What would you do??? Please help!

[nicks]

We have an 8 year old Siberian Husky who has been a great dog. However, last week he bit our 10 month old DD. So we are trying to decide what to do from here. Either he stays with us as an outdoor dog (which he is not used to) or we find somewhere else for him to go. I have checked out the two rescue shelters in Colorado and one said it would be very hard to place him because of his age but they would help us however they could and the other one said the only right thing to do is put him to sleep.

To be honest we have not considered putting him down. He is not agressive towards adults, obviously we would make it clear to any adoptors that he is NOT compatible with children.

So, what would you do in this situation? This is soooo incredibly hard, please give me your opinion!:(

[ejs]

Have you looked into a behaviorist? Perhaps the dog needs some new training.

Were there any special circumstances going on when the dog bit your DD? Or did the dog just run up and bite her?

[katiadarling]

Yep, my question would be, what were the circumstances surrounding the bite? Also, how severe was the bite (location, amount of damage)? Do you do any training with the dog and if so what kind... and is the dog altered (spayed or neutered)?

[jesvet]

What was the situation when the bite occured? Has your dog been seen by a vet recently and evaluated for cataracts, arthritis, or other geriatric conditions that might make him crabby?

I'm sorry you are dealing with this, I'm sure it is immensely stressful.

[fuzzy]

I'd need more info too. The circumstances of the incident itself are rather important.

[katmg]

My cousin's toddler was bitten by her grandparent's lab. She had stepped on him (in a sensitive area) when he was asleep and he woke up and bit her face. She was rushed to the hospital and had to have emergency surgery. At one point they were concerned she might lose vision in one eye. Luckily she pulled through just fine and now at age 8 has only minor scars.
Everyone seriously considered putting that dog down but the decision was made to let him live and there weren't any further incidents. He had never been aggressive in the past and with the events surrounding the bite it was thought it wouldn't happen again. Kids were, of course, watched very closely around him after that. It was a horrible, one-time event that luckily did not have a terrible ending.

I would seriously consider the events surrounding the bite and do your best to think about whether this would happen again.

[ManteoChik]

Its hard to tell without knowing the events surrounding the situation. Your DD is 10 months so I'm going to assume that the dog has been around her for the last 10 months?? If so, has the dog ever shown any bad behavior before?

[nicks]

Sorry, I meant to include the details in my orignal post. She was crawling around on the floor in the livingroom and he was laying on the other side of the room. She started crawling closer to him so I got on the floor with her. He came over closer to (or so I thought) stiff and check her out and then lunged at her face. He got one tooth in her cheek that required 8 stiches (although it was less than 1/4 inch long). I am not entirely sure what caused him to do it. She did not provoke him in any way (grab, make loud noise, move quickly, etc). I don't know if he was protecting me? We also lost our other dog about a month ago which I am sure has something to do with his altered behavior.

Manteo No, he has not shown this behavior before. However, she has only been crawling around on the floor for the past 3-4 months and we never really let him get that close. During this instance I thought that I was close enough where I could stop something from happening.

Katmg I am glad to hear your cousins DC is alright. I do think that it could happen again. I am not willing to find out so if we keep him he will be an outside dog.

Jesvet Thank you! No, we haven't been to the vet recently. He is due for his shots next month though, so we will discuss this with our vet for sure.

Katia Training has just been home training with us. He is generally a well behaved dog and yes, he is neutered.

Ejs No, we haven't looked into a behavorist. That is definitly something we can check on though. Thank you!

Thank you for all your input so far. Hopefully with the extra info you all will be able to give me your opinions.

[j*east]

nicks, I'm so sorry. What a horrible situation. It doesn't sound like the dog was provoked, but I'm not an expert and don't know what would provoke a dog.

I would consult with a behaviorist before getting rid of my dog or making her live outside. For my dog, living outside really isn't an option and I'd rather see her with another family. But before I took that step, I'd consult a professional who could observe the dog and give me some training ideas. I'd consider using baby gates to keep the dog away from my daughter, and I'd also maintain a distance between the dog and my daughter. This is all just what I would do--obviously you have to do what's best for you and your family.

