Once again I am amused at the huge reaction and "bandwagon subscription" that people jump at on topics such as this. I understand that when kids are involved people always want to play the "better safe than sorry" card and "get rid of the dog" etc etc etc. But in the hands of a competent handler, there is no need for this. Nobody on this board other than the owner has first hand been able to assess this dogs behavior or the severity of it. It's a Schutzhund dog, which suggests that the family it's currently with aren't entirely clueless on how to deal with a dog. From the sounds of it, the dog has issues with his wife, not with the child - or did I misunderstand this? If the dog was formerly submissive to his wife, being the dogs primary care giver, then bringing her "back up" to this status should be relatively simple to do, which is why I suggested daily obedience work. Nobody knows wether this is a hard dog or a soft dog. I have a friend with a great dane that at first appears to be a somewhat dominant strong hard dog, but give her one good pop with the prong collar, 1/2 of the correction my GSD needs to even feel it, and she yelps, tucks her tail and acts like you're gonna kick her ass.

Perhaps I'm wrong, but I know that no matter what problem I encounter with my dog, I feel I am competent enough to overcome the issue without having to jump to the "give my best friend away to another home" option.

Well said Mike,

I agree. All dogs should be well supervised around children... and if the owners are committed to that responsibility then they should work with the beloved dog they have committed 3 years to.

Having a baby is a life changing event not just for people but dogs too. This dog just needs to learn where his proper place is in the family. Once he understands his place… there is no reason to believe he wont continue being the brilliant dog they have invested there time and energy in.

Definitely read some of Connie’s links. The more info the better. But give him a chance before throwing him away.

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.......I feel I am competent enough to overcome the issue without having to jump to the "give my best friend away to another home" option.

.....and what Mike says fits right in with that first article I cited by Ed Frawley in my reply.

A couple of quotes from the article:

"For those pet owners who feel their dog cannot accept a baby or may be too dangerous around the baby, there is always a dog crate and or an outside dog kennel. I have owned a lot of dogs in my life that I would never allow around babies. I recognized the problems with these dogs and just never let them near my kids. On the other hand I have had many dogs who indeed were part of my family.

So the bottom line is that introducing a dog to a new baby revolves around common sense and being a responsible pet owner."

Also:

'To insure their baby’s safety, owners need to step back and take a look at their dog’s temperament. They have to ask some questions:

1- Has the dog ever been aggressive to strangers?
2- Has the dog ever been aggressive to strange children?
3- Has the dog ever been aggressive to smaller animals?

If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” then you need to be very careful with this dog around a new baby. If the answer to one of these questions is “yes,” this does not mean that this dog cannot learn to accept a baby. It simply means that you need to be very careful and not make any mistakes.' END QUOTES

P.S. Since I have taken the liberty of quoting *part* of Ed Frawley's article, I hope people reading will check it out in its entirety. Again, it's at:
http://www.leerburg.com/dogs-babies.htm

Have to agree with Julia here too. I have many many people call me to rehome their working dogs and some have the same reason as described here. I always say to go back training and give the dog some attention that he may has been missing. In a lot of cases( not all thats true) it all works out fine and the situation is back to normal with some extra work on the handlers part. Try things first.......if u have done everything and it doesnt work you can always go for the rehome option. I think the dog is not sure whats going on in the house and is not clear with any changes. Give him the benefit of the doubt but under good supervision of course.
When my son was born I took the dog all over the house with me and the baby. During diper changes,bath time etc. Id give him a down command and give him a reward while i was busy. He realised that while i was doing things with the baby, he was allowed to "participate" at a distance and get something to play with or eat at the same time. I never ever had a problem because he saw it as positive.

Mike do you have children because I am curious as to what you say to your kid with the scared up face when he or she is sixteen having to go in for the sixth plastic surgery. "Hey sorry about that but I thought I straightened out the aggression issue."

Yes it was his wife that the dog showed the aggression to but if he is showing aggression to the wife I am willing to bet that he might think the 15 week old is a bit lower than him in rank order. How about when the wife is holding or feeding the baby? How about when she is playing with the child on the floor and the dog is a bit jealous? All it takes is about 15 seconds for three lives to be ruined and for a dog to be dead? I think there are better options.

The difference between you and I is how we see our dogs. The dog is supposed to make the quality of my life increase and not decrease. Now I have 4 dogs and I have cleaned up more than my share of dog mess on the living room floor (handler mistake) and I have also cleaned up thousands of dollers in furniture damage (again handler mistake)and I could not care less (well I was probably a little ticked at the time) because the dogs I have owned have brought alot of joy to my life and that of my famly.

The only thing that I will not tolerate is a dog showing any aggerssion to any member of my immediate family (I am of course excluding the startled growl or bark when you suprise the dog), I am talking about a challenge to any member of the family with a deep I mean buisness growl. Dogs are just dogs and they cease to become enjoyable when that animal threatens any member of my family.

