Before she died she asked me to do one thing.....Help?

Question

mother left me her precious pooch ...but it bit my son........ I inherited my Mothers 5 yrs old Bull terrier named Adam. I promised to care for him ,just as well as she had.That was three and a half years ago.
The problem is that my son is three and a half years old and he got ruff with Adam (pulled hard on his ears)Adam responded by nipping and my three and a half year old son pulled away (i think)and it tore his skin (no stitches need)
MY question is ......will this reck their relatonship?if it did ,what would i do?I promised my late mother i would look after Adam for his remaining years..IS there any danger to my son ?or the dog?
Note:I DONTleave them alone together,but my husband forgets sometimes........................
My mother only trusted me to give Adam the way she had.....And she never asked anything of me BeforeI dont Know what to do.

Answer 1

I am sorry about the loss of your mother. Realize one thing though, she is dead. She won't know any better. If you feel like you must get rid of the dog, do so. What is more likely the problem, is that you need to teach your son not to do those things to the dog. It's not the dog's fault. If someone pulled on my ears really hard I would bite em too.

Answer 2

Hmm... mother's dying wish vs. health and safety of your son.

I think this should be a no-brainer.

Do not bring the dog into your household. Put it up for sale or give it to someone, and let people know you want to interview several people before selecting an owner, so that you can pick a person or family that you trust. In that way, you'll be "looking after" this dog.

But bull terriers can be nasty, and your son is infinitely more important than your mother's last wishes, especially if she would be so inconsiderate of your son's safety to expect you to risk his well-being by taking in a flea-bitten bear trap into your home. I think everyone here will agree, don't take the dog.

I'm not trying to villify the dog... no dog will put up with abuse from a kid. But that's why you need to be careful about mixing kids and animals, for both of their sakes. The kid doesn't deserve to get bitten, and the dog doesn't deserve to get tormented, but neither has the intelligence to be trusted to leave the other one alone, so it's just a dangerous situation waiting to happen.

Look after the living, and let the dead bury the dead, as the saying goes.

Answer 3

I don't think this has wrecked their relationship. The dog felt he was being attacked by your son and he responded in the way that dogs do. Any time your son is rough with the dog he should be punished. He is old enough now to know to treat animals the correct way. If you feel like it's truly not safe, I'm sure your Mom would understand it if you found the dog a new home. Just make sure it's a good, loving home where you are absolutely sure he will get the best care and lots of love. And maybe it should be a home with no young kids.

Answer 4

You may have made a promise to your mother but you have a promise and legal responsibility to take care of your son. What are you waiting for, an incident where the dog really hurts your son and he requires stitches?? If your son is in an enviornment that endangers his saftey and well-being, your son will be taken away from you. This can be reported by a day care teacher, a neighbor, or a doctor who has to stitch up your child.

Your son will be taken away but you will still have the dog!!
Which is more important to you? What would your mother have valued if it came down to those two choices?

Answer 5

It's a tough question...if you have ANY doubts about your sons safety however, you really should get rid of the dog. Regardless of your mothers wishes before she died, I am certain that she would not want any harm to come to your son as a result of something that she asked you to do. If you can, give the dog away to someone you know, whom you are certain will look after him well and take good care of him. I am sure that your mother would be happy with that as a solution. Good luck!

Answer 6

You have a tough one nn your hands. I would say get rid of your son and keep the dog.
No really I would get rid of the dog and protect your son. I am sure that your mother in her best interest would say the same thing. That dog sees your son as an enemy now. I am sure that the pound will find someone that can care for the dog as much as you cared for the dog. Make sure to tell them that he is not good around kids.

Answer 7

Oh Honey!!

There is right now this week a program on National Geographis Channel called the dog whisperer. IT IS FANTASTIC!! It airs 9 &10pm EST, or 6 &7pm PST.

You have to watch it or look up the behavourist on line. His name is Ceaser Milan and he runs a center out of Los Angles.

His basic principle is to rehabilitate the animal and train the owner. The way to handle dogs correctly (for what they are instincually) for the benefit of all involved is with the "pack" mentality. You are the dogs pack and therefore the pack has to have a leader who is ALWAYS in control of their pack. If you can't view the episodes this week or order tapes on-line, let me know and I will make a copy of it for you!

I would hate to see you tear yourself apart with guilt because you think you are failing someone. I would hate it even worse if you inadvertantly caused harm , mentally or physically, to the animal or your child because you are tense and nervous! This to a dog means that you don't have control/ are not fit to lead/ and it makes you a danger in the dogs view. A dog in a dog pack that is not under a pack leaders control is quickly attacked to either be made submissive and under control or to be driven from the pack to insure the others saftey.

Please don't over baby your dog and be sure to give immediate correction to any behavior that is aggressive. Teach your child these techniques as he grows and he will learn what it is to be a leader and under control. Your dog must view all humans as pack leader so that there is no danger to your son. Please watch Ceaser or e-mail me to get the videos! Techniques so simple and EFFECTIVE not cruel!!

Answer 8

If you have to keep the dog, take it to obedience school. Its too dangerous to keep them together, all it takes is once for your son to be really hurt. You cant even be comfortable in your own home. Can the dog be left outside in a dog house per- say? Do you have siblings/ family that could care for the dog,. I dont think your mom would expect you to take care of the dog if she knew he would hurt your kids. Give him to another family member.

Answer 9

well...Id make sure the dog, um Adam I believe. just make sure that he always has a bone or chewy so that he can teeth on that. you also want and try and teach your son to be gentle and to not go towards the dog when he is chewing or the dog might bite him to protect the bone. Hope this helps :).

Answer 10

It sounds like the REAL problem here is your husband. He was alone with your son and your mothers dog? And he FORGOT about HIS OWN son??? It sounds like you need to get rid of your husband.