Quote:
Originally Posted by AVGWarhawk
We had an Irish Setter when I was a kid. Very nice dog. Great temperament. Always friendly with everyone. One day a patient of my dads (had a practice off our house) was walking up the drive and the dog reared up and went for her throat. Out of the blue. Nothing provoked the attack. Dog was put down. It is to my understanding that some breeds over the years were bred for thinner skulls resulting in brain issue. Irish Setters no exception.
There is really nothing to stop a dog that feels he is the alpha male. Growling and biting anything in the vicinity is ok in his book. Kids included. It is only a matter of time. One day I went to work with my dad in the ER. A young girl (4 years old) was bitten in the head by the family doberman. Bite wound went right to the skull. Plastic surgeon was called in to suture the wounds in hopes to reducing the scaring of the face. Kid did not provoke this dog. Again, alpha male syndrom. Dobermans also bred for smaller sleek heads.
Some dogs you are just not going to reach no matter how much you work with them.
Sorry to hear this had to happen.
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Yeah.
I posted in a matter of fact way, because I literally just came home from the vet. If I didn't love the stupid, crazy dog she'd not have made it 9 years. Trouble is that she never fully grasped that she wasn't 2d in line to ME, but last in line to the entire family. Heck, she'd still growl at me at night. Sometimes loudly growling as I told her to go to bed (which is all I'd have to do fo her to get in her crate, tell her to "go to your bed.").
The reality is that in a pack of dogs, growling and nipping are "legitimate" forms of communication. Dog A comes near Dog B who doesn't want to be bothered. Dog B growls, or even nips. Dog A, understanding "the rules" either fights Dog B and wins, or licks his wounds and realizes B is his boss. A nick of a cut is no big deal in the dog world, it's SOP, but it could seriously hurt (or kill) a kid.