Putting a dog down if it bites??

[wookie130]

Well, I have a full house...a husband, a 12 year-old son, 3 large breed dogs, and 3 cats. My youngest dog (Puppy), who is 4 years old, has been known to be a tad defensive and aggressive under certain circumstances. She's a mixed breed...she's a chow-chow/Rottweiler/black lab mix. The chow-chow in her makes her loyal to basically one person in the home, which is my husband...she will only listen to HIM, and is basically very aloof with my son and myself. When my husband was hospitalized earlier this year, my son and I had a rough time with Puppy...she wouldn't come back inside when we let her out, and would growl and nip at us when we'd approach her. She has bit my son quite badly on the arm, and has nipped at me more than once...she has food aggression, and is very possessive with her food dish, and HER toys. My hubby is the only person that can walk her successfully.

All that being said, I love her to death, and she's warmed up to me somewhat, although still favors attention from hubby. I wouldn't classify her as a dangerous or aggressive animal...she's basically a diva. I'm not sure I would be comfortable with Puppy around an infant, however. I trust her with my cats, although Ripley (my female torti) HATES her, and growls and hisses, and will whip out the claws if Puppy gets too brave with her. Ripley clearly has dominance over Puppy, which is rather humorous, considering Ripley is 10 lbs, and Puppy is about 75 lbs. All Ripley has to do is look at Puppy the wrong way, and Puppy heads the other way!!!

I was nervous when I brought home baby kitten Captain Steuben last April...it was a very slow and heavily supervised introduction process between he and Puppy. Now that Steuben is 9 months old, and basically a big boy, Puppy and Steuben get along great.

I would rehome Puppy before I ever had her put down for aggression. These behaviors can definitely be eliminated or controlled with the right HUMAN behaviors, such as training, reinforcement, environmental controls, and animal therapy.

 

[jaycee]

wookie how did you come up with the name captain Steuben for your kitten?

 

[godiva]

I have to admit I'm not a huge dog fan (I love Goldens and Labs), so my opinion is biased.

My in-laws have a cocker spaniel that bit a little girl so bad she had to get stiches at the ER. This dog is really sweet with nearly everyone, except when you try to play with him, get near his food, or stare at him funny. Now, his owners "mess" with him, so I think that is 99% of the problem. They taunt him with treats whenever he does something he's not supposed to do, making it a vicious cycle. He growls and nips whenever you go near him if he's not tired or expecting it. I'm honestly a little scared of him. Coincidentally (or not), according to my husband, all their dogs have ended up that way. I think he could be retrained, but I'm sure his mom wouldn't go for that (claims he's untrainable)... so although I would never say it to them or out loud, I think that this poor doggie should be PTS. He just seems so unhappy and his owners torment the poor guy. I sometimes wonder if this is a cocker thing because the other cockers I have babysat for and met were similar.

 

[starryeyedtiger]

I honestly think it depends on each individual situation and the dog. Honestly, if I had a child and my dog began biting- i would try to rehome it. I think that euthanazia should only be preformed in very extenuating circumstances. I definitely would not keep an aggressive animal in my home with a young child though. When I was little- we had a french toy poodle- who was about the most aggressive and mean little thing you've ever seen- i hated that dog. I was bit 12 plus times by him on different occassions- and I was little too- I definitely think he should have been euthanized sooner (he was impossible to rehome because he was so aggressive.) We tried vet suggestions, obedience classes (which he got kicked out of because he was so mean), and even meds- nothing worked. After about 10 years of age, his kidneys began failing him and he just got meaner and meaner- we all finally talked my mom into having him euthanized after he tried to attack my infant niece. (thank goodness, I got to her before he did). That was the last straw. We tried rehoming him a few times after that, but nobody was willing to take him (he even growled and snapped at the potential adopters). So the decision was made to put him down ( I definitely don't think it should have been delayed that long- i really think my mom was wrong to do that - I was bit 12 times as a child from that dog- I definitely wouldn't let a dog that aggressive remain around a child

) I definitely do not advocate euthanazia without a good reason- but this dog was beyond aggressive- he bit all the way thrrough my mom's achellies tendon. He was not adoptable- we honestley tried to rehome him for quite a while- but when he tried to attack my baby niece- that was it. / Now after that, my sister bought a chichuah from a very horrible BYB. He was a gorgeous dog- but extremly tempermental. He tried to bite one of her children when they were small, so my mom and I took him into our home and tried to work with him with the help of trainers and a vet....once again, we didn't have much luck with him- he was sooo aggressive. However, he wasn't as bad as the other dog had been. After trying to work with him for several years to no avail, and him once again attempting to attack a child, we rehomed him with a very reputable older couple who had breed chichuahs in their younger years (he was neutered, no worries). They were able to take him in and give him a good home, so thankfully, he was successfully rehomed. / Can anyones see why i'm not so fond of little dogs now

/ Now on the other hand- I have two very large dogs- one is a collie/australian shepherd mix, and one is a wolf mix- and those are about the most sweet dogs you'd ever want to be around. I really think that putting a dog down for aggression should be a last resort after every other means has been tried and failed. We honestly tried with the poodle- but he was just way too tempermental. / With the chichuah, we were at least able to rehome him and avoid euthanazie. Honestly I think it just depends on the individual dog and the individual situation- me personally- i would never have an aggressive dog around kids (or myself for that matter).