Dog bite

grazzzz

tonight my 25 year old son decided to try to pick up our 9 red setter however our dog clearly didnt like it and bite him 3 times very badly it snarled and attacked him admittidly my son was wrong to do this but i didnt like what the dog did , he did back down when my son backed off . my wife an hour later then finds out and decides to tell the dog off and send him to the garden hes is big and doesnt obey her command so she grabs his collar to drag him outside and he bites her too .
He has never been aggresive in any way ever ,are they both at fault as although i agree he cant bite people is he still stressed from the previous episode.
My wife now doesnt want him around her espicially if im not here im worried

Sally_A

Please get him checked over at the vets, if this is totally out of character, he could be in some discomfort.

krlyr

Firstly, dogs don't really grasp right and wrong in the same sense as us
They can learn that some actions result in punishment, or that certain tones of voice or body language suggests anger and possible punishment but your dog won't have grasped what it was being told off for an hour after the act.

Secondly, my priority would be a thorough vet check. Dogs rarely bite for no reason and lashing out at physical contact can be an indicator that the dog is in some kind of pain.

meritaten

he bit your grown up son THREE times! very badly? and you seem to blame your son! then it bit your wife?
something is very wrong here! and I think its your attitude. for gods sake get this dog down to the vets and if nothing is physically wrong then I would have to say consider putting it to sleep.
and by the way - an hour after the dog has misbehaved is way too long to decide to 'tell it off and banish it to garden'.
I don't blame your wife not trusting it - if it had bitten YOU wouldn't you be scared?

spacey2012

The dog needs to be destroyed.
It has bitten two people it knows.
Both bitten need to go to hospital for Tetanus injections as a matter of urgency.

grazzzz

meritaten wrote: »

he bit your grown up son THREE times! very badly? and you seem to blame your son! then it bit your wife?
something is very wrong here! and I think its your attitude. for gods sake get this dog down to the vets and if nothing is physically wrong then I would have to say consider putting it to sleep.
and by the way - an hour after the dog has misbehaved is way too long to decide to 'tell it off and banish it to garden'.
I don't blame your wife not trusting it - if it had bitten YOU wouldn't you be scared?

we have had Max for 5 years the first 4 of his life are unknown as he was a rescue dog my son thought it would be funny to try to pick him up by putting his arms around the dogs front end and back end and lift him clean off the floor this is when the dog bite him. in a previous home he may have been abused and so no i dont blame the dog however in the 5 years we have owned him he has been soft and soppy so its a bit of a shock

Person_one

grazzzz wrote: »

we have had Max for 5 years the first 4 of his life are unknown as he was a rescue dog my son thought it would be funny to try to pick him up by putting his arms around the dogs front end and back end and lift him clean off the floor this is when the dog bite him. in a previous home he may have been abused and so no i dont blame the dog however in the 5 years we have owned him he has been soft and soppy so its a bit of a shock

That was a really really bad idea by your son, as he's found out. Setters are big dogs, they aren't for picking up! The dog was probably very alarmed and distressed.

I also think it sounds like there might be a pain issue, maybe even an injury caused by being picked up as it happened again so soon after when he's been fine for five years. Dogs don't just 'turn' regardless of the Daily Mail says.

Get the dog to the vet asap to be checked out before making any decisions.

PudseyDB

I'll echo the vet health check - it does sound like the dog could be in pain. Possibly even from being picked up - he couldve hurt his back.

Our youngest dog bit my partner - when he tried to pick her up after she broke her leg. Yet she''s the softest daftest dog usually and has shown no viciousness in the 5 years since her accident.

spacey2012

You appear a lot more bothered about the dog than those bitten by it ?.
They need tetanus injections if the skin has been broken.

grazzzz

spacey2012 wrote: »

You appear a lot more bothered about the dog than those bitten by it ?.
They need tetanus injections if the skin has been broken.

both had up to date tetanus injections in the last 4 months as been abroad.
Its out of character for the dog and my son shoudnt have provocted it

Sally_A

grazzz, it could be something as simple as a pulled muscle, or a skin irritation.

Let the pooch have his free space and let him come to you, no dragging or pulling. Watch his body language.

If he normally likes brushing, do some grooming, if you get to an area that is sensitive he will soon let you know, and that will narrow it down for the vet too.

I don't mind a dog snapping at me in an instant reaction way, it's when they size you up and bite after weighing up the situation, approx 10 seconds after the event that gets me worried.