Because Labs are still the most popular dog in the US, we read that they are responsible for a significant percentage of dog bites, though I expect they are mostly not the serious attacks that we occasionally read about. I'm curious how many folks have been bitten by their family pet Labrador dog. I'm not talking about croc-pup bites or the accidental tooth mark in play, but bites where the full grown dog actually bit on purpose. Were the bites real attacks, or more warnings that stopped when you stopped doing something the dog did not like. I've had dogs most of my life, A Rough Collie, a Malamute and 3 Labs. The only one that ever bit me was the Malamute, and it was a bite to tell me that I should leave his fresh bone alone. I can't recall if he actually broke the skin, but it did hurt. He had already warned me, and I persisted. He only snapped once, and I backed off. My Collie and all of my Labs, I trusted completely not to bite me or any other friends or family members. Cooper will try very hard to pull away if she does not like what is happening to her but shows no inclination to bite. The other 3 dogs did not try to get away as much, and also had no inclination to bite. The Vet was never concerned about any of them when doing exams or procedures. We generally do not make our dogs do anything they don't want to do, but some times we have to, such as trimming nails, or doing an exam. None of our dogs has been particularly protective, though the the Collie and the Labs might get their hackles up when they saw a stranger they did not like. Cooper takes offense at skate boarders, though she has never acted like she really wanted to do anything to them. My Malamute was protective of himself, and anything that was important to him (ie fresh bones) and had a strong prey drive towards small animals, but really did not care or worry about other people. Anyone could come up to him and pet him, though I would never have left him alone with small children even though he was friendly. I would like to hear comments from other dog owners, especially Lab owners, about dog bite experiences.
I’m interested in this as well. A lot of what people call dog bites shouldn’t necessarily be classified as a bite. A lot of people confuse a warning shot or even a snap that does have a bit of pressure to it a bite. To me, those are messages. Dogs have the speed of an Olympian and the accuracy of a Ninja. If they want to bite you... they will, and you will know because you’ll need immediate medical attention not a band aid. Having said that I’ve been bitten twice by family pets, both meant business but it was my own fault and I was a barely in my teens and knew nothing about animals. One I scared while he was sleeping and the other was proctecting my mom on lap and I was teasing it. Both were terriers. One pure Westie and the other was a mix with shephard and wire terrier. He was a rescue. They were not sending messages. The one warned then bit. The other went straight into attack mode and got my throat. My current dog has sent messages and once even lunged but stopped short and scared the living daylights out of me. He was guarding a peanut butter Kong at the time and there was no pre warning or signs of resource guarding prior. He could have easily bitten me but just took the message next level but he has never put his mouth on me or anyone. I believe all dogs could bite, even the most passive animal has the potential.
Maybe we should include folks who are pretty confidant that their dogs would never bite a friend/family member, except perhaps in extreme circumstances.
A good friend of mine had a litter mate of my old dog. His name was Boomer. They were half golden retriever and the other half was lab and border collie. A couple of years back he was sleeping on his bed when a teenage daughter of visitors went over to him and leaned down to pet him. Boomer ended up biting her in the face. Boomer was 10 at the time, and had never bit anyone before. After that incident he became increasingly snappy with his owners. It was a strange turn in his behaviour.
I mostly agree, but I view my Malamutes bite as a real bite. He was not trying to kill me, but he definitely wanted to tell me to stop and he succeeded. I did not need medical attention, but I knew he bit me and it was not an accident. I would class it as a bite, but not an unprovoked attack. I believe that none of my Labs, or my Collie would have ever done that.
I’m not sure about my lab. But he has a bad back end and we have a toddler. I think he might have it in him. Either that or his bluff is seriously scary.
I have a lab X collie who used to do some fairly extreme biting when over stimulated or when you did something he didn't like especially put him on a lead. He's nearly 2 now and better with the lead but still snaps and growls at things he doesn't like - being brushed, going in the car - so I go very gently with these things and he is getting better. I know you might not classify these as true bites but his intention is definitely to hurt and it does worry me. My old dog was a staffie X and never put her mouth on anyone let alone bit. She was about 1 when I got her so past puppy biting but such a gentle creature despite apparently having had no training at all in her first year of life. This dog has been quite an eye opener!
