My dog/puppy bit me, what do I do?

Question

Okay, so I have a 6 month old puppy. He is a collie x/mixed breed. Ever since he was much younger he has been very obedient and smart. He was sitting, staying, all the rest of it at around 3-4 months. However, he has a problem with sharing space, like laying on the same bed, or being on the couch. He was growling when I was there too, so I used to just put him off it. Yesterday he bit me simply because I was sitting on the same couch as him.

Now I know the basics. He hasn't slept on my bed in a long time, I make him sit and wait for food, I don't greet him the instant I walk in the door, and I don't hit him.

After he bit me, I am at a loss. I have seen this behavior developing for a while, and done the things they tell you to do. He is a lovely dog, and VERY submissive around most people. He has never shown aggression to anyone else.

Any help or ideas? Should I just rehome him? It is hard to trust him anymore.

Thanks for the help so far guys. It might help to point out that I have had dogs before, and I am aware of how to basically train them. No, I'm not a guru, but I have never allowed him to just growl at me and get away with it. Any sign of aggression has always simply resulted in him losing what he was guarding, for example, he growls on the bed, he gets put off the bed and is not allowed back on. This is why he is no longer allowed on the bed. He is yet to be fixed, as he is only just coming up 6 months. He will be fixed in a week or so.

What bothered me was the way he chose aggression. Deliberately. To get what he wanted. I don't consider that to be okay, ever. Most dogs I know would NEVER do that, and no, it wasn't training that stopped them, they are just loving animals. This one isn't particularly affectionate, though like I said, he is obedient. I am wondering if my home is the right place for him.

Oh, and with regards to rehoming him, I don't mean to another domestic address. He is a farm dog by breeding, and I think he would make an excellent worker. He is smart, and like I've said a gazillion times now, very obedient and enjoys commands. I would only rehome him to a farm or perhaps a place that was into competitive obedience, or somewhere like that.

Oh, and I don't do alpha rolls or things of that nature. As I said, he actually has more of a submissive, fearful temperament than anything else.

It seems like my kindness and affection is merely interpreted as weakness. Cutting any more affection out will mean pretty much never touching him at all. Already he never cuddles with me, and apart from a pat on the head as a reward, that's about all the affection he is getting at the moment.

I noticed this temperamental issue when I first got him, and have been working on it through calm means, making sure that aggression never gets him what he wants. But its not working.

Oh, and I don't fear him. I just don't trust him. There is a difference. I'm not scared of him at all, I just don't want to have to live with a dog who I can't trust, much like I wouldn't want to live with a backstabbing friend, or one who stole things.

Responding to Shanna here: Your point about there being a million dogs who don't bite their owners in shelters is what has me mad with regards to him. I have lived with so many dogs, and NONE of them would have done what this little sh^& did.

I haven't been asleep at the wheel on this one, I have been consulting people, reading, and working on training him.

It's even more of a slap in the face because he is so submissive towards others, but my fear is that when that feeling wears off towards other people, he will eventually become aggressive towards them too.

As I have said many times, I have NEVER rewarded his aggression, or just let it slide. It seems that he just has a snappy attitude, and there are so many dogs who aren't this way, that it almost seems unfair for them to be put down when this little *** behaves the way he does.

THANKS TO ALL WHO READ AND RESPONDED. Not so much thanks to those who didn't really read and said retarded things like "you never did anything about it." Yeah, I did. If you want to know what, read what I wrote. Anyway, idiots aside, thanks to those who gave considered and thoughtful advice. I will be retaining the services of a professional trainer.

Answer 1

It sounds to me like you have a dominant dog on your hands. Intelligence, smartness, not that affectionate are all traits that most dominant dogs have in common, regardless of size and breed.

You're right, most dogs will not behave so atrociously, but this is because contrary to common belief, most dogs are not ladder climbers and most dogs are not dominant. It sounds like you are a good dog handler and the majority of dominance issues can be handled with the training kind of training you've been doing. You sound like a good trainer with the right attitude toward dog training and handling, but you probably need some other tools to address the matter before it gets further out of hand.