Here are some resources:
I really liked Cesar Millan's book (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307337332/sr=8-1/qid=1156266583/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-5662391-0103318?ie=UTF8) on understanding dogs. There's some stuff in there about dogs not being able (necessarily) to perceive babies as people, and how you have to establish that your baby is an alpha member of the "pack."

He has a show, Dog Whisperer. (http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/dogwhisperer/)

He runs a dog psychology center (http://www.dogpsychologycenter.com/index.php) in L.A. His website has this to say about pros in your area (I don't know what your area is):
To search for trainers in your state, visit the International Association of Canine Professionals web site at www.dogpro.org. Their list of trainers is always growing, so it's a good idea to revisit their web site from time to time.

If you are looking for help in California, New York City, Washington D.C. and/or Florida, please email the Dog Psychology Center of Los Angeles at powerofthepack@aol.com for a list of referrals in those areas. Please do not email for help in others cities as we will only be able to refer you back to this page.

More information coming soon. Check back for updates...

Here's the IACP website (http://www.dogpro.org/)referenced in the quote. You can search for dog trainers.

I hope you get the help you need. Good luck.

[Toonces]

I'm sorry you're going through this. It's such a difficult situation. ITA with everyone else's suggestions. From what you described, it sounds like he probably was trying to protect you and is also out of sorts b/c of the loss of your other dog. We have 3 cats and one of them, who has all of her claws, is aggressive toward DD (when provoked). DD has gotten scratched and bitten on several occasions, nothing as serious as your situation, but I know how torn you must feel. I think as your DD gets older she'll learn that the doggie might bite and to give him his space. We tell DD that "Snowball bites scratches" over and over again and it's finally starting to sink in (she's 22 mos old).

[Chile]

You need to contact a behaviorist and have him completely checked out to make sure he is fine. As jesvet mentioned it could be something related to his advanced age.

Getting rid of him would be the last resort. Making him at outside dog shouldn't even be an option.

[Golightly]

Ugh! What a tough situation! I'm glad that it sounds like your DD is going to be okay.

My DH and I have a 6 year old husky that we love to pieces. I am honestly a little worried about how he's going to do with kids when we have them. Mostly because I think he's too bonded with me at this point (I work from home and he's on my heels constantly.) I just hope he doesn't have any trouble "sharing" us with the baby.

Do you often get on the floor with the dog? Maybe he thought that the baby was in "his" territory or something. Dogs spend most of their time on the floor, so it's probably really weird to them when their master and a strange creature(babies) are laying on the floor too.

Hope you find a good solution. Huskies have long life spans (around 14 years) so it would be a pity to have to put him down when he's really still in his prime. If you could spend time with him every day, he might get to like being an outdoor dog (most huskies do.) Maybe you let him inside for some time with you guys when the baby goes down for a nap or bedtime for a little while. I bet the situation gets better as the baby gets older and your dog sees her as more of a human than some other creature that smells just like you.

Of all dogs, I think huskies can do really well outdoors, as long as they have some human interaction so they don't get too lonely out there.

Good luck with this, let us know how it goes.

[mamax2]

I guess I'll be the dissenting opinion, but here goes. If my dog bit my child completely unprovoked, the dog would be put to sleep. I know that seems harsh, but given our dog's age and other issues (separation anxiety, destructiveness, etc.), she's not really 'adoptable'. If she were an otherwise 'perfect' dog, I'd consider placing her with a family without kids. IMO, it wouldn't matter if advanced age is making your dog crabby or if she doesn't like you playing on the floor, etc. I absolutely would not be willing to take a chance like that again. I love my dog; my children are my highest priority and their safety and well-being trumps everything else. Unprovoked child-biting is an absolute deal breaker for me.