I was savagely attacked last October by my 11 year old Labrador, that I trusted 110%. This was an attack to kill and the most horrific experience ever. I was bitten on every part of my body, back to the bone in numerous places. I had to have surgery, skin grafts and spent 3 weeks in hospital. He had been perfectly healthy and showed no signs he was in pain. He went to sleep as normal about 8.30 pm. An hour later he got up and collapsed on the floor, having a seizure that lasted over 5 mins. When he came round is when he attacked me. I know now that the chances are he didn’t know where he was or who I was and was possibly blind. The attack lasted nearly 45 mins before I managed to put a glass door between me and him. He continued to attack the glass, furniture and anything that got in his way. My son arrived and he also wasn’t aware who he was either. It was a freak accident, totally unintentional on his behalf that cost him his life. Our Vet did tests and it showed he had a massive tumour on his brain, that would of been inoperable had it been found earlier. He was our 5th Labrador and none of them had ever suffered with seizures. I know now its best if the surroundings are safe to turn the lights off and leave them. Sadly this was no normal seizure and could happen to any dog, however much you trust them, they can still turn.
A very interesting debate. I have had 3 Newfoundland’s, then a Malamute and now a lab. My 3 Newfies were as soft as anything..you could do anything to them and they would love you, too big and daft to notice. My lab is pretty much the same...soft as butter. However, I totally agree with @Ski-Patroller about Malamutes. My Mal loved us and we loved him, but there was a degree of possessiveness with him that I respected and never pushed. I think I could easily have been bitten if I had taken a fresh bone off him, where as my other dogs would not have bothered a jot. He died age 13 last year and was a loyal boy who was very attached to his family right until the end. I doubt I would get a Mal again, they are quite a complex breed. I have totally no regrets being owned by him though ! That said I never trust any dog and always believe there is a “ wolf in your living room” , mainly for the reasons @judy Long said. It just takes a poorly dog to change quickly. Children are always supervised with any dog when I am around.
My husband and three boys ages 6, 9 and 11 have a 10 month old female chocolate lab. Unfortunately in the last 4 months, all three of the boys have been nipped/bitten by her. My oldest only once, the middle 2x's and the youngest 3 different times. It all involved where she either had an item that she wasn't supposed to have like a stuffed animal that was one of the kids', or a coveted bone/treat. They all occurred while the dog was lying down and the boys put their faces down to her face. We have told the boys that they need training as much as she does and that we should never put our face in her face, especially when she has a treat or something she shouldn't. She does not give growls as a warning, but you can clearly see the signs, (the boys don't seem to recognize this) she looks up at you with just her eyes, she stops any movement and clenches the item in her mouth and her ears are tucked. She also had just gone into a heat cycle and was very protective of her bed when she was thrusting against it and does tend to growl a bit if you take it away. She listens to my husband and I when we tell her to drop something or "leave it" to stop chewing on her bed. The 6 year-old is very busy and moves fast! He gets her over excited and she thinks he is another dog to play with. Our goal is for her to understand that he is a human and is dominant over her regardless of his size. The last time she bit our youngest was this past week. She had a toy and he bent down on the floor and put his face in hers. She drew blood in his lip and bruised his cheek. She immediately went in-between a chair and the couch and cowered. She knew she did something wrong, but I am honestly worried if we can't get a handle on this, she may permanently disfigure him. We have an in-home appointment with a trainer this coming Saturday to teach us all some tactics, tips, and strategies for how we need to behave and how she needs to behave. The trainer told is that she needs some impulse behavior training and that it can be taught. This is all new for me though....the only other dog I had was a yellow lab when my husband and I bought our first house and before any of our boys were born. When they were infants and even as toddlers (all three of them) could roll on him, pull his tail, ears etc. and he never did a thing. He was the mellowest best dog ever and we miss him and so it makes it that much harder to not be frustrated that this new puppy has bitten the boys. She's very friendly and likes all the visitors and company, our other bad habit to break is the jumping though....but that is probably for another forum! UGH!
