My dog tried to attack a child!?

Question

I was at a friend's house, and somebody brought their kids over. The boy came over to say hi to my dog and she tried to attack him! I was horrified. Thank God she was on her lead. As soon as I told her off she stopped. I got her from the animal shelter when she was 3 months old, she's now 18 months old. When I brought her home she was very ill, as she had been dumped along with her mother and siblings. She is a nervous dog and she gets scared very easily. I've never raised my hand to her, if she does something wrong, a firm voice is all she needs and she stops doing it. How does this happen? I'm just so shocked. What did I do wrong in raising her? I dont know what breed she is, the vet said she has a bit of pitbull, but he said don't worry, it's not the breed it's how they are treated. I don't know what to do and I dont know how to fix this.

We have walked past children playing on the street before and she's never bothered about it. But apart from that no she hasn't really had any dealings with children.

Yes, apparently she, along with her mother and siblings had been abandoned. When I picked her up from the shelter, she was very sick with kennel cough, covered in mange and had open wounds around her eyes from the mange. I initially fostered her, but I kept her because she's happy here at home, and we have a very strong bond. I try to take her out as much as possible, but she does get terribly frightened. Her and I live alone together, and we dont get many visitors. Also, when we go walking, there is hardly anyone else around.

Answer 1

It depends on how the boy approached the dog - how old is he? Too often kids aren't taught how to act around dogs. You don't just run up to them excitedly, or reach out to the dog or grab it. Kids must be taught to calmly approach a dog, ask the owner for permission to pet the dog, then - and only then - do they offer their hand to the dog to let it sniff them. Then the child can pet the dog in a calm manner. Kids should be taught how to properly pet a dog as well.

It's really easy to immediately say that it's the dog's fault. It's true that kids are very important, but it's also true that kids need to be taught how to properly treat a dog as many dog bites could be avoided because dogs misread the cues a child is giving them.

Your dog does not sound to be the one at fault. Most likely there was a lot of excitement and your dog was reacting to it as well as to the child's behavior. I think it would be best for you to avoid taking your dog where she may encounter children she is unfamiliar with, especially if she is not exposed to children at home. If you need to take her to friends' houses and there will be kids there, then make sure she is kept separated from the kids. That may have been a freak thing but you don't want to have to learn the hard way that she doesn't like kids. I have a pitbull mix rescue and she's completely freaked out by kids but she is wonderful with adults. Your vet is right, most of the time it is not the breed itself, just how the dog was raised.

You didn't do anything wrong with your dog, something very traumatic with kids could have happened when she was very small or she could have just been having a bad day and the excitement of the kid being around was just too much for her.

I would consider talking to an animal behaviorist, they can offer suggestions and help you with a solution. If you don't know of any in your area, ask your vet about it and he should be able to provide you with some advice and some numbers to contact.

I am sorry this happened to you! Please *don't* give your sweet girl up! I'm sure you will have success in figuring out the cause of the problem and a workable solution. Good luck! :)

Answer 2

It would really depend on the situation and circumstances. The majority of the time, dogs will attack as a means of self defense if being provoked, for example the dog was having it's ears pulled. So there would be no surprise to me there, if the dog did attack. In this case, that is if the dog attacked due to provocking behavior from a family member, then I would keep the dog. Yes, I would lose a lot of trust in the dog and find owning it a little more challenging as certain precautions would have to be considered, but it was the individuals fault in the first place- unless of course it was a baby who are unaware of their actions 99% of the time. If however, the attack was unprovoked and the cause of the attack was un known then it's likely the dog would have to go. I wouldn't be happy in the slightest and it would break my heart, but what's to say it wouldn't happen again? I'd also have to consider the family member. If was not an immediate family member, meaning I did not live with them, then I would probably keep the dog on. If I did live with that person then we would have to have a serious conversation.

