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My six month old beagle mix puppy bit my five year old son's face today. It did not really break the skin, but I could see the mark. I am very unsettled, to put it mildly. My son was playing play doh at the kitchen table. He dropped a roller on the floor, and Bessie, the dog, ran to get it. Concerned that she would chew up his toy, he tried to get it back from her. That's when she bit him. I really do not want a dog that bites my children. Is there a way to train her to not bite? I can't afford expensive training classes right now. What action should I take? For now I told my son never to take anything away from her, but she even tries to nip him and pull on his clothes when he just merely walks into the kitchen. He is afraid of her, and I think she realizes this and goes after him more.
When a dog thinks it can nip at me, I will sit down on the floor and take it's toy to let him know that I am in control of the toys, the food, the bed, and so on. If the dog growls, sorry pal, but that bone is mine and I'm going to hold on to it for a while. I also let the dog know that I can touch its hind quarters if I like. I'll do this slowly and systematically, while staring the dog in the eye, and talking to it gently but firmly.
Last time I did this with my neighbors nippy little terrier, the dog jumped in my lap and started kissing my face. My neighbors were shocked and amazed. But it was a very simple thing.
I don't know if you can teach a child how to do this with a dog, especially when the child is scared of the dog. And you don't want your son to grow up with a fear of dogs either. My guess is that you should start by keeping the dog out of the kitchen and off the beds. Do not let him sleep in your bed or your sons bed. Keep him off the couch, too.
Obviously, if you are not able to get the situation under control, you may need to rehome the dog, and consider getting a more docile, submission animal.
But keep in mind that some dogs do nip. Some people will absolutely not tolerate a dog that nips. Well, I have had experiences with plenty of dogs who growled and nipped, and it is not the end of the world. Sometimes it is out of fear, other times dominance. The dog just needs to be in a home with someone who understands how to deal with the situation.
Woofers
Last edited by Woof Woof Woof!; 01-08-2009 at 09:39 AM..
I saw an episode of DW recently where he addressed a dog that would bite the hand that got near his food. Cesar's answer was to desensitize the dog into paying no mind toward the intrusion.
(He would hold something next to the dog while it was eating, and poke it the neck/hindquarters and make that "ssssssshhhhh" sound until the dog wore down.)
Seemed to work, but I don't know exactly how that would equate to your individual circumstance.
First of all, you should know that a six month old puppy is teething and he's doing what's natural to him. Make sure he's got plenty of GOOD things to chew on: a nice Kong (especially if you fill it with plain (NO sugar!), non-fat yogurt and freeze it!) or an old washcloth, which you've wetted, rung out, twisted and frozen. Those will help soothe his painful gums.
Your dog's behavior is natural. Your five year old son should only be playing with the dog under your DIRECT supervision. Do NOT leave them alone, and don't take this the wrong way, but five year old kids do not know what is and is not a proper way to interact with a dog, especially a puppy. Your dog was viewing the dropped object as HIS and was actually making a game of this with your son, although your son wouldn't know this.
Your pup will be chewing on LOTS of things! Make sure they're safe to chew and NOT things like electrical cords, socks, etc. So get him TONS of Kong toys (they make many kinds, in addition to the classic Kong, which you can stuff with food) and substitute the GOOD toys for the bad things he gets in his mouth. It's also an opportunity to teach him to 'drop it' - when he goes for the new, better toy, say 'drop it' as he drops the forbidden thing he has in his mouth and overload him with praise!!!
Remember, you have just an infant dog there! He needs his behavior gently molded to what you want. No screaming 'NO!' at him, no scolding, no yelling. Just gently direct him AWAY from what he wants to what you want.
First of all, you should know that a six month old puppy is teething and he's doing what's natural to him. Make sure he's got plenty of GOOD things to chew on: a nice Kong (especially if you fill it with plain (NO sugar!), non-fat yogurt and freeze it!) or an old washcloth, which you've wetted, rung out, twisted and frozen. Those will help soothe his painful gums.
Your dog's behavior is natural. Your five year old son should only be playing with the dog under your DIRECT supervision. Do NOT leave them alone, and don't take this the wrong way, but five year old kids do not know what is and is not a proper way to interact with a dog, especially a puppy. Your dog was viewing the dropped object as HIS and was actually making a game of this with your son, although your son wouldn't know this.