Should it be a dominance issue, there is no need to rehome him. Also, I don't believe in rehoming aggressive dogs, because you never know what might happen. Sometimes it is better to put them to sleep.

If it is a dominance issue, he has all the potential of being a great dog, because dominant dogs that are handled according to their temperament are some of the most stable dogs you'll find.

I think there has been some communication glitches between you and your dog because you were not prepared for a dog this dominant. The dog growls because you're daring to sit on his elected space (the couch). You push him off the couch to tell him that the couch is yours. This is all well and good dog-handling for an average dog, but what happens with a dominant dog is that you get into a "my couch - no my couch!" situation that just escalates. What I believe you should have done the very first time he growled was to address the growl and not who rules the couch. Your reaction should have been how DARE you growl at me you little twit?!?!? This is one of the very few situations where I believe you need to come down hard on your puppy.

My own dominant dog tried me out twice by growling at me during her teen-phase (which your dog is hitting now), both times I growled a deep "no!", followed up by a serious scolding while I grabbed both sides of her muzzle and stared her down until she looked away. A complete over-reaction had she not given me a obvious direct challenge.

I believe it is too late for you to do this, however, since the situation has escalated and I'm worried about you getting hurt (and never try this on an adult dog or a dog that feels firmly established in its alpha-role).

My advice would be to get in a professional dog-behaviourist. One that works with gentle methods (there should be no further escalation of violence), but who is familiar with dominant dogs and how to handle them. Also, dominance might not be the issue and you do need to know what is going on before addressing it and making a decision about what to do with him.

Best of luck.

Answer 2

Some how the roles have changed and your dog now is feeling dominant and aggressive towards his territory. My question is if you have seen him growl at you before, have you stopped him? Told him No! In a firm (not shouting) voice? Dogs live in the moment, so if you didn't address what the did at that moment, he sees it as a free pass. As for right now, I would get a muzzle and use it on him whenever he begins to become dominant or aggressive. Leave it on for about 15 minutes, until he is completely submissive. Do this a couple of times should teach him that you are boss. If his aggressive behavior continues, try getting a choke chain. Use it in the house and when he becomes dominant or aggressive, pull the chain back. This will put him into submission. Also remember to stay calm and assertive, don't show your fear or anxiety because dogs see that as weakness. If all else fails, professional dog training will help.

Good luck and take care!

I know that my dog has bitten me by accident while we were playing, not OK, but she went to grab for the ball we were playing with and got my fingers instead. I now have stopped playing so roughly with her so the chance of her accidentally biting me doesn't happen again.

Answer 3

There are two ways to look at this.

Number 1 - You love the dog and want to fix it: Yes, it is fixable, but it's going to be some work. You are going to have to get a professional trainer involved to help you because a potentially aggressive dog is not something you mess around with.

Number 2 - You can't trust the dog anymore and don't feel that it is worth the risk: In this case, I would not rehome the dog. The only way that you would really be able to rehome him is if you are not totally honest about him biting you, which is just wrong for so many reasons. In this case, I would just put him down since there are millions of dogs in shelters that don't bite their owner and finding a home for a potential biter is hard.

It's up to you to decide if he deserves a second chance and you want to keep working with him, or if you feel that you just don't want to deal with it. You do have to commit to either one though. If you are going to try and make it work, you have to give it your all and really do everything necessary to make it work. Perhaps talk to a trainer before making your decision and see what they think. They could evaluate the dog and tell you if it is true aggression your dog is displaying or if he just needs more structure and discipline.

Good Luck.

Added: Boy, do I agree with you! It just seems not right to be putting so many dogs to sleep, yet continuing to work with a biter! It is sometimes workable though, so you just have to decide if he is good enough in other areas to deserve a chance. It seems like you know what you are doing and aren't one of those dog owners that allows the dog to act like a little stinker and get away with it.
I wish you all the best in your endeavor with this dog. Hopefully it can come to a good conclusion for both of you.
I do like the idea of rehoming him in a working environment if you can find somewhere for him.