[jnettie]

Well, I think I'd give your dog another chance. My FIL has a female huskie, and I know how high maintainance these dogs can be! And jelous. Perhaps he just doesn't see your DC as above him in the pack? I agree that a behaviorist and a round of obidiance training would be a good idea.

Perhaps he doesn't even view your DC as a person? Huskies and cats don't mix...they'll always view cats as food, not friends. Maybe your huskie doesn't see the difference between you baby and a cat? KWIM?

[robyn]

I don't have any advice other than what the PPs have suggested, but I wanted to send my sympathy for the situation. I have some issues with my dog, but I can't imagine having to get rid of him either. We have a baby due in January and we are going to seek the help of a behaviorist before the baby arrives so that we can hopefully thwart any potential issues.

Good luck to you!

[mb1197]

I think you've received some really good suggestions already. I wouldn't even consider euthanasia until you've exhausted all options, but that's just me. Based on what you've described it really does sound like your dog doesn't understand that your 10 month old is part of the pack. Training is definitely something to consider.

DH and I have a 1 year old female husky and she's quite a handful, but very eager to learn the rules. We've already been through 8 weeks of training (puppy) and are going for another 8 weeks (basic obediance) next month. After that we will continue on to advanced obediance. I think it's essential for her to understand the guidelines and for us to be the established alpha in our pack. Since DH and I do plan on having children ourselves I am going to start discussing how best to prepare our dog for the future. Considering your DC is already here you may have to backtrack a bit, but a behaviorist should be able to help you with that.

Good luck!

[Sue]

I guess I'll be the dissenting opinion, but here goes. If my dog bit my child completely unprovoked, the dog would be put to sleep. I know that seems harsh, but given our dog's age and other issues (separation anxiety, destructiveness, etc.), she's not really 'adoptable'. If she were an otherwise 'perfect' dog, I'd consider placing her with a family without kids. IMO, it wouldn't matter if advanced age is making your dog crabby or if she doesn't like you playing on the floor, etc. I absolutely would not be willing to take a chance like that again. I love my dog; my children are my highest priority and their safety and well-being trumps everything else. Unprovoked child-biting is an absolute deal breaker for me.

I agree, if it was unprovoked. That is the key...

Are you sure there wasn't anything around, like a toy or bone? Was he just laying there when she started crawling towards him? I hope your daughter makes a speedy recovery.

[notkk]

Regarding whether or not it was unprovoked...
In addition to trying to pinpoint any actions of you, your daughter, the surroundings that may have "provoked him", you should try to evaluate whether or not he was giving warnings (body language, etc) before biting. It sounds like this might be difficult to assess in hindsight because I assume your attention was primarily focused on your daughter?

Just because a person wouldn't interpret a situation as something that warrants an aggressive response from a dog doesn't mean that the dog doesn't interpret it that way. And a dog interpreting what we consider a "normal" scenario as "scary", etc. doesn't mean that their response/interpretation was "wrong."

If he was giving appropriate warning signals (even if they were missed or misinterpreted), I agree with the previous posters that this is something that you should be able to overcome with training, etc.

I hope that your daughter makes a speedy recovery!

[nicks]

Thank you all so much for your opinions, it really does help to have some outside input. Believe me, I have gone through all these options so many times in my head!

As for being unprovoked, like notkk suggested, there must have been something that he perceived as a threat. One of the rescues that I called also mentioned that he will try to establish pack order with children and this is how they do it.

For now, our decision is to keep him and hire a behavorist (from the list that jeast posted- THANK YOU!) to work with us. However, he will still be outside or WAY out of her way if she is on the floor, etc. I just can't take that chance again.

Thank you all again for your well wishes and ideas! I will keep checking in here if anyone else has any thoughts!

[j*east]

nicks, I'm glad you're getting help with your dog. I really think it's possible to train/retrain dogs to get along with children, but a pro can give you an informed opinion and tell you if your dog really is a danger and impossible to train otherwise. When your daughter's a little older, she can be taught more about the dog, but for now it's probably best to keep them separate. Let us know how it turns out, and best of luck.

