My dog bit my Nephew and now my brother wants me to Murder (euthanize) my dog?

Question

This is the second time my dog Ralph a 5yr old doberman bit some one but my bratty 3.5 year old Nephew jumped on top of his back and I told him and my brother to never ever do it again so while I was at work I old my brother to keep Ralph Up stars in the dogs room(Ralph has his very own room).And they let Ralph out and the brat Jumped on my dogs back again Now my brother says he will take me to court if he has to ......This is what I get for letting him(my brother) stay with me while he got back on his feet

Note : The Nephew got 20 stitches on the face ...

I told my Brother that the only way I would Euthanize my dog Ralph is OVER MY DEAD BODY

Who is right

Answer 1

You could always threaten your brother with calling childrens services. He was negligent in letting his young child anywhere near a dog that had been placed into a seperate room. He was negligent, and your dog was just defending himself. I would do everything in my power to keep my dog alive, especially in a situation like this where you did everything right and the dog was just defending himself. If it goes to court you may lose....but if he gets taken to court by social services, and they investigate why he was living off of you and allowed his son to get hurt, he might lose a lot more. Let him know you are serious

Answer 2

Hi BudaBelly,
I think that your brother is 1/2 at fault, the kid & Ralph. But you on the other had told him to leave Ralph in his room too. Boot your brother would probably be better, let him find somewhere else to hang his hat until he's on his feet again. When & if he takes you into court be sure to take with you all the dogs shots from the vet, records & any other notes since he's a prebreed this may help. My friend's dog had bitten the postman twice, neighbor & 2 kids-Sundown is no longer with us he was prebreed doberman also. I am in Minnesota. I think this depends where you live & of course you wanna know the laws on dog biting sooner than later. Good luck with your decision & give Ralph a bone!

Answer 3

I hate to say this, but you're both wrong. If your dog bites people (2?), you're responsible. That's just the way it is. If he has a nasty side, you have to find a way to correct that or keep him away from all people. Obedience training, some kind of dog therapy, whatever it takes to make him stop being so aggressive. If you can't get him to stop biting, you have to keep everyone away all the time.

Now, your brother sounds like an idiot. You can't blame a 3-year-old. He's doing what 3-year-olds do. Your brother should be a much more responsible parent. If he knew the dog bit people, he should never in a billion years have let the dog out, or let his son climb on the dog.

That said, if you had the dog confined where he couldn't get out, and you left instructions with your brother to not let the dog out or to not go in and play with the dog, then he can try to sue you, but you will almost certainly win. If his son injured the dog, do you think he would have cared at all? Would he have punished his son? Or himself for being so stupid as to let a child climb on a dog? Probably not.

Don't put your dog down, but do something about his temperment. And tell your moron, freeloading brother that when you say stay away from the dog, you mean it. I know that he's angry that his son got scared on his face, but that's as much his fault as anyone elses. You should be careful, though, that he doesn't try to harm the dog for payback.

Good luck.


PS - Just so you know, I have a dog that is part of my family, too, and I wouldn't put her down unless she was suffering horrific pain every day with no hope of relief, so I understand how you feel...

Answer 4

I have a chow that was 4 when we rescued him. He wasn't used to kids and we had 2 little boys. Within the first month we had him, he bit both of them (not 20 stitches worth, but enough to draw blood) because they jumped on his back leg and he had been run over as a puppy and had a steel rod in that leg. We scolded the dog, but also told the children that jumping on the dog is inexcusable and won't be tolerated. Since then, we have had no problems. The kids even lay their heads on him to watch tv now. My point is, while I agree that some dogs are naturally agressive, I also believe that people jump to conclusions about destroying animals when it's their bratty kids, who have never been told how to RESPECT animals, who need to be controlled. Your nephew can't just go around jumping on every dog he sees because he thinks it's his right to roughhouse with them. Not all dogs are dumb labs who take whatever abuse is handed out and still come back for more. Some dogs are natural pack leaders and won't take crap from a punk "pup" of a kid in their territory.
My thoughts are this: He knew when he moved in that your dog was there. He still lived there. He knew he should put the dog in his room. He still left him out.

I'd let him sue me before I killed my dog.

Answer 5

You are right. It totally was your brother's fault for letting the dog out and then not watching your nephew. Dogs and young children should never be left together unsupervised. Again your brother's fault. Kick your stupid brother to the curb. What right does he have to tell you to kill your dog when the dog lives in your house and he (your brother) is only a freeloading guest? But I would get the dog some training so you can avoid a situation like this in the future.

Answer 6

Difficult question. I'd say you're both right. Or both wrong, I'm not sure exactly. Putting your dog to sleep may be a little extreme, but you should have kept him better LOCKED UP than you did, rather than to just put him in a room.

Now, if you don't mind a bold suggestion, you could pay (at least a good part of) your brother's medical bill, promise to lock your dog up, and follow through on that. Just a suggestion.

And I really don't think your nephew meant any harm; he was just playing! Little kids do that sort of thing.

Then again, perhaps it wasn't the kid who let the dog out? Well, anyway, you probably know what's right, so follow your conscience.

Answer 7

Your wrong. Once a aggressive dog gets the taste of human blood they won't stop. If that had been my kid I would have came home and killed it without even asking you. Your brother is trying to do right by atleast letting you know. I'm not sure about your state but mine is if a dog attacks a human then it is put down. Do it yourself and don't blame your brother for you owning a vicious dog. Your nephew is probably going to have a bad scar on his face but he is lucky to be alive. It's sad you love your dog more than a child. I pitty you.

P.S. I bet if your brother and his son was from Iraq then these other bleeding hearts on here would be calling you a child abuser.

Dam* it's bad when people value a dogs life more than a 3 year old that didn't know any better. Ya the father is at fault for letting him out but still this is you flesh and blood. Does family mean nothing to you or any of these other people on here. Someone telling you to turn him into child services. Lets put him in orphanage somewhere just so my precious pouch don't get hurt. Man be a brother and an uncle. Ya he was wrong for letting his kid be around him but still do you not love your nephew?

Answer 8

You are right......i dont think is fair for your doggy to get euthanize just because of his negligence, because if he would of kept Ralph on his room, and the baby away this wouldnt had happend, but no he neglect both babies and dog and now this poor doggy is gonna pay. If you could prove that his negligence is what cause this, he will loose the case if he takes it to court. Plus he should be a little more appreciated and thankful for what your are doing for him by allowing him to live there meanwhile he gets bk on his feet.parents The age of ur nephews is not an excuse for what happend and ur brother tryin to say he doesnt know kids do know and if they dont is their job as parents to teach them and watch them over at all times no excuses.....is ur brothers fault for being such a bad dogsitter and babysitter

Answer 9

If your brother takes you to court....depending on where you live.....you will most likely lose and the dog will be put down.
Where I live in Texas, if an animal bites no matter what the circumstances are, and it causes injury then the aminal is taken by animal control and put down.
You may want to take your dog to Obediance Training.
I am not siding with your brother...nor with you....but you have to realize that your nephew is only 3. Calmly sit down and talk to your brother. Tell him that you will put the dog in training but at the same time, he needs to teach his son correct behavior around dogs.

Answer 10

Well, it's bad to say this but thank god it was someone in your family in a way. If it was a neighbors kid or someones mother down the street, you would have not only an unhappy ending for the dog, but a lawsuit as well. This same thing happened to me. I went to the shelter to get a dog and they said he was a lab, but as he got older we soon found out that it was a pit bull mixed with lab, he was very aggressive and nipped my son and myself many times. Be careful, next time you may not be so lucky-