Mum's dog bit my LO

System

Am I the only person who thinks it is a strange idea to take a small child who needs lots of attention, into a situation where OP says they are trying to help their Mum?
Is Granny supposed to entertain "LO" while OP cleans the house, walks the dogs or does any other tasks Granny is incapable of at the present time?

What if the OP is a single Mum with no other family and a child under school age? Who is she supposed to leave her child with? She couldn't even go and help at night if the OP couldn't get a babysitter.

Many people have sick family members and have to cope with babies/children/housework on a day to day basis but most have sense enough not to have a dog that's a danger to children.

Sorry but your Mother is being unreasonable. Your childs safety must come first.

Mojisola

Solsol wrote: »

My husband was (understandably) furious

Judi wrote: »

What if the OP is a single Mum with no other family and a child under school age?

But she isn't.

happyandcontented

If this is a short term illness I would try to leave my child at home whilst I went round to mums. As someone said it is hard to get much done whilst watching a child in a new environment anyway.

System

I am interested in the idea that a dog controls whether or not its bite pierces the skin, as a couple of posters on here have claimed. Is there any information out there to back up this belief? I thought that it's pure luck whether your skin gets pierced or not. I have been snapped at by a gypsy's dog (many years ago I was foolish enough to take a short-cut through their caravan site!) and it bit my leg, but left only a bruise.

Nevertheless I would still say it is a very unpleasant experience being bitten, whether it leaves a bruise or an actual cut, so if my child had been bitten I would not be playing it down on the grounds of the dog 'only' bruising the skin.

krlyr

sulphate wrote: »

We don't know if the OP's niece was bitten recently i.e. when the mother was ill, but either way the mother has allowed her dog to bite a child on three separate occasions. This isn't a one off event so, yes, I think it's fair to assume that the mother, so far, hasn't been willing to take reasonable steps to stop it from happening again. Perhaps the OP not taking her son there will act as an incentive for the mother to do something about it.

I don't see how being ill explains this event. Whilst we don't know the nature of her illness, the OP said that her mother had plenty of time to shut the dog away as she knew they were coming. So presumably she is not bedridden and therefore physically able to do this. If not she could have asked the OP to shut the dog away as soon as she got there. The OP didn't do it of her own accord because she wasn't aware that it had previously bitten her niece twice.

If she doesn't take measures to protect her own grandchildren I find it hard to believe that she would put a muzzle on the dog if/when it is walked. We don't know if it's walked regularly when the owner is well, so I won't speculate on that.

From OP's first post
"Mum has two dogs - one of which she usually keeps locked in the spare room when we visit as she can be quite aggressive. Anyway, my mum is currently recovering from illness so the dog wasn't locked away and to cut a long story short, the dog bit my son on the arm without any provocation."

krlyr

avogadro wrote: »

I am interested in the idea that a dog controls whether or not its bite pierces the skin, as a couple of posters on here have claimed. Is there any information out there to back up this belief? I thought that it's pure luck whether your skin gets pierced or not. I have been snapped at by a gypsy's dog (many years ago I was foolish enough to take a short-cut through their caravan site!) and it bit my leg, but left only a bruise.

Nevertheless I would still say it is a very unpleasant experience being bitten, whether it leaves a bruise or an actual cut, so if my child had been bitten I would not be playing it down on the grounds of the dog 'only' bruising the skin.

http://drsophiayin.com/blog/entry/was-it-just-a-little-bite-or-more-evaluating-bite-levels-in-dogs (Dr Sophia Yin is a veterinarian and animal behaviourist, quite well known in the 'dog world', especially for behaviour modification and understanding the 'why' behind these problem behaviours)

I agree that a bite isn't something to play down, but if you watch dog behaviour, there are so many subtleties in how they act. From signs that they're uncomfortable (which, OP not being familiar with the dog due to it usually being shut away, may not have noticed - or it could be that the dog was previously punished for displaying warning signs, which can often lead to a dog that suddenly goes from feeling uncomfortable to biting), to the way they react when over threshold (two dogs fighting, for example, can look and sound horrendous - but in many cases it's just gesturing, air snapping, etc. without the actual intention to really hurt the other dog). The fact that the dog in question didn't pierce the skin may be luck, but I imagine as it's the third time it has bitten, it has had the opportunity to practice the intensity of the bite and if it intended to break the skin, it likely would have.

