Very sudden incident with family dog

tiger_cub

angerfist the dog does not need to be put to sleep. speaking from experience there are numerous shelters which will take him, and he can be rehomed specifically to household that will suit his needs i.e a family where the children have grown up and left home.

you should avoid calling the dog warden at all costs, he will be taken away and be destroyed after 5 days

at an animal shelter he will be well taken care of, and I have seen many animals at the center where I volunteer come on in leaps and bounds. almost like rehabilitation!

also there may be more to the situation that your brother is telling. I dont know his age or the circumstances. it is common for animals to take a set against children. this usually results from children handling them inappropriately and causing them pain. something as little as your brother picking up the dog in a way which hurt him when he was a puppy could have sparked this incident.

for dogs, especially retrivers and labs, to attack for no reason is highly uncommon. this dog has one strike against him, and it may not have been as malicious and unprovoked as first seems.

call a shelter, he seems like a good chap who bring a family great happiness under different circumstances.

let us know what you decide

best wishes to your brother

Whispered

In the case of a surrender, a pound can PTS immediately and is very likely to in a case of aggression.

OP, if you have to get your dog PTS then visit your vet, rather than the dog warden. A pound is a very stressful place for a dog at times so at least it would be a more relaxed ending for your dog in the vet.

As others have said, some rescues will take dogs with a bite history. However it's very very important that you are 100% honest (as I'm sure you would be). Personally I'd be inclined to work on it, but I know it's not your decision and of course I can totally understand why your mother has made the decision that she has.

I hope your brother recovers fully. Please let us know how he is!

portgirl123

just wondering would a rescue take a dog like this. what with rescues full and turning dogs away i would of thought that they would rather a dog that will be homed easily. would most rescues have the resources, money and time to work with a dog like this?

TooManyDogs

portgirl123 wrote: »

just wondering would a rescue take a dog like this. what with rescues full and turning dogs away i would of thought that they would rather a dog that will be homed easily. would most rescues have the resources, money and time to work with a dog like this?

Realistically there are few rescues who would have enough spaces to take in a dog who bit to the degree that skin grafts are needed. They'd have to be 100% honest with prospective new owners and there are very few new owners who are prepared to take on a dog with that history. There are simply too many dogs needing homes with no or few behavioural problems out there.

A rescue can do a certain amount of behaviour work but it's only when a dog gets into a proper home environment that the real behaviour work starts, and success is going to depend on the invested interest of the new owner. New owners generally haven't bonded enough with the dog to put in the effort needed. Obviously there are exceptions to the rule but generally these are the kinds of dogs that spends months or years in a no-kill rescue which is not an ideal life for a dog and is taking up a valuable space for another dog.

CL32

I'm normally a bit of a lurker on Boards but had to log in to say how sorry I am for what happened to your brother. The thing that really got me was the fact he was going out to share his ice cream with your dog before he was attacked. I've always felt that the best start in life a kid can have is a pet of some sort (especially a dog) so they can develop a strong bond and by default, a sense of empathy, which it sounds like your bro has.

I can't offer any advice but take my good wishes for your bro. Hope he makes a speedy recovery. Maybe when he gets older you could get him a little pup of his own and make a big deal of him feeding and generally taking care of it? It might restore a bit of faith in the poor guy and stop an understandable lifelong fear of dogs.

How Soon Is Now

Thanks everyone for the advice and well wishs

Im just home from the hospital brother should be home Wednesday at the earlyest should be no problems once the wounds heal. They just cant be closed cause of risk of infection at the moment hes just sleepy and so on from what the drip they have him on is other then that just pain he has two bad bites on his right arm and on palm his hand.

As far as dog goes i was not here last night when it happened so i dont know what fully happened but my family have told me what they saw and so on.

He has always been a bit picky with my little brother but its strange one minute he would be pulling out of him next he would be sitting beside him like his best friend. This is really confusing for all of us and makes no sense as to why he would just attack him the way he did out of the blue.

Fact the matter is the dog didnt just snap at him to get a bit of food he attacked him jumped on him and would not let him out of the room.

My other brother had to pull the dog off of my little brother hes lucky that he heard him screaming for help or this could of been much worse.

Its really hard because i love the dog hes my friend and i really have a thing for animals more so for dogs i tend to get more upset seeing something happen to a dog then i would a human so this is really bothering me because i dont know how to feel towards the animal.

One part of me knows he ****ed up and should not of done what he did but other part of me knows end day hes an animal and to a certain degree they only act on what they know and are taught to do.

There had to of been a deeper reason for what happened but i do know its not my brothers fault he has never mistreated the dog at all since the start.

Ya he has shouted at him pushed him away times but that was because the dog would be nipping at his feet or jumping on him.

This was just totally out of the blue and was a major shock.

He really calmed down alot over the last few months compared to when he was a pup and we were all happy with how he was behaving so for this to happen is very much out of the blue.

I dont want the dog to be put down for no reason so if i can get him rehomed or something similar i will but i guess i wont know till 2morrw.

All i know is he will have to be taken somewhere in the next day or two as there is no way my mother will have him in the house with my brother again and i understand that. He will be the last dog to come into this house as long as shes here.

So i have a few places to call in the morning ill see what i can do what options i have. If anyone knows of any shelters or rescue places that would take dog in this situation do let me know. Other then that i only have so many choices and time and money is not on my side.

Thanks again everyone.

Mr Moxie

So very sorry to hear about your incident.
I hope your brother makes a full recovery and doesn't develop a fear of dogs.

I am no expert but I do think it was most likely natural pack mentality that caused this and that your pet deserves another chance in a different environment.
Please do try to offer him that chance, I have a feeling you will feel better about it too.

All the best with whatever you do.

Shazanne

I agree with Mr. Moxie above. I have been following this thread all day and its been bothering me a lot. I've tried putting myself in everyones position - you, your mother, your brother and, of course, your dog.
I fully understand your mother and brother's fear of having the dog in the house. I would perhaps be the same.
Your dog, by now, is probably oblivious to what he did as its over and they live in the moment.
My heart breaks for you. I know how you must be feeling as I would be torn apart if this was me. You are feeling pressure from all sides at the moment - some telling you to have your dog PTS and other telling you to try and re-home him through a shelter.
I suggest to you that you follow your heart on this and listen to your gut instinct. You know your dog and you will know what's best to do. You are not an irresponsible owner or you wouldn't be on her looking for advice. You will do the right thing. X

unclebill98

There are a few shelters that will take the dog.

One to mention is AHAR in limerick. I recently left down a very aggressive choc lab. Grand one min and then satans hound the next. Owners got scared and it kept going for them, not they they told me that till after I got it home, they said it's badly nipped the female owner. It's doing great now. You will have to get the dog down to them but it's an option.

boomerang

AFAIK, AHAR are in Kerry. Deffo not in Limerick anyways.

OP it sounds like a case of food guarding to me; goldens can be pretty possessive of their toys or food. It can be worked on, but it takes a very savvy person with the time to dedicate to him. I'm sorry but with bites that severe the dog showed no bite inhibition and from a rescue perspective, I wouldn't take on the responsibility of rehoming him. Maybe you have a friend or relative who would take him on and work with a proper, qualified behaviourist such as Tara Choules at Dog Training Ireland or Maureen Byrne. (Dogs Behaving Badly.)

How Soon Is Now

Im in Dublin and i really dont think im going to be able to get him driven down the country. Theres no one who could really help me there as my family are all tied up in other things at the moment.

So im kinda stuck to the Dublin area if thats even possible or close by cause i live in Co Dublin.

Its really been getting to me since i got home today and have been around the dog. Ive never seen him act way he is now its like he knows something is wrong just by the way he is looking me in the eyes and its killing me.

I rarely show my emotions but must of spent a good 10 15 mins in the bathroom crying. I decided to bring him out for a walk tonight seeing as i will probley never get another chance.

Again he senses something is up ive never seen him walk so calm in front of me on the lead and look like hes enjoying himself so much.

Just glad it was late and dark because i couldn hold back the tears most of the time i was out.

Really got me when we were walking by the vet clinic on the way home and he stopped and wouldnt let me walk by the front door. I know he probley just smelled something but was so strange seeing as there is a chance i might have to be there with him 2morrw yet.....

Im dreading 2morrw so much i dont know how i am going to say goodbye to him weather its handing him over to some other place or waiting for him to be put to sleep. Just wish this was a fecking dream.

Just thinking to myself how unfair it is how everyone will mostly just remember him now as the dog who attacked my brother when deep down it was as much our fault then it was his yet no body will see it that way in my family anyway.

marty1985

OP I am so sorry to read of this awful experience for you and your brother and your dog. I really feel for you and hope this can come to some sort of resolution. I feel really sad thinking of how much pain you're going through.

James.

.

How Soon Is Now

James. wrote: »

have a read through this thread about biting :

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056425018

and this post in particular :

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=75076035&postcount=47

" family dog was put to sleep for biting my brother's bottom lip and it wasn't until about two weeks after that he admitted to holding a cookie between his teeth and making the dog tug for it. Naturally he got what was coming to him, and a poor dog suffered as a result. "

Ok... but why did u direct me to these?? Theres a difference between what u posted up there and what happened in my situation.

I wish it was as simple as the above believe me.

The dog was in the room he sleeps in which is also next to downstairs bathroom washing machine etc.....

My brother went out into the room to give him the end of an ice cream cone he didnt want the rest of. He dropped it on the floor by mistake and didnt want the dog to eat it right away so he went to pick it up off the floor. Now i can imagine he got to close to the dog face to face without thinking and at the same time the dog must of went to try and grab the icecream while it was on the floor.

My brother is 11 and mature for his age but yes hes also still a child and does stupid things without thinking he shouldnt of got into that position with the dog but at the same time the dog had to be phsyically removed from him by my 22 year old brother. An ice cream falling on the floor does not warrent what happened.

I know for a fact if it had of been me who dropped ice cream the dog wouldnt of moved an inch he just took advantage of my brother because hes the youngest in the family and this is where the problem came from the fact the dog wasnt fully trained to deal with my brother the way he should of been. Like i said before this is me and my familys fault we over looked the situation as it looked like he grew out of the messing he was up to while he was younger.

It shouldnt of happened but it did and now where all paying the price for it. Just dont claim me brother egged the dog on because i no for fact living with both of them every day of my life how things work.

It was a normally harmless dog reacting in the only way he knew fit to a child doing the same these things happen unfortunatly. Trust me i really really wish it didnt and if i had any idea this could happen i would of done anything to prevent it. I didnt see any of this coming believe me.

Birdnuts

Sorry to hear about this - the majority of dogs are territorial when it comes to food. My parents had a Westie that would go nuts if anyone got between him and a butchers bone. I'd be fairly certain that if anyone tried to takes if away from him he'd give them a nip, thankfully though that never happened since we allways took care to avoid such circumstances. Its all about getting to know your dogs moods and behaviour in certain situations. This incident sounds to me like just sheer bad luck on the part of your brother and a combination of circumstances that caused a freak event, as by your description this dog behaved completly out of character. Personally I wouldn't be so quick to get rid of this dog but I understand you are compromised by the emotions of the rest of your family which you have to take into account - especcially if you have to live in the same house.

On the wider subject I keep most of my dogs away from visiting children since I know what makes them tick and its very hard to get across to kids about how to behave appropriatly towards dogs in general - especcially when food/feeding comes into the equation which I think is often a factor in such cases. In any case i hope things work out for you.

ppink

Whan I am reading this I think a whole range of things. It is such a terrible situation to be in.
I would always try to help the dog but I have one thing in the back of my head...when I was a kid I was attacked badly by a dog, at the time it was deemed my fault (even though it was not) and the dog was spared and relocated. He went on to attack an adult and was the pts. Now the dog definately had no "rehabilitation" so that was a major factor I am sure, and something I would say was definately needed..as in your case.

I hope it all works out for you, it is a worst nightmare for a pet owner.

unclebill98

angerfist2009 wrote: »

Im in Dublin and i really dont think im going to be able to get him driven down the country. Theres no one who could really help me there as my family are all tied up in other things at the moment.

So im kinda stuck to the Dublin area if thats even possible or close by cause i live in Co Dublin.

.

The choc lab came from navan, to Cavan, athlone and then onto them.

If you contact them they galvanise the troops and you may only have to go as far as mulling or something, maybe not even that far. It's all volunteers, so through them something for diesel etc.

cjf

So sorry to hear about yOur brother the family must be so shcoked and upset by this. If it was me I would do the kindest thing and bring the dog myself to the local vet to be humanely put to sleep- as mentioned here most rescues will not or could not home a dog who has bitten a child this severely the risk is always there that it could happen again and rather than stress my dog or have him bounced into a shelter I would prefer to do the right thing by him and see it through. It's very sad but you will know he lived a good life with you and you loved him to the end. The fact is he could get a rescue space and get rehomed and end up mistreated or just left in a yard on his own if he showed this behaviour again or brought to a pound where he would live his last few days in a noisy kennels stressed and without anyone there who cares one bit about him. As I said above that is my thinking on what I would prefer to do if it was one of my own dogs. Please keep us posted on the outcome.

Shazanne

OP - you are in my thoughts and prayers today. My heart is breaking for you and I hope all goes well. X

JustAThought

I'm terribly sorry for the awful situation that you find yourself in.
I see that people have PM'd you phone numbers to call and see if you can have your dog rescued. Whatever happens make sure you are totally honest with them about your pet and it's past.
I see that you have no access to transport. If you get somewhere to rescue your dog I have a car with crate ; if you are desperate and it means the difference between having your dog put down or not, I am happy to volunteer to drive you and your pet to a pet rescue place, once they have agreed to take him in. You could post a message or PM me & I could OK it with your mom or meet her to discuss.

I'm very sorry for this terrible situation. best of wishes for a good recovery to your poor brother.

mystika121

Hi, there is every chance that a dog that has bitten before will be rehomed successfully.

I adopted a dog that had bitten a child. The rescue were very upfront about the dogs past.

I had her for sixteen years and there was never any issue with her. She was a fantastic dog and deserved a second chance.

Shazanne

JustAThought wrote: »

I'm terribly sorry for the awful situation that you find yourself in.
I see that people have PM'd you phone numbers to call and see if you can have your dog rescued. Whatever happens make sure you are totally honest with them about your pet and it's past.
I see that you have no access to transport. If you get somewhere to rescue your dog I have a car with crate ; if you are desperate and it means the difference between having your dog put down or not, I am happy to volunteer to drive you and your pet to a pet rescue place, once they have agreed to take him in. You could post a message or PM me & I could OK it with your mom or meet her to discuss.

I'm very sorry for this terrible situation. best of wishes for a good recovery to your poor brother.

What a fantastic offer. Fair play to you. I wish there were more people like you out there:)

How Soon Is Now

Thanks everyone for the offers to help and the advice and well wishs.

Sorry if i dont directily reply to you heads a bit all over place at the moment only got 3 hours sleep and have the mother txting me and me da about whats going on with the dog.....

Keith in cork

angerfist2009 wrote: »

Thanks everyone for the offers to help and the advice and well wishs.

Sorry if i dont directily reply to you heads a bit all over place at the moment only got 3 hours sleep and have the mother txting me and me da about whats going on with the dog.....

Dude you need to get a few hours kip. I was online reading your posts @ stupid o clock. your wearing yourself down already with an emotional and a shocking day yesterday. Your hearts gonna be all over the gaff, you need your head in the best possible condition.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do in the end. I wouldn't wish this on any man.

How Soon Is Now

Keith in cork wrote: »

Dude you need to get a few hours kip. I was online reading your posts @ stupid o clock. your wearing yourself down already with an emotional and a shocking day yesterday. Your hearts gonna be all over the gaff, you need your head in the best possible condition.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do in the end. I wouldn't wish this on any man.

Thanks man id rather be in bed now lol :P dont have much of a choice if i leave this to the way side the family will just have the dog put down.

I dont really have that much of a say what happens with Max *Dog ha* its my family home and me brother could be home 2morrw or wednesday and its already been told to me that dog wont be here when he gets back either way.

Look at it this way if i happened to not be at home this week or the last day or two the dog would of been put down yesterday.

marty1985

Dude, I hope you're ok.

Is it possible to relocate the dog for a short while, like to a friend's place, until you've fully considered and dealt with all options?

How Soon Is Now

marty1985 wrote: »

Dude, I hope you're ok.

Is it possible to relocate the dog for a short while, like to a friend's place, until you've fully considered and dealt with all options?

I doubt it most me mates wouldnt have space for dog his size. And hes not excatly flavour of the month with my mothers family right now........

I gave AHAR in Kerry there a ring just now no answer have to try again in while could be to early.

Mind is a bit wary of who to be getting in touch with kinda half afraid ill make a mistake and dog will end up in wrong situation or place.

I dont know much about animal shelters and rescues so no idea which places will be best for him or even able to help.

ziggy23

Try Dogs Aid and Dogs Trust in Dublin too

strandroad

OP you need to calm down, have a good night's sleep and do what's best for everyone. I do not think that your dog deserves to die as the horrible accident seems to be down to the lack of training and unresolved domination issues between the dog and the child and not to him being vicious by nature. I would give the dog another chance with someone else who is fully informed of his history. He has been a good friend to you but perhaps he should never be around children.

In practical terms, please tell your family that you will sort the dog out and take him away but they should stop pestering you now in this stressful situation. For now they should just isolate him, forget about him and take care of your poor brother. You have a number of rescues to contact and hopefully one of them will agree to take the dog. Rescues do not put healthy dogs down and will work on rehoming him to adult owners with dog experience. As you can see kind boardsies have already offered their help re transport. If you have to find a temporary place for him and it's between this and his death do post here and solutions may appear. It must be very hard for you but I am sure you can sort this out.

How Soon Is Now

mhge wrote: »

OP you need to calm down, have a good night's sleep and do what's best for everyone. I do not think that your dog deserves to die as the horrible accident seems to be down to the lack of training and unresolved domination issues between the dog and the child and not to him being vicious by nature. I would give the dog another chance with someone else who is fully informed of his history. He has been a good friend to you but perhaps he should never be around children.

In practical terms, please tell your family that you will sort the dog out and take him away but they should stop pestering you now in this stressful situation. For now they should just isolate him, forget about him and take care of your poor brother. You have a number of rescues to contact and hopefully one of them will agree to take the dog. Rescues do not put healthy dogs down and will work on rehoming him to adult owners with dog experience. As you can see kind boardsies have already offered their help re transport. If you have to find a temporary place for him and it's between this and his death do post here and solutions may appear. It must be very hard for you but I am sure you can sort this out.

Thanks for your message and advice

Im surprised at how help full everyone has been considering no body knows me in person.

I have got in touch with some places alot aint answering phone or aint open till 12 so i will try again. Since yesterday when i started ringing round mostly everyone has told me same thing that dog should either be put down or very few places will take him.

I know what my mothers like and when it comes to stuff like this i wont have a say in the matter there will be war if the dog is still in the house when my brother gets home.

He is afraid of the dog rightly so after the situation and her and her whole family have it in there head that theres some kind of serial killer in the back garden now so nothing i say will make a difference.

She already rang me this morning asking did i hear anything from anyone about the dog or did i find out anything *She means did i bring him to the vet* I told her the situation and that its hard to find something on such short notice and so on and her reply was well where not doing anything anyway. So i hung up on her.

Ill do whatever i have to do to try and find dog whats best for him just i really dont have an option with him being in this house once she comes home with my brother as its family home and its not like i can afford to move out right now.

Im not arsed bout me stressing out or anything ill deal with that this is more important