Answer 4

Find a trainer that does not use aversive techniques. Also check out the book called MINE! you can find it on this page

www.fearfuldogs.com/books.html

Your dog is guarding a resource and I suspect gave you many more indications (as you say the behavior has been building) that he wasn't happy about what you were doing. If you try to punish or push some dogs they will go as far as they need to get their point across, in this case, he bit you. In the past he growled and you just ignored it, this time he wasn't taking any chances. You finally got the message. Now what do you do? You need to re-train the dog to follow your commands. You do this by reinforcing the behaviors you want, not by punishing the behaviors you don't want. It's your house and your couch, and the dog needs to LEARN to get off when you ask. I say learn as opposed to being bullied or forced. He's young and could possibly be afraid of you and since he has learned that you don't understand him (growl=keep away) than you are not reliable in his head. It is so important when dogs are young that they develop a positive, trusting relationship with their owners and any training that hurts or scares them, even if what they are doing seems really bad to us, damages the relationship and it's that relationship that you'll be building on for the rest of your dog's life. Any future behavioral challenges will be harder to deal with if you don't learn how to work with this dog correctly now.

Answer 5

You need to gain dominance over this dog - and fast... YOU are the boss. I will surly get thumbs down over this, but I was advised by a professional trainer/breeder a few years back that you growl very threateningly at a puppy whenever it bites or shows aggressive behavior towards you - the PACK leader. Puppies in a pack would be put in there place in such a way by their parents or another member of the pack who is showing it's authority.

I just say to all of you are reading this - Don't knock it until you try it. I have 5 adult Shar-Pei dogs and two Shar-Pei puppies in my home (which isn't very big), and I am in COMPLETE authority of my dogs. I only had to do this with them as small puppies, and once you have gained their respect - you won't have to keep doing this. It's not like you have to growl at your dog everyday. LOL!
But seriously, give this a try. But, you have to make it a very impressive "To the Point" type of growl in order for them to take you seriously. SAY IT AND MEAN IT.

Answer 6

I feel you. My puppy nipped me hard in the foot when I walked by her while she was playing with my fiance. I was shocked because I was the only one she listened to. I tried to discipline her by telling her no bite. But she just got more aggressive. I was shocked and amazed at how aggressive she got in such a little bit of time. I think after that I had a trust issue with her. And it seemed that she progressively got worse. I started having problems disciplining her. She wouldn't stay, sit come. It was like we were going backwards. I was hard to realize and admit but it was my energy and lack of trust that mad things go south. We are both coming around and reestablishing that I am the pack leader.

Don't re-home him unless you truly feel that YOU don't have the discipline to have a dog. Your dog is losing or has lost respect for you because you fear him. I would suggest reading up on how to be the pack leader. Here are some sites to consider.

Answer 7

Get the help of a trainer/behavior counselor. He is young enough that this is likely a fixable problem if you can put the work into it (hard to do if you don't trust an animal, I know).

This is just thinking out loud, but I would be curious to know what "they" have told you to do. Many methods (such as scruff shakes and alpha rolls) that have been around for years for dealing with this type of behavior actually just antagonize and make the situation worse.

Answer 8

Have you tried some professional training? Your dog is asserting his dominance, claiming your couch as his territory. At 6 months old, you can still nip this in the bud. When he growls, verbally discipline him and then pull him off the sofa by leading him with his collar. Command him to lie down, and then wait a few minutes before praising him. I would alter him as well, if he's not already, to help curb territorial behavior.

Answer 9

Get a spray bottle and fill with water. Everytime he does anything unacceptable spray him. They hate getting sprayed with water, and say NO very firmly. This has stopped all bad behaviour in my three dogs. Two of mine came from the pound, so the had very serious issues! They are very good dogs now. I have bottles handy through out the house, if they do anything bad, I just have to show them the bottle, they stop instantly. Please don't give up on your little one, he can be trained. Best of luck!

Answer 10

He wouldn't live in my house.
If he is that young, you might still have some hope with neutering, but it really doesn't change the temperament of a dominant dog.
And he needs to be corrected when he is confused about who is in leadership in the home.