Answer 3

Dogs attack for several reasons.... not all are BAD. At 18 months she is still a puppy or adolescent at the least. You mentioned you got the dog from a shelter, even though the dog was young it still may have been abused. It may have had something happen to it at a young age that has still made it fearful. Or it may feel it was protecting you. Don't write the dog off as a BAD DOG, It may just need to be socialized a bit more...... How does it act around other dogs, or other children?. Do children make the dog nervous? Until you have some answers I would suggest getting a muzzle for the dog to use when in public, It does not hurt the dog and will prevent any mishaps. When frightened animals will attack. Love and a responsible pet owner can over come any aggressive tendency.

Answer 4

the child was in the heart of the dogs territory & approached the dog head-on. the dog obviously saw this as a threat. it's a credit to both yourself &, especially, the dog that it ceased it's aggressive response at your command.
you got it from a shelter after it had been abandoned? it's likely the dog was abused as well before being dumped. this may have made your dog a touch neurotic about strangers. some obedience training could help (though by the sound of it, this is superfluous since your dog is evidently very obedient already).
socialising him with strangers (at least to him) under tight control, especially at your home would help teach him that the people he will meet with you are no threat. also, make it clear to all guests (especially if they bring children) that your dog is not! immediately approachable & has issues from a previous bad home. this is always a risk when you take on rescued animals.
bear in mind that the dog a) has priority in your home above guests. after all, it is his home too (though aggression towards your visitors is to be discouraged)
b) his instinct, as a dog, is to protect his territory (your home) & his pack (you & your family). such behaviour should not be entirely taught out of him. a dog should guard his own to an extent.
good luck. & i reckon your dog will be fine. he just needs some understanding & patience from you

Answer 5

hi , i really feel for you but this is one of the problems of getting dogs from those places yes all well and good that your helping a dog that would probably be put down but noone knows what they were treated like before you got it ,i would seek advice from your vet or someone that really knows what there talking about ,this is to important to just ask on here ,it could be the next child may not be so lucky ,i would muzzle her while you are out ,you have got a bond with her now so please try and help her dont just dump her back until you try but if all else fails then you will have no choice but try and help her first ,good luck ,pitbulls should only be with people who know what there doing ,thats just my answer xx

Answer 6

It is a good idea to keep her on a lead until you know how well she will accept each individual person.
Dogs form opinions about people just like people do.
I don't think you did ANYTHING wrong in raising her. She just didn't like this boy!
I had a Queensland Heeler who formed opinions about people. I tried to make him be polite, and he was as long as I was watching, but if I didn't pay attention, he would still 'not like' that person and let them know either by growling, raising his hair or even nipping at them.
Later on, I found out that the people my dog didn't like were actually sneaky, controlling people I didn't like either once I got to know them better. My dog knew right away, for me it took more information.
Just keep her on a lead but don't worry about her. You did well, and she'll do well, too. Keep her away from people she doesn't like. There's a reason, even if it's not apparent right now.

Answer 7

hello, I just want to say that I'm so shocked that people are actually telling you to get rid of her or even put her down !!
I haven't got much experience in this kind of thing so I'm just going to say don't give up on her. you asking this question is proof that your are a responsible owner and it is not your fault at 18 months she s still a puppy and she can change with help.
I wish you and your dog all the luck in the world.

Answer 8

I'll stop short of recommending that the dog be euthanized but think very carefully about what may have happened to your friend's child under different circumstances. Your dog may benefit from professional obedience training to 'soften' it's unpredictable aggressive behaviour.

Answer 9

You dog must've have been thinking that that kid was going to attack it or hit it, so that's why it must'v reacted that way, it is normal for dogs to do that, esp when they're not used the person & esp if it is a child, coz of the way the kid approached the dog.

I have 2 labs, & they are the best child friendly dogs, but when a kid approches them in a funny way they do snap at times, coz they think that they are going to get hurt.

So don't blame your dog, teach the kid how to approach dogs.

Answer 10

Dog Training would be good
maybe she is just not use to children or maybe she has had a bad experience with them in her past
you might just have to get her use to being around kids but gradually introduce her to them don't force it on her or it may never happen