Person_one

avogadro wrote: »

I am interested in the idea that a dog controls whether or not its bite pierces the skin, as a couple of posters on here have claimed. Is there any information out there to back up this belief? I thought that it's pure luck whether your skin gets pierced or not. I have been snapped at by a gypsy's dog (many years ago I was foolish enough to take a short-cut through their caravan site!) and it bit my leg, but left only a bruise.

Nevertheless I would still say it is a very unpleasant experience being bitten, whether it leaves a bruise or an actual cut, so if my child had been bitten I would not be playing it down on the grounds of the dog 'only' bruising the skin.

It's very well understand by dog behaviourists, vets etc. Puppies learn bite inhibition very young, while still with their litter mates and mother.

Dogs don't bite for fun, and a bite is never the first reaction to the perceived threat. Their instincts are to try to resolve the situation with the least danger possible, they don't generally want to start a full on fight, that's a last resort. If you have a good understanding of dog body language, you can usually sort the issue well before the dog feels stressed enough to actually bite.

Pollycat

Person_one wrote: »

It's very well understand by dog behaviourists, vets etc. Puppies learn bite inhibition very young, while still with their litter mates and mother.

Dogs don't bite for fun, and a bite is never the first reaction to the perceived threat. Their instincts are to try to resolve the situation with the least danger possible, they don't generally want to start a full on fight, that's a last resort. If you have a good understanding of dog body language, you can usually sort the issue well before the dog feels stressed enough to actually bite.

I'm not sure if it's similar with cats but my old cat -when he'd had enough of whatever I was doing to him (grooming, stroking, tormenting) - would grab my hand in his mouth with just enough pressure to say 'That's it, I've had enough now'.
He would leave an imprint of his teeth on my hand but very rarely broke the skin.

He was semi-feral though.

teddysmum

*Robin* wrote: »

Am not suggesting OP's child 'did something' to Granny's dog - that abuse probably happened long ago - but it's a fair bet Granny knows her beloved companion would be PTS if she tries to re-home him/her.

A local rescue is willing to give 'aggressive' (in ' ', because sometimes they are not; just unwanted) dogs a second chance, while many will not take the risk .


One of these was a blue whippet, which I regularly walked. He had been in a home with children, who abused him and was eventually placed with loving experienced fosterers. However, his past was too much and after turning on the foster family, had to be euthanized.


This was done after much heart searching, but was best for safety reasons and the dog's obvious unhappiness. It is the most likely outcome for a dog sent to rescue (hopefully with the previous owners being honest about its temperament).


Knowing this, is probably why 'mum' resists parting, as it must seem like murder to her, especially as she loves the dog, who is fine with her.


The suggestion of a secure run, where the dog can feel safely away from what it fears, seems a good idea, provided that it isn't going to be imprisoned there on a long term basis. (I've seen the results of doing this to a dog, who thankfully was turned around).


Another suggestion is a crate, which mum could have nearby and lure him in with treats, then cover, so he has a secure den. The child could be taught to respect the dog's space, which is good training when interacting with any dog.


One of my dogs, though small, can be feisty with strangers, but has never shown aggression towards my grandchildren. However, s soon as my sons' cars turn up, it's 'Crate Teddy' and off he goes, knowing there will be a treat. We don't hear from him again and the grandson's know that they are not to approach him.

sulphate

krlyr wrote: »

From OP's first post
"Mum has two dogs - one of which she usually keeps locked in the spare room when we visit as she can be quite aggressive. Anyway, my mum is currently recovering from illness so the dog wasn't locked away and to cut a long story short, the dog bit my son on the arm without any provocation."

From a later post We had been there for around half an hour before he was bitten and she knew we were on our way so had plenty of time to shut the dog away.

I'd be interested to hear the circumstances in which her niece was bitten.