Boomerang, a neutered two-year old Australian Shepherd has bit several people. We cannot find someone to take him and we don't really want to put him to sleep. What can we do?

Question

Hi. I am not sure if this is the right format to ask you a question, but...it is all I see on your web site. If you might be able to help, please read on. If not, could you pass this on to the correct person (if there is such a person).

    My husband and I have read quite a bit of your information about aggressive dogs, and we are faced with a dilemma with our own dog.

    Boomerang, a neutered two-year old Australian Shepherd, appears to be "territorial" but also exhibits a few of the indications of "fear aggression" (although he never seemed in fear of people - even strangers- as a puppy). He has been through a rigorous dog training program and is obedient in most instances and a great dog around the house. He is even loving to our three children - 5, 7, and 9, although he does circle them, jump and nip occasionally. He is amazingly submissive to other dogs who visit. He is, however, MUCH more aggressive around visitors - even if we (the adults) are present.

    In hindsight, there were signs (many indications as I look back) of this earlier but nothing "major" happened until this summer. A friend stopped by to pick up our son for a carpool; when she rang the front door, he bounded through it and bit her on the arm (growling as he did it). He did not break the skin, but he did bruise it. We worked with him and trained him to stay still when the doorbell rang (that had been something that "set him off" in the past but never to such an extent as this). Then, we were going on a trip and boarded him. During that time, the woman who keeps him said she had no indication of his behavior and had, in fact, allowed her six year old granddaughter to play with him (with no problems). Then, a little neighbor came over with her mother while my husband was out working in the yard. Boomerang bit her when she tried to pet him. This time, he broke the skin. Most recently, a friend stopped by one evening when I wasn't expecting her (I always put him in his kennel if expecting someone), and he was out in the yard (with an electric fence). She knows Boom and spoke to him by name, put her hand down for him to smell, and he jumped up and shredded her pants. She was terrified and jumped back in her car. She really felt that he was going for skin and just didn't succeed.

    I am getting mixed opinions from people on our possibilities. I contacted the Australian Shepherd Rescue Society, but they are unable to take him because he has bitten a human, but they indicated that "private adoption" was a possibility. We have been unable so far to find someone willing to "adopt" him, and I doubt that we will. BUT I hate the idea of having him put to sleep. He is such a loving dog when he is at home with us. Still, my friend's leg could have been someone's face, and next time, it could be a small child.

    We did not recognize this behavior early enough. Now, I am wondering if we have any recourse you see that would allow us to either keep Boomerang or find him a home.

    Any help that you can offer would be very much appreciated.

    Thank you!
 Kim

Accepted Answer

As with most behavioral problems - this has happened because of a lack of education and handler mistakes. But then you already know that and information on dogs like this is not easy to find.

When someone tells me that their dog is well trained MOST OF THE TIME - what in effect they are saying is the dog is NOT TRAINED.

This dog should never come in contact with anyone other than you and your husband. He should not be around anyone outside the family. When he is outside the house he should ALWAYS have a muzzle on.

There should be a crate in the house. The door bell should become a signal to go to the crate and stay in it. I would reinforce this training with an electric collar (an Innotek ADV 1000 - you can read about it on my web site). Ask friends to come to the house and help with this training.

You should have a dog kennel in your backyard. If the dog is allowed to be loose in the yard then you need a lock on the gate and a Innotek in-ground fence installed with the wire attached to the fence. This keeps the dog BACK and AWAY from the fence so people cannot reach over and try and pet the dog. You can read about this on my site too. This is the same as an invisible fence at a small fraction of the cost (its actually a better product than the Invisible Fence).

Your friends who try and pet this dog need to be told to leave the dog alone. If they persist - they need to be reminded in stronger terms.