before he bites. That, combined with an unsupervised toddler, seems really dangerous. I really really think you need to look at your routines and practices very carefully and make sure that they are never together unless your attention is 100% on managing the interaction.

This.

Your fault, not the Doug's. if you can't physically be in reach then they need to be separated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The dog has tasted human blood and will need to be put down

LOL!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have a very sweet Border Collie who has patiently taken a lot from our DS, who is 15 months old. Our DS loves him and loves to come up and hug the dog, try to chase him, offer him food, etc. Inevitably, this sometimes ends in DS hitting the dog with a toy or doing something that the dog doesn't love (i.e. he doesn't really like being hugged or "petted" by the kid).

We always supervise them together and usually have to look out for the dog's safety more than our son's. Before we could stop him, DS has hit the dog on the head with a toy very hard, bitten his ear, and fallen on him. He also tries to stick his finger in the dog's eye. Although we try to stop this, sometimes we can't get there quickly enough. All of the things I mentioned have been met by no reaction at all from our dog -- not even running away or whining when he tries to poke his eye.

Tonight DS was getting a little overtired and hyper and chasing the dog around with his large push-able truck. Clearly, the dog was getting a little tired of it but still being a good sport. Then DS stopped and started hugging/hanging on the dog. Since our dog has never minded this too much, I didn't think much of it and finished preparing a bottle I was working on. All of a sudden, I looked over, and the dog has jumped up barking. DS had fallen on the ground, and the dog bit him on the head. We yelled at him, and the dog immediately stopped.

DS is fine but has some teeth marks on his head. He didn't need stitches and will go in tomorrow for an early tetanus booster just to be on the safe side (we talked to the dr on the phone). I feel terrible for DS, but I also don't blame our dog TOO much. He's getting older (8 years old) and less mobile, and I think everything that was going on was just too much for him. I'll admit that I got a little complacent because the dog is always so tolerant of everything and that I should be more cautious, but I don't have any huge concern about this. Does this seem reasonable, or would others be freaking out?

I don't know exactly what DS did to cause this reaction -- it seemed like he was just hugging him while the dog was in a sitting position, which he does all the time. I suspect that he either lost his balance and fell on the dog or possibly tried to bite/pull his ear or something. I think our dog just overreacted while trying to escape and feeling threatened/hurt. I don't suspect it will happen again, and I know the dog knows it was wrong. Any thoughts?

GET RID OF THE DOG!!!!!!!!!!!!! NOW! It doesn't matter why the dog bit him. It only matters that the dog DID bite him. The next time the dog will bite off his face.