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In fact I tried to have my brother's dog put down several times. I blame my brother for not properly socializing that damn thing. It bite both my children, one quite severely on the neck. It bit me, it bit my sister, it bit my mother and she lived in the house with the dog. The dog was a menace, but every time I tried to do anything about it, the rest of the family would whine, "But it's his baby! It's like asking him to send his only child to the electric chair." So I quit going to visit my mother, and anytime she would whine about us not coming for vacation, I would tell her that I was no martyr and I wasn't about to send my children to the lions. Believe me, I shed no tears when that dog finally died of old age, in fact, my husband and I broke out a bottle of champagne.
Excellent point! Thank you. This is the reason we have very few visitors to our home. We have adopted our "usual suspects" - known biters (all shelter dogs with issues that have worked with a trainer and still working) and we know the likelihood of the nipping, and we tell every unexpected guest to avoid eye contact, move slowly, do not pet the dogs and do NOT tell me it's okay because you're a "dog person". Inevitably, some self-pronounced dog person will do any of the above and get a nip, not an attack, but nevertheless, something we have little control over - they are protecting and doing their "job".
I would never invite anyone to our home if they have small children in tow. Plus, we don't like small children - not in stews, not roasted, not being cute. Small children without the benefit of a dog as a pet at home should not be around dogs because they often don't know the dog is not a toy.
Just wondering. I have seen this happen before, where a child was bitten by a dog, and then the parents forced the dog owners to put the dog down.
The child I talk about was not seriously injured, just a painful bite and nothing beyond that. Now to me, I would not react so harshly. My neighbor (with the dog) had three children and the dog was known for being very kind and playful with children. What probably happened was it thought the girl was playing. The parents (in my opinion) over reacted anyway. I don't think dogs should just become that disposable, even for something serious like a bite. Obviously if it crossed a line, that would be a different story.
Dog in question is a black lab, was a big one at that. Around two years old, still a little tyke in puppy world if you ask me.
If it happened to my kid, and it was an innocent play bite, I would not press the matter any further.
Yes, I would. In a heartbeat.
I DO NOT tolerate human aggression in animals at all.
Obviously the Lab likes his own kids and not this one. Would crate the dog if neighbor kids come over and I would keep that particular kid out of my house. Labradors, by their very nature, are not indiscriminant biters.
I'm sorry, but when this 4 year old girl came up to my collie in the pet store and stuck her hands and face in her face, I was appalled. Couldn't see her parents anywhere around. Luckily, my dog loves kids and would let you poke her in the eye with no repercussions...but what the hell are parents thinking?
We see a lot of dog bites here and most of the time, it's the human's fault and the dog gets put down. It disgusts me.
I would probably have the dog objectively evaluated by some trainers on dog behavior.
I would be more concerned about a dog that has inflicted a true puncture wound than a nip. Dogs have incredible control over their jaw pressure and it takes intent for them to do real damage. If the dog was at all iffy and a probable risk, I would put it down. It may be a humans fault but I am afraid I think that is the way it should go.
In any case I would be paying the medical bills, figuring out what happened, and making sure that dog would never be in a position to bite again.
It would depend a great deal on the situation. A dog on his own property giving a warning nip to a child who has overstepped the boundaries enough for the dog to lose patience and give a warning snap is one thing- the fault lies with the parents. If the child and the dog were in a public venue and the dog attacked unprovoked, that's time to grab your neighbors and pitchforks. That animal should be put down ASAP and the owner held legally responsible.
I would never force an owner to put a dog to sleep. I was even visciously attacked by a dog when I was growing up. My parents certainly didn't hold the dog's owners responsible. I went into theiryard. The dog had it's rabies shots--that's all that mattered---and I learned a lesson about dogs.
The argument that the dog owner should have watched the dog can be turned right back onto the parents: the parents should have been watching their kid. People need to get a grip with reality. If your child is bitten by a dog, put the blame on yourselves as parents for not protecting your child. Dont' blame the dog because you didn't give your children supervision.
Granted, it does depend on the situation. A random attack on the streets is another matter entirely. But it's a rare situation where a child is attacked by a dog while the parents were watchful of the child.
We have a 10 year old neighbor that comes over and rides fourwheelers with my son. They would ride around the back yard and our great dane would chase them down the fence line. When they would come in the house and wrestle, he could see them through the window and get very upset, growl, bark, try to take the door down. The boys were in the front yard and the dog jumped the 6 ft fence (no kidding). He ran around for a little bit and i really thought nothing of it. Then he ran over to our neighbor and just lunged right at him and bit his hand. he had open wounds on his stomach (from the paw) another on one hand. and teeth marks on his other hand. Now knowing how big a great dane is, these were no little bites. they were bad. his mother was upset (understandably). We let the sheriff deparment take the dog. To do whatever with him. im sure some of you think that's just terrible. but whos to say he wouldn't do it again. or to another child. or to my children. we did not want to take the chance of it happening again, and the next time it being much much worse. I really think that it's up to the owner, if its not being forced. I made the decision to protect my family and everyone else.
IMO 99% of dog bites occur account of owners not properly training their dogs. maybe we should put the owners down?
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