Your pup will be chewing on LOTS of things! Make sure they're safe to chew and NOT things like electrical cords, socks, etc. So get him TONS of Kong toys (they make many kinds, in addition to the classic Kong, which you can stuff with food) and substitute the GOOD toys for the bad things he gets in his mouth. It's also an opportunity to teach him to 'drop it' - when he goes for the new, better toy, say 'drop it' as he drops the forbidden thing he has in his mouth and overload him with praise!!!
Remember, you have just an infant dog there! He needs his behavior gently molded to what you want. No screaming 'NO!' at him, no scolding, no yelling. Just gently direct him AWAY from what he wants to what you want.
Please pay attention to this excellant advice! Your puppy is not to blame, neither is your son - it was a natural collision of instincts.
Last edited by Viralmd; 01-08-2009 at 11:36 AM..
Reason: typo
Do you think the dog was "teething" when it nipped the child in the face? Do you think this was over exuberance in a play activity -- or do you think the dog was being dominant? Because there is a difference.
I did not see the incident, so I don't know. But a professional trainer might be able to observe what's going on.
It all happened so fast, but it did appear to me like the dog was being dominant. I did hear a growl. I have four children, and the dog is okay with the older two, but she likes to jump up on and nip at the two younger ones. She occasionally grabs hold of my older daughter's slippers and refuses to let go until I come to rescue the poor kid. I have gotten some books on dog training, but I don't know how confident I feel. She has learned to sit so far. Bessie listens fairly well to my husband and me but has no respect for the younger kids at all. We got her from a rescue, so I have no idea what she has been through. I just hope I can overcome this. My son does have a mark on his face from this morning's incident. I am not pleased. I did go out to get some Kongs. They look sturdy. The fillable one kept her busy for a while. Thanks to everyone for all the advice so far.
It all happened so fast, but it did appear to me like the dog was being dominant. I did hear a growl. I have four children, and the dog is okay with the older two, but she likes to jump up on and nip at the two younger ones. She occasionally grabs hold of my older daughter's slippers and refuses to let go until I come to rescue the poor kid. I have gotten some books on dog training, but I don't know how confident I feel. She has learned to sit so far. Bessie listens fairly well to my husband and me but has no respect for the younger kids at all. We got her from a rescue, so I have no idea what she has been through. I just hope I can overcome this. My son does have a mark on his face from this morning's incident. I am not pleased. I did go out to get some Kongs. They look sturdy. The fillable one kept her busy for a while. Thanks to everyone for all the advice so far.
Grabbing hold of slippers and not letting go -- this is play behavior.
Even growling can be play behavior, especially with a younger dog. They are practicing behavior for later on in life.
Young dogs are like young kids. They don't really understand boundaries and sometimes they don't realize when the play goes to far. That's one of the reasons it is important to socialize young dogs with older dogs.
Puppies learn something called 'bite inhibition' from their litter mates. If one puppy bites another too hard, the other puppy squeals to say, "that's too hard, you are hurting me!" And the biting stops.
I really think you need to have a trainer or someone more experienced with dogs come into your house and see what is going on. It also might be good for you to take your dog to a dog park to see how it interacts with other dogs and get a better understanding of dog behavior, and to socialize your pup.
Dogs growl when they play! REALLY GROWL. If you've ever had two dogs that play together, you'd think they were killing each other. But they're not! They're just playing.
Tug of war is NOT a game to be taken lightly. There are right and wrong ways to play this game with your dog. Here is what Pat Miller, who writes for the very wonderful, 'Whole Dog Journal,' says about tug of war: Dog Central - Presented by Pedigree (http://dogcentral.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4936444 - broken link)
We had a dog when I was growing up. She hated my brother annd would growl and nip at him. She loved me and I would have to scold her but I would also give her alone time with me like a long walk my bro never would do that. That alone time bonds dogs to us and I to this day give alone time to each of my 4 dogs even if it is for 5 min. I was also the only one that punished her and she took it to heart . She did listen to my Mom,Dad and grandmother but she did have a mean streak. She also bit the nextdoor neighbor's son. I do believe that some dogs just have that temperment. My husband when we were dating was afraid of her also. When we did get married we got a dog and would bring her to my parents and then Taffy my childhood dog had a change of temperment she was the nice dog that I always knew go figure. Dogs are strange little creatures.
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