Sarah, I understand your concern for others but I think I am not alone in thinking that a good home where she can be worked with is far better than euthanasia. I have done rescue work in the past and most of my experience is with behavioral issues. When I place a dog that I have worked with it is with a home that knows what they are doing.

Sarah, this is a 10 month old pup, yes?
Please post about her evaluation.

Have you had other issues with her aside from this one incident?

Perhaps she can be rehomed to someone with no young children if keeping her is not an option...

Don't get me wrong, I mean no offense. And I hate to bring bad news, but seeing as how you seem very new to the world of dog training, and I know this may be difficult to do, I would very very very strongly consider getting him a new home with someone who can truly handle him. Like Jennifer. It's far better than taking the risk of your child getting bitten a second time. And who knows, the next one could be much worse.

Where there any incidents before? Certainly no lunging or biting - ever. However, she has show some issues with food, which we've been working on and she's been corrected EVERYTIME it happens. She will growl (really low) if anyone comes to close to her crate while she's waiting to be released, even myself on rare occasions, which again is immediately corrected. Perhaps I've not corrected her properly? I don't know. My question is, what is an 'issue' and what isn't if that makes sense. At what point does a behavior that is corrected stop being 'a stage' and become a problem? After being corrected once, twice, three times? I didn't sleep well last night, had dreams all night long of people critizing me for keeping a dog that has bit my child. Please don't misunderstand my comments about euthanasia as being said lightly - I don't want to put her down, because I do love my dog. I just don't know how I can be sure re-homing her won't #1 cause further behavioral problems because of stress and #2 the person/people I surrender her to can actually do her and anybody who choose's to adopt her any good. Molly is a good girl in every other way, very sweet and very obedient and very willing to please. I will wait till the trainer gets here and see what she says. In the mean time does anyone have any suggestions on anything I could/should be doing in the meantime?

 Quote: Matthew Thurston

Don't get me wrong, I mean no offense. And I hate to bring bad news, but seeing as how you seem very new to the world of dog training, and I know this may be difficult to do, I would very very very strongly consider getting him a new home with someone who can truly handle him. Like Jennifer. It's far better than taking the risk of your child getting bitten a second time. And who knows, the next one could be much worse.

No offense taken, and the concept of removing her from the home isn't off the table at all, we're just willing to have a trainer take a look at her before we make any permanent decisions.

 Quote: sarah broadwater

In the mean time does anyone have any suggestions on anything I could/should be doing in the meantime?

Yes...first of all, obviously, keep your child and dog seperated even when you are there. When she's out of her crate, she would be tethered to me (like when the kids are at school), if she was my dog.

Read (and reread and RE-reread!) the articles here for groudwork, and being your dog's pack leader. I'll post the links if you don't have them. No matter WHAT you do...you are going to have to be a very CLEAR pack leader to this dog. A trainer can not do this for you, but a good trainer can show you how. You have to control EVERY aspect of this dog's life.

I wouldn't consider euthanazia at this point. You didn't see what happened and so you can't be positive that there were no triggering factors (it's my opinion that there's always a triggering factor). Very young kids interacting freely with dogs is just a bad idea, IMO, no matter what the dog's breed, temperament or history. Dogs and young children are unpredictable by nature.

However, it is understandable that your concern is for your child first and it seems like you feel you have been given a very big warning in what happened...and you have. It will be a huge commitment of being religious with how you live with this dog and a lapse could cause someone to get hurt. If you don't feel up to that, then certainly don't feel guilt for rehoming her. But please don't consider euthanizing her first off. I know that pit types have a bad rep that can make them hard to adopt out, but there are some seriously great, experienced people out there who might be able to help you and take her off your hands. Maybe you and Jennifer can even work something out with shipping the dog to her. Either way, I think this dog deserves a stay of execution and a chance with a stronger leader...whether that's you after making some changes, or someone else.

It's not the dog's breed per se. There are plenty of dogs of different breeds that have snapped at a child. It speaks to a need for stronger leadership and control over the dog more than to the breed, IMO.

You sound like you're trying to keep an open mind but if you feel that you really aren't capable or up to this, then please consider rehoming first! Some people's temperaments will just not be a good match with certain dog's temperaments...and there's no shame in that if you recognize it and act accordingly.

Certainly, do NOT keep the dog if you feel she won't be safe around your daughter. But please consider rehoming her over euthanization.

er Sarah,
Maybe I should know who Howard Burgess is, but I don't. If so please enlighten me.
What I'm trying to say tactfully is to try and make sure the trainer coming over is someone who is a real trainer and not a 'lets put a haltie on him, and treat him with love will fix it all' do-gooder type.
It needs to be someone who has done and knows how to direct strong willed dogs.

If my dog isn't learning, I'm doing something wrong.
Randy

Howard Burgess is SO not the let's love them more type of guy and I am working on the assumption that anyone he would reccomend is along the same line as himself ya know? I'm not the 'let's love them more' type of person so that's not really an issue in my house. Howard comes highly reccomended by cheryl Carlson (if you know who she is) chercarkennels.com I think is her website and I've met her and she's a no nonesense type of woman herself. I understand your concern though... and thank you.

Sarah

"Yes...first of all, obviously, keep your child and dog seperated even when you are there. When she's out of her crate, she would be tethered to me (like when the kids are at school), if she was my dog.

Read (and reread and RE-reread!) the articles here for groudwork, and being your dog's pack leader. I'll post the links if you don't have them. No matter WHAT you do...you are going to have to be a very CLEAR pack leader to this dog. A trainer can not do this for you, but a good trainer can show you how. You have to control EVERY aspect of this dog's life."

She is tethered to me when she is out, since lilly is only four and is home all the time. and they are already seperated, even more vigorously than before (as I mistakenly thought that with me in the room it would be OK.)

The whole pack leader thing - this is where I personally suffer some frustration and dissapointment. I do have a strong personality and I really felt like I had done what needed to be done to be sure this dog knew her place. However that's neither here nor there, what we have now is what it is and this is where we have to move forward from. I would be very interested in the links to the info as I can't seem to get the hang of navigating this website so well at this point...

I will keep anyone interested updated on what the trainer says on friday and how my husband and I feel after that. The last thing we want to be is another news headline, and our child bear the brunt of a poor choice.

Sarah, here are some links:

http://leerburg.com/ebooks/puppygroundwork.pdf

http://www.leerburg.com/pdf/preventingdogbitesinchildren.pdf

http://leerburg.com/pdf/dealingwithdominantdog.pdf

http://www.leerburg.com/pdf/packstructure.pdf

I am also posting the link to the thread that I started when my pup growled at my 5 year old. You may find the info useful...

http://www.leerburg.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=175608#Post175608

Also, if you decide to keep her, I highly recommend buying the video 'Establishing Pack Structure with the Family Pet' that you can purchase here...
It is loaded w/ info...

Edited by Lynne Barrows (01/20/2008 08:49 AM)
Edit reason: added on