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I leash my dog to walk the 20 feet from my front door to my truck in the carport.
You don't let your dog go unleashed outside.
I also don't allow them in the backyard when the lawn guy or the pool guy is there.
Not because they are going to bite anyone (the thought is laughable).
But because the yard guys don't know that. Why create a confrontation?
We have three purebred GSD's and one genuine rescue muttpuppy. Two of the GSD were bought from a respected breeder, the third is the daughter of our eldest GSD, a tiny little girl no more than 80 lbs, the two males are in the 100 lbs range, this is not a guesstimate, the Vet weighted them at 101 and 103 lbs, Jorja, the girl, her weight is not a guess either. On one hand, a benefit of having a German Shepherd Dog is that they tend to be quite smart. The disadvantage of having a GSD is, they tend to be quite smart. Without training they are basically uncontrollable. We work with our dogs daily, we have 11.26 acres, 2.5 acres are cleared, the backyard is fenced. Our dogs will not go more than 10 yards outside of our clearing, they will not go up the drive to the road, they will not go through the woods to the creek unless one of us takes them there. Friends drop children off to be babysat, the dogs impose the same rules they have on the children, the children can run, scream, jump, play, they are not allowed to fight with each other. The parents can not just drive down into our clearing and pick up their children. The dogs will not allow it, either my wife or I must be there to hand the children back to the parents, the dogs will accept our judgement that the children can leave with these people. The dogs seem to really enjoy their training time, it is when they get good one on one time with their humans. An untrained GSD can be dangerous. Friends do tend to call before they come to visit. When we welcome them into the yard the dogs will come up and greet them, usually with a ball or a frisbee; they do love playing fetch! I have heard a number of people express the opinion that our dogs are better behaved than most of my friends children.
Hey OP,
I have a German Shepherd also. I have never worried about my GS hurting other people, but I have been concerned about my dog attacking other male dogs. So I went to another GS forum and did some research (easy to find on google).
Many GS owners on the forum really encourage muzzle training. The muzzles can look pretty hannibal lecter like (scary). But with the right training, the dogs learn to not see their muzzle as a punishment, but more as an every day thing. It is similar to crate training and training a dog to enjoy their crate instead of viewing it as punishment.
I have seen some rather harsh comments on here towards the GSD's owner. Retract the claws a bit!
Even the kindest dog who has never shown any agression, and hasn't bitten before can bite. Dogs are very instinctual; it's common sense in my opinion. They are animals. If you research dog breeds, many were bred to guard and show unfailing dedication to their family. No matter how much training a dog as, as someone posted earlier, even the most well trained dog can fall short in an area. I feel like some people tend to forget what many of these dogs were bred to do. That instinct is still there. If a dog feels threatened, which doesn't have to be a physical threat, all of that suppressed instinct from generations prior can show its face, in even the most trained and well behaved dogs.
Now, I am not excusing the dog's actions. It shouldn't have bitten, but the owner recognizes that and has taken immediate steps to correct that behavior. I will agree with others, work with a trainer where YOU are present. The dog (Shep I believe) needs to listen to you.
Now, I also believe dogs are creatures of habit. The OP stated that the lawn workers usually came on a Thursday and were there on Wednesday the day the worker was bitten; again HABIT/ROUTINE. Even if a dog knows someone, if it is not under the usual circumstances and out of the norm, a dog can be thrown off. I know...I was bitten by my best friend's chow. I was in middle school, and had known this dog since early elementary school. I knew she was a biter, but I didn't think about it one day and I reached down to pet her while she was taking a drink of water. Not a normal interaction for the two of us, and as a result I was bitten. It drew blood, but I didn't need stitches. I was in the wrong. I interacted with this dog in a way that I normally would not.
If I were working at people's houses like this gentleman, I would take the time to familiarize myself with dogs. NOT interact if that's not his cup of tea, but understand what triggers a dog (prolonged eye contact, fear, etc.) to be more knowledgable.
Just put your dog on a leash when strangers are in the yard (incl tom). Your dog didnt cause serious damage & thank your lucky stars for that. With shep on a leash all the time its going to be tough for him.
I do think that on some level, the person bitten does have a responsibility. I frequently go to people's homes with dogs for my job, I request prior to my coming over, that the pets are secured so I can do my work..."Oh SuzyBelle won't bite", I explain it has nothing to do with "SuzyBelle", it is just a rule from my employer. SuzyBelle is secured, or I can't come over and do my work at their home.
I like dogs, and have spent many years training dogs, and more importantly, their owners. There are no bad dogs...
There was one man, who could not understand why his dog would not listen to him, so I asked him about his dog, in the morning the man goes to work, the wife feeds the dog, in the afternoon, the kids walk the dog, and brush him, and give him a treat, at night, the man walks the dog, and his wife or kids feed the dog. Who do you think this dog sees as his "Alpha"? The person who feeds him. He responds most quickly to the person in charge of the food dish...is the OP, the person who feeds the dog? That could be also why the dog did not pay attention to him.
Last edited by jasper12; 07-19-2012 at 05:44 PM..
Reason: edit
I do think that on some level, the person bitten does have a responsibility. I frequently go to people's homes with dogs for my job, I request prior to my coming over, that the pets are secured so I can do my work..."Oh SuzyBelle won't bite", I explain it has nothing to do with "SuzyBelle", it is just a rule from my employer. SuzyBelle is secured, or I can't come over and do my work at their home.
I like dogs, and have spent many years training dogs, and more importantly, their owners. There are no bad dogs...
But the dog was secured...it was inside until the owner let it out. Also, the homeowner is the one inviting the person onto the property to do the work and so has the responsibility to give them a hazard free working environment. If I were invited onto someone's property for whatever reason, I would have the reasonable expectation of not being harmed by that person's pets...it shouldn't be something I have to ask for.
That's why whenever we have company JJ goes upstairs. He's too unpredictable and just not trustworthy with strangers. But I don't wait for people to ask for me to put the blind, nippy feral cat away. He's my responsibility and so is their safety when they're in my home.
Not that I think it's a bad rule at all...I think it's a very good rule and it's great that you stick by it. But the responsibility still falls on the pet owner to control their animal.
And that's not even to say that genuine accidents don't happen. Sometimes a dog breaks its leash or comes through a door and really no one is at fault. Dogs are dogs and can be unpredictable. But here a simple precaution of a leash would have prevented everything.
I also have to agree that the pet owner seems to be blaming Tom for being afraid of dogs when her own dog bit him...I double he'll feel anymore confident about dogs going forward!
I found it very interesting that when I recently had to call an ambulance, after asking me what was going on the first thing they told me to do was put all pets up and confined. Luckily my daughters were here to do that but what about the person alone who is truly sick and calls an ambulance? I'm sure EMS techs and their equipment, gurney, machines,etc would set off even the calmest dog. I called because I kept passing out and I was on the bed afraid to stand up and I sure wasn't in any shape to walk around leaning over to leash dogs and chase cats. But I know for sure the two dogs would bark like crazy and one might have bitten anybody who came in the house without me right there.
I've thought of this too. My dogs are friendly to anyone I let in the house, but I don't think they'd be happy with a bunch of strange men bringing in equipment if I was incapacitated, and I certainly would not expect anyone to try to come in the house with two big dogs barking at them. Just hope that situation never, ever, ever happens.
Edit: I should add that even though they're friendly to people I let in the house, I always put them away when people come in to work in the house. I don't think they should have to worry about people's dogs when they're working. I try to round the cats up too because some people are allergic, and because they sometimes get in the way.
Last edited by subject2change; 07-19-2012 at 07:25 PM..
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Dog Biting