I thankfully have never had that happen but if it did I would not hesitate to put the dog in a home where the dog would do better and I would have peace of mind. I love dogs but they are just dogs to me and I am never going to guess in favor of the dog especialy where young children are concerned.

Remenber kids do not have a choice they are counting on you as the parent to make the right decision. If I am the daddy of a fifteen week old baby, whose dog has been growling at the new mother, that dog is being relocated to new home with no kids.

Hi - and once again thankyou all for your input so far.

Trent - A part of me thinks that this is only option but I need to at least try to get him back in order. My daughter and wife are obviously my No1 priority, so while this question mark hangs over his head I am very very careful - he is not aloud in the same room as my daughter. Up until now though he hasnt shown any negative signs towards her - if anything hes become protective towards her.

Debbie - I conected a lead to his pinch last night so he carried it around with him and any signs of aggressiveness towards my wife and she popped him and with it and for each correction he turned up his aggressivness towards her and his low growls became more vocal - to the point were we crated him before he may have bit her. Im going to buy a muzzle or like you suggested have a lead myself incase i need to pull him away, and try again.

Connie - thanks for the links - beleive Im more than extra vigilante at the moment - and I take every precaution in the house.

Mike - You are correct the issue is with the wife and not with the child.
Hes quite a strong dog - it takes a real hard correction to make an impact with him.
We are are also doing as you suggested - my wife does ob with him at nights in the garden. As I said my concerns are with my wife and child but Im not giving my dog up without a fight - and im sure we can correct his behaviour.

Julia - I agree with you that he needs to learn his place and thats what were trying to do. He's been such a loving dog for three years so I beleive there is good hope for him.

Again thanks for all your advise - Im am willing to give anything a try to get him back. I will keep you all posted on his progress.

Tim

When your child has issues, you're not going to send him back are you? Same thing with the dog.

New situation for the dog, less time spent with him, less attention. If your wife works him on a lead, have a muzzle on him. Just in case. Start from the begining with the obedience work, read Ed's articles, and get back to being the alpha in the pack.

Dogs are a huge investment, both emotionally and financially. The dog deserves a forever home, and should be treated that way. Dogs change with age and new situations, just like people.

Good luck!

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When your child has issues, you're not going to send him back are you? Same thing with the dog.

New situation for the dog, less time spent with him, less attention. If your wife works him on a lead, have a muzzle on him. Just in case. Start from the begining with the obedience work, read Ed's articles, and get back to being the alpha in the pack.

Dogs are a huge investment, both emotionally and financially. The dog deserves a forever home, and should be treated that way. Dogs change with age and new situations, just like people.

Good luck!

I agree 100% with what you say.

Well Ive just got back from his walk, and today I worked on his lead behaviour - usually its like he has to be in front - this is something I let slide, but realise now it was a big mistake and that a dog leading the handler is pack behaviour of the domninent kind - so armed with a pinch we set off. After about 5 minutes and a 'hard' correction everytime he tried to get ahead of me, I found he was more than happy to now follow me. We also passed other dogs on the way to which he would usually flare up - again pack behaviour - but today he was content in the 'sit' until the other dog passed and no flare ups. I think today he even found a new respect for me. Now the next time he goes out it will be my wife handling and dishing out the corrections.

Theresa said:

"When your child has issues, you're not going to send him back are you? Same thing with the dog."

What? Are you comparing a child to a dog? Are you kiddding?A child is not a dog and it is not the same thing. You might want to rethink your priorities. A dog is a pet not a person they are NOT the same.

A dog is a lifetime commitment up and until the point he threatens the safety of your family then you give him to another family who situation is a better fit or you euthanize him if he the dogs behavior is beyond rehabilitation.

Good Luck Tim I hope things work out for you and the pup, and Congratulations on the new baby!

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Theresa said:

"When your child has issues, you're not going to send him back are you? Same thing with the dog."

What? Are you comparing a child to a dog? Are you kiddding?A child is not a dog and it is not the same thing. You might want to rethink your priorities. A dog is a pet not a person they are NOT the same.

A dog is a lifetime commitment up and until the point he threatens the safety of your family then you give him to another family who situation is a better fit or you euthanize him if he the dogs behavior is beyond rehabilitation.

Good Luck Tim I hope things work out for you and the pup, and Congratulations on the new baby!

Thanks Trent - I hold nothing more dearer in my life than my child - I would never put her a risk - and thats why I have taken precautions to not let their paths meet. But for my own piece of mind I need to give my dog a chance - even if I succeed and he re accepts my wife as top dog (so to speak) I'll never fully trust him around my daughter so the precautions I have in place now will remain always. Im simply not willing to chance anything with my daughter.