My friend has a black terrier not sure what breed, he is nearly 4 years old and has started biting men, he bit the Amazon man and went to stay with friends of hers last week while she was on holiday and he bit 2 other men and one badly drawing blood and he had an open wound. I tried to talk to her about the possibility that he may be in pain or has a dental problem and she should discuss this with her vet or she needs a behaviourist as maybe a man has hurt him without her knowledge but she doesn't seem to think it's worth worrying about even though the man that was bitten badly said he wanted him put down. I am worried as Joseph visits their house as he is friends with her son and when I dropped him off yesterday the dog growled at Joseph just for stroking him. Obviously I have explained to Joseph to try not to interact with him if at all possible. He seems to get a walk when anyone can be bothered and I witnessed teasing by her teenage children which nobody stopped, I don't know if that has anything to do with his behaviour but I find it really sad I don't know what the rules are about this kind of behaviour but could someone insist he is PTS? Thanks xx
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men That's very serious... Obviously your friend is experiencing a bit of denial about it. Where I live a dog would be declared dangerous for that kind of behaviour and, with repeat offences, could be seized and PTS. I feel for the dog as obviously it's developed this as a coping strategy for whatever reason and is probably stressed out of its mind. You are right that your friend needs professional help with this ASAP. My first stop would be the vet for a health check and advice on who to see.
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men Yikes....definitely a PTS offence around here, too. Kind of a scary situation, if your friend is refusing to deal with it the situation will only get worse, I'm afraid. I hope she sees the necