Dog bite scenarios - correction or put to sleep...?

Question

In what scenarios would a dog biting require a serious correction and in which scenarios would require that the dog being put down...
Is anything less than the dog being put down ever acceptable or should all of them be given a second chance?

Answer 1

There is an endless number of possible scenarios, with each having way too many situational details.



Are we talking a dog a person raised from puppyhood or an adult a person obtained? Was the puppy trained from the start correctly or spoiled/left to do as it wanted?



Are we talking biting owner, biting other people, biting dogs within the home or biting dogs outside the home?



The owner. Is the owner responsible with a modicum of sense? How much training experience and capability do they possess?



My generalized opinion: an unprovoked bite should never be tolerated. It is a "capital offense". Put the dog down.



The only bite scenarios I can imagine I would "reconsider" or tolerate from my dog would be



1) a "real", physical threat to me, from a person or an animal

2) a "real", physical threat to her from an animal or a person





Other generalizations:



1) A person who has raised a dog from puppyhood that bites has proven themselves to be an ineffective trainer and if they are unwilling to seek a professional trainer..put the dog down.



2) The average person has no business obtaining a dog with a "bite" history



3) There are way too many lovely, non-biting dogs that need rescuing rather than trying to be a saint and try to rehabiltate a dangerous dog.



4) An aggressive, biting dog should not be in public.



...that's my story and I'm sticking to it.



Wanna ask me my opinion of murderers and rapists? ;)







Edit: Greekman. Not considering the endless "scenario details

unprovoked, not mislead...euthanasia

Answer 2

Personally, I think a dog that has bitten a human (aside from those very specific instances where there was a legit cause) should either 1) be put down or 2) live with an owner who understands that the dog cannot be trusted around humans after that, ever. Obviously that dog also needs to be altered, if not already. Human aggression is genetic, and a human aggressive dog should NEVER be bred.



I don't care if it's bee 5 years since the bite. A dog that shows real human aggression is not fit for a society of humans. Very few people could handle or enjoy a dog like that, and human aggression simply cannot be tolerated in the canine population.

Answer 3

1

Answer 4

The only scenario that a dog bite should cause reason for being put down is one where the dog is out of control, meaning something that is not correctable. Disease is a main reason. If the dog is biting for play - needs training. If dog is biting for anger - needs training. If the owner is not available to provide training - dog needs to go to a different owner. These are simply my opinions, I am no trainer or expert, just a long time dog owner.



My dog now will bite anyone who shows aggression towards myself or our family but the difference is his control. When my husband and I are playing around and he smacks my butt the dog will put his mouth on his wrist but not bite down. The kids can smack us around all they want and the dog won't flinch. Also they can smack each other and not flinch. A stranger walks in my home and I show anxiety and the stranger strikes me, the dog attacks with force. The stranger enters the home and doesn't strike but I show anxiety, the dog growls and proceeds to tell the stranger that he is not welcome. If I call the dog off by telling him everything is ok, the dog goes into a relax state.



Good training is the key regardless of a bite. Some people have a bad idea of dogs because of serious stories in the news. Every scenario should be looked at on a case to case basis.

Answer 5

I think it really depends on the reason for the bite. I mean dogs are different then us, when dealing with each other they use growls and nips/bites to communicate with each other. If we are talking dog bites and people though it is a little different. If the person did nothing to agitate the dog (a threat to the dog somehow) and that person was bitten, it is not acceptable. For a dog to run out of it's house and just attack any dog or person it sees is completely unacceptable. Sometimes though other people around your dog need some training of their own. If a strange dog growls at me because I am trying to take a bone from it, I'm not going to reach down and rip the bone away from it, let the owner do it. If I don't know the dog I'm not going to get down to his level and get in his face or pull his tail or ears. There are just some things you shouldn't do, sometimes rescued dogs may have problems the owner is working on but didn't create and I'm not going to risk this being the case.

So I really think it depends on the circumstances surrounding the bite.

Answer 6

Dogs snap at people for a huge number of reasons. I think anybody with even minimal knowledge of canine behavior and body language can at least get a feel for the dog's mental state.



Some dogs very clearly need to be put down because they are a danger to the people who come in contact with them. I have personally been involved in the making of this decision on two dogs. Some dogs bite because they have been hurt, or have been exposed to an unreasonable amount of stress (my opinion, I know it's not always shared), or because they are ill. These may all be something that can be dealt with, or they may not.



Generally, particularly in the case of fear biting, problems become more of a senerio of managing than of resolving. This largely is a decision that the owner must make in the best interest of everyone who is a part of the dog's life.

Answer 7

It really depends on the situation. If it was one bite I would say it is wrong and depending on the circumstances surrounding the bite. Dogs are animals regardless of anything and sometimes they bite because that is what is natural or out of fear or confusion or protection. I hate when people pts a dog when they are at fault. Especially if they left a dog alone with a child or other BS reasons. I did rescue one dog that had serious issues. He bit several people but no serious injuries. He was never socialized he was also a strong dominant breed to begin with. So I worked with him for a year as well as many other professionals. One day he snapped and attacked a family member for NO reason. I know people say that all the time but it was truly unprovoked. In the attack the person lost their thumb and had both arms severely broken. The county government ordered the dog be euthanized because it was a vicious unprovoked attack that caused serious bodily harm. In that case I had no options and he was a serious threat as a whole. I was the only person on earth who could touch the dog, and he was large. He would actually shred whatever he could get his mouth on if even heard the sound of a child. If he ever got a hold of child it would have been horrible. With him I tried 13 professionals, 5 different vets, and many other extremes to no success. I think if you go to that length and have serious threat to others it is your only option to Euthanize. But I still rescue "Bite Dogs or Aggressive Dogs" and have successfully rehabilitated 13 dogs since him.

Answer 8

I don't agree with either extreme & rarely believe that an issue is black or white, with no shades of grey.



PPD dog deployed on its own initiative or on the command of its handler to protect human life, fine. Other military dogs acting in the course of their duties to protect life, fine.



Two mentally dogs establishing rank forcefully & a child sticks their hand in the middle, receiving a bite would. The responsibility for allowing the incident occur would rest on the shoulders of the responsible adult & if the bite was accidental, no the dog should not be euthanized.



It is understandable, but not acceptable if a dog snapped using the only method that nature gave to protect itself from a threat, if it was provoked by a young child causing serious harm. Again the responsibility for the incident would fall squarely on the shoulder of the less than responsible adult who should have been supervising the interaction between the dog & child. If the dog snapped as a reaction to immense pain & had an impeccable behavioural history, then the dog should not be euthanized.



In my opinion the issue of genetically unsound dogs is not as black & white as Greekman paints it as there are degrees of weakness in a dog's temperament, with the most severe cases being those which are so mentally unbalanced they would attack their human pack or so fearful they could not function when exposed to the real world.



If a weak nerved dog bit another dog, it would feel the wrath of god {its handler} descend upon it, with a HARD correction. Though it must be said that a decent handler would NEVER have allowed the situation to deteriorate to the point where the dog bit & would have addressed the behaivoral issue at the FIRST sign of a problem.



It is possible to read a dog's overall body language, predict its behavior & step in to control the dog to PREVENT a possible incident occurring, while you are teaching a dog that bad behavior has consequences it would rather avoid.



I would not tolerate the presence of a dog in my home that I deemed to be threat to my family or would pose a threat to people or other dogs.

Answer 9

I think it should always be based on the specific situation.

I mean if some idiot parent lets their 5 year-old kid walk up to some large breed dog and poke and prod at it with no supervision and that kid gets bit - that is the parents fault and nobody else's. The dog should not be put to sleep over that. I mean if some kid I didn't know came up to me and starting poking me and the parents did nothing - I'm not going to lie when I say I would retaliate and either kick the kid or the parents! I hate being irritated by a stranger's kid so I can only imagine what it would be like for a dog.



If some dog is just mentally unsound - I'm talking like it just bites people or its owners when completely unprovoked, that is cause for being put to sleep. That to me would mean the dog's temperament is unsound and there is nothing you can really do about it.

Now if someone chooses to own a human aggressive dog at their own risk - that is just it. It's at their own risk. I have no problems with people doing this, but these owners have to be responsible enough to keep their dogs properly contained and be aware of the dog's environment at all times.



In any case, I think all dogs should be assessed by professionals when there is a complaint of a dog biting a human and a professional trainer would know what the correct action would be.



ADD: @BB - in a situation like that, how do you know the dog was acting aggressively and was not overly excited and just didn't know what was acceptable in regards to any kinds of mouthing.

I'm sure if the dog was latched on to your child shaking her around violently, the dog would have been put to sleep. I live in Canada as well - dogs are put to sleep when there is a means. You should have blamed the owner - filed a complaint against them.

Answer 10

I think a provoked bite where the dog was protecting itself or its pack from harm is completely excusable, in fact commendable in many cases.

A provoked bite where maybe it wasn't protecting itself but acting more out of instinct, for instance, someone falls on the dog, that is also excusable depending on the situation. I think in this case the dog should be given an evaluation by a professional to make sure it will be safe in the future, but it does not immediately need to be put to sleep.

A bite where the dog was NOT provoked at all and bit out of fear or aggression is when the dog should be put down and not given a second chance, in my opinion, especially if it was a child that was bitten.

Answer 11

It depends:

If a dog owner is bad than more and likely the dog wasnt taught and doesnt know its bad to bite and deserves a second chance at a better owner.

If a dog is provoked or threatened and bites someone than they got what they deserved it was only protecting itself the only way it knows how.

If a dog gets loose and attacks someone just out of random it needs put down.



I had to add something after reading someones comment I personally have 2 pit bulls plus 4 other dogs and know their stereotype well. Just to add some insight considering they were named by breed, pit bulls are not naturally aggressive to people but were bred for rounding up cattle and can be aggressive to other animals unless trained right. Pit bulls attack people because they were victims of terrible owners and those are the type of owners that need to be taken care of.

Answer 12

IMO it depends on the dog, the situation, the intention and the severity of the bite.



I have been bitten several times - a few times as a fear reaction, a couple of times as an effort to "correct " me, and once by a dog who deliberately clamped down on my hand and bit as hard as he could - he didnt like what I was doing, wanted me to let go of him. He made it through my leather gloves, and I lost feeling in those fingers for a while.



I handled those different circumstances differently....with the dog who was afraid of eyes, I determined not to put sunglasses on and reach for him. With the dog who tried to correct me, HE got corrected, and never tried it again. The dog who bit because he did not like being handled got corrected much harder, and eventually learned that he had better let me do what I wanted.



I hate to say it, but the size of the dog is a consideration with me. A big dog can actually kill a person. A small dog can only do so much damage, is easier to control, and I am more likely to try training it than putting it down.



However, any dog that cannot be broken of biting humans needs to be put down.

Answer 13

I think it depends greatly on how many times that dog has bitten, and what brought it on. I mean, if a little girl is walking down the street and a dog runs up to her and attacks her, I think that dog needs to be put down. But if I go over to a friend's house with a dog I have never met before, and I raise my voice or try to pet the dog without it being familiar with me, so it bites me, I think that is more my fault than the dogs.

Answer 14

I believe most states require the dog is put down after 3 reported bites (anything that puts someone in the ER for stiches. That being said, I believe ALL dogs can be helped, and that all they need is a little training to be back to being a good puppy.

Answer 15

Define "bite"? Some people see a puppy teething as biting. Which it is not. The puppy needs to be taught from the first day 'no teeth on human flesh'.



A 'bite', to me, is one in which the animal leaves serious puncture wounds and/or broken appendages.



There is no use for a dog who bites. I would not own a dog who even has the potential of biting a human.



I would euthanize the dog immediately. I have done it.



In my opinion an animal who bites is an animal which is attacking with nothing in mind but to do as much harm as it can to the human target.



Exceptions are professionally trained protection dogs who attack ONLY on command and release on COMMAND.



Unsound. Genetically messed up. Euthanize.

Answer 16

Dogs are not smart enough to know a "real" threat vs a friend with a vigorous hug for you without TRAINING.



That out of the way: A dog can bite for a million different reasons...answering this directly is completely and totally...utterly impossible. My stud bit his previous handler several times...he tried to bite me once...I rolled out the kinks in our working relationship, and I've never even thought about him biting me ever again. People want social drive in a working dog, until they get a working dog who has a lot of it!



As far as fear biters...I'll always correct first if the dog is biting me. I'll push it from fight or flight into avoidance. That way later, the dog may become fearful, but instead of fighting, it goes into avoidance, that makes it safe to me. Some of the tougher fear biters can get a serious correction or two and not even be in avoidance, but literally "learn their lesson". Fear biters biting other people is the owner's fault. If your dog is okay with you and your family, but is a fear biter, it's impossibly easy to simply walk the dog around strangers, correct the **** out of him for showing open aggression for no reason (to make it possible to take him/her out in public/the vet), and to simply keep the dog away from guests. It's not rocket science, got a dog who barks viciously at people on walks? Make him do a backflip with a prong, he'll stop. Then be the responsible human adult with the large functional brain and insure the dog stays away from guests and small children that it's not familiar with. MOST fear biters are GREAT with their family and even their family's small children. A fear biter isn't automatically screwed...what determines whether or not the dog can be worked with is WHAT makes it scared. If you, the handler makes the dog fearful and aggressive it's over!



A second chance...hmmm, any dog can have a second chance with me, because once I know a dog will bite me, I know how to handle the situation. If somebody has no idea what to do with an aggressive dog, I can tell them, I can show them if they're in person, but I can't do it for them. If they're scared, put the dog down, or place it with somebody more capable to handle the problem.



If we put down every unstable dog whole breeds would be wiped out, and 80% of the people on this forum would have cats...MOST dogs are not confident dogs. Confident animals are RARE. Confidence in nature = DEATH unless you're the BADDEST **** ****** in the valley. Dogs come from wolves, dogs nor wolves ever were the baddest **** *****s in any valley. Confidence and stability are man made traits. Their natural character is one of ever questioning fear. That's why confident, fearless dogs that make good police K9's cost thousands of dollars and have to be PURPOSELY bred. Confidence and stability aren't accidents...

Answer 17

Personally I don't think putting the dog to sleep is ever the right answer, but in the interest of the argument: Aggressive biting and nervous/scared biting are totally different.

I would never put down a nervous biter, and I would try behavioural therapy as much as possible on an aggressive dog before giving up on it.

Answer 18

aggressive dogs are only aggressive because of their owners. some breeds of dog are regarded as dangerous because they are the most common dogs to attack people. that is poor handling, caused by the owners. theirs no such thing as a bad dog, only bad owners. if a dog attacks someone, they should be taken away from their owners, and given obedience training, and then assessed to see if the dog's aggressive behavior has in any way been lessened.

so yes, i believe all dogs deserve a second chance.

some people say that once dogs get the taste of blood they will never stop...but i believe that in time, if the dog is taken away and given some serious training...it might just pull itself back together.

in some cases, yes the dog does need to be euthanized but i don't believe its necessary in all dog bit scenarios at all.

Answer 19

I think that a dog who bites any child unprovoked should be put down, but that does not happen. At least not in Canada. My kids and I were out for a walk one day and two dogs were accidentally let out of their house. The two dogs ran at us and one dog bit my daughter in the arm. She only needed a couple of stitches to close the wound, but it was pretty traumatizing. Our local SPCA only requires a ten day quarantine in their own home to make sure the dog does not have an diseases. It makes me pretty sick that nothing more was done. Next time this dog could rip someones face off.

Answer 20

It's situational, if the dog attacked a kid and you know for sure she did not provoke it then I guess it has to be done. But if the kid did something to the dog- like was torturing it- then that is different. The only reason dogs are mean is b/c people make them that way.

Answer 21

What about punishment of the owners. Its not the dogs fault, its improper training on the owners part. Dogs need to learn to live in our lives and be taught proper behavior.

Answer 22

This is kinda a tough question because it is SO circumstantial! First question is WHY is the dog biting? Is it true aggression, fear, dominance etc. I used to work with dogs who would bite or did bite. My turnaround was real good but you must consider those I did work with were a hand chosen few. I cannot explain, in words, what I seen in them that made me feel confident that I could turn them around. But it was clear to me they did not want to feel the way they did. Many, admittingly, were merely spoiled dominant dogs that owners gave up on. So in my mind the mess was allowed/created. This was NO small feat let me remind you. It was a year or more of reconditioning, training, socialization and proofing. If I could not trust that dog in less than ANY situation in the end it was euthanized.



I am going to say in 9 out of 10 cases I will tell people to put their dogs down. The reasoning is simple. Take any dog I had worked with for instance that I did rehome and was confident about. There is NO doubt in my mind that the owners would not have been able to help the dog. The whole way of being/training/associating with the dog needs to be changed. In ALL of these cases I found the owners to be the problem. Be it lack of time to work with the dog & poor leadership. Most people do not commit to an animal when they get them. They just think loving them and feeding is enough. Most of the dogs I worked with were Labs (ironically) and Pit crosses. But both are working type breeds that need a job to do and a consistent leader.



I would NOT even consider doing the rehab work now with dogs as I have 4 children to consider. I feel if children are in the family they should NEVER be confronted with a family pet that is any less than forgiving. I see NO reason at all that any dog should protect itself from children. Oh what if??? I really don't care! ANY dog I have owned in a lifetime would put up with ANYTHING from a child without fighting back. Why? Because they trust me to stop the behavior! So my feelings are simple on this one...if a child cannot be safe in any situation with its family pet the dog should be destroyed. Plain and simple. In my house, a dog best move away from its dish, bone or chew toy, if a child approaches. It can exercise the right to yelp or run away in any situation but if I hear a growl or if the dog snaps it is in big trouble. We got a Cav pup from a breeder for my son. Around 7mos old she decided to get a little growly about her space when our kids were involved. She has since learned differently and is a happy girl. But my kids will own her space! Puppies testing boundaries is a bit different to me than a 3yr old dog lets say that suddenly bites.



My warning on "serious" corrections given by an owner for a biting dog...it doesn't work most of the time. I feel if a dog feels it is ok to bite it obviously runs the house. If the owner gives a serious correction it really doesn't change things with the dog. More leadership type training needs to be done and the picture needs to be looked at as a whole on not as an instance. The root of the problem needs to be solved.



Should a dog be put to sleep for biting every time? No if the owners can and are willing to do what is neccessary to make some changes. IT SHOULD NOT BE REHOMED!!! If current owners cannot work with the animal or feel they don't know how...put it down, don't make your problem someone elses....seriously there are too many good dogs for someone to waste their time with a bad one. Should it be given a second chance every time? NO. This should not be taken lightly. If the owner is a responsible person and does not have children and can under any and all circumstances keep the animal away from ALL people then ok. This means crating when there is company. Only attending dog outside on a leash for potty breaks etc. The dog is never to be given a free chance without its handler on the other end of the leash. Oops...door was left open is NOT an excuse. In the meantime a trainer who is familiar with this type of dog needs to access it and work with him and the owner and the owner must be willing to follow advice willingly for the betterment of the animal.



I could go on and on about this subject and give a more detailed answer had a situation been mentioned. It is just my overall opinion that *most* people who own a dog are not equipped to help/deal with this type of behavior in a dog. Yes, genetics can play into it as the general public, as pet owners, typically deal with a mediocre type dog but because most people really do not know how to treat/train a dog I believe many of the problems are directly associated to that. For those like Greek and Curtis who deal with real working dogs that are bred to be very stable minded...the general public is not even equipped to deal with this type of dog either....it would be a MESS in most family type situations because of the drive the drive this type dog possesses.



ADD...People keep talking about kids being mean to the dog, poking and prodding etc. Sorry, I disagree...dog raised in a childless family I would view a little differently but a dog raised with children SHOULD NEVER offer to bite. PERIOD. I have 8 soon to be 9 dogs in my house. Believe me I do not stand over my dogs all day and protect them from the children or vice versa. There is a training phase we go through that is much different but once they are trained they co-exist without problems. If I felt it necessary to stand over them all the time the dog would be gone. Just today my 3 yo son took a drum stick and was sticking it in Mindy's face...he got a firm whack on his @ss. The dog never growled or offered to bite. She was relaxed and new I would come to her aid. My personal view is a poor parent is a poor dog owner...if you cannot discipline your children you sure as hell cannot handle a dog.

Answer 23

I got my dog as a puppy when I was 10-11, and (being a puppy), she nipped at me once. I smacked her, and she never did it again.



If a little kid is being run down on the streets by a Pit Bull and it tears half of her face off, the dog has to be destroyed.



It depends on the situation.

Answer 24

In the case of MY dogs and based on the fact that I OWN mentally stable, 100% solid in the head, rock solid nerved dogs, I will allow a bite under 2 conditions under which the dog will be praised...in my defense and when I tell that dog to engage, PERIOD, END OF.

If MY dog bites anyone under ANY other condition, the skies will open, God will reach out and smite the dog and wipe it out of existence.

I do not tolerate that behavior from any dog I have ever owned and not about to start now...breathing around here is optional and at MY discretion as AA has said many times in here.

In the case of dogs that are not mentally stable, well, you know how I feel about all those dogs...put everyone of them down, the world will be a better and safer place!! Hope I helped.



ADD: Marna...tell me your opinion about rapists and murderers please!!!

Answer 25

personally, I've always felt the owner needs to be put down.



"There is no such thing as a bad dog, only bad owners."