[mb1197]

I really hope that everything works out for you! Keep us posted on his progress.

[jnettie]

As for being unprovoked, like notkk suggested, there must have been something that he perceived as a threat. One of the rescues that I called also mentioned that he will try to establish pack order with children and this is how they do it
This makes a lot of sense to me.

Regarding whether or not it was unprovoked...
In addition to trying to pinpoint any actions of you, your daughter, the surroundings that may have "provoked him", you should try to evaluate whether or not he was giving warnings (body language, etc) before biting. It sounds like this might be difficult to assess in hindsight because I assume your attention was primarily focused on your daughter?

<snip>

If he was giving appropriate warning signals (even if they were missed or misinterpreted), I agree with the previous posters that this is something that you should be able to overcome with training, etc.
I've noticed that with FIL's Huskie, she gives different types of signals and had different behaviors than other dogs. She never growls, but instead will wait quietly and lunge to nip if you're doing something she doesn't like. Also, when she tried to get our cats, she looked more like she wanted to play, ears and tail up in the air, your general "happy dog" look, and then just lunged at our cat suddenly and without warning. There is a certain "alertness" you have to watch for in her, because you don't get the normal warnings you expect from dogs.

[nooblet]

Something else to think about is did something happen at an earlier point in time that maybe the dog was provoked?

When My brother was a baby he would torment our dog and cat. The dog was the sweetest most loving dog ever. If the dog even got in range of my brother he would start trying to pull the dogs hair/tail what ever he could get a hold of. As soon as he started crawing the dog "unprovoked" went over an bit him. As if he was trying to lay down the law now that he (the dog)couldn't escape as easily.

[MidwesternGal]

I have a pretty nervous (read: scared of new people) dog (lab mix) and will be having my first child in a month.

We plan to keep our child up, off the floor to establish dominance early on.

Our vet (whom our dog HATES with a passion--she has to be muzzled to go) told us that despite the fact that she is such a terror at the vets office, he actually thinks she has the personality to get along well with children--once she gets used to them (key point!). He thinks that she will need a period of adjustment, but in the long run, it will work out just fine.

However, my dog is only 2 years old.

I second talking to the vet about geriatric issues. Even though large dogs tend to live to 10-15 years, they can frequently get "grouchy" and have arthritis early on. My parents husky/german shepard/lab mix went through a really bad period about a year ago, and she is only 5 years old.

[greenbunny]

Regarding whether or not it was unprovoked...
In addition to trying to pinpoint any actions of you, your daughter, the surroundings that may have "provoked him", you should try to evaluate whether or not he was giving warnings (body language, etc) before biting. It sounds like this might be difficult to assess in hindsight because I assume your attention was primarily focused on your daughter?

Just because a person wouldn't interpret a situation as something that warrants an aggressive response from a dog doesn't mean that the dog doesn't interpret it that way. And a dog interpreting what we consider a "normal" scenario as "scary", etc. doesn't mean that their response/interpretation was "wrong."

If he was giving appropriate warning signals (even if they were missed or misinterpreted), I agree with the previous posters that this is something that you should be able to overcome with training, etc.

This is exactly what I was going to say. It's easy to throw around the word "unprovoked" and yet in the dog's way of communicating, he might have done everything except wave a red flag in your face. I wouldn't be so quick to label the behavior unprovoked, but I would definitely closely monitor his actions and your child's actions around him, especially so you have info to give to a behaviorist if you choose to hire one.

[jbenny75]

You made a great decision to work with a behaviorist. I'm so glad that you did.

I'm wholeheartedly against putting dogs outside. Especially one that is 8 years old and used to being an indoor dog. I can imagine it would be very confusing, upsetting, and lonely for your dog as they really need to be with their pack. If it comes to a point where you would consider this- is there a room or area in your house where the dog could be confined when your DD is up and about? The dog could be gated into that room or area, then given time out in the rest of the house when your DD is napping or in bed at night.

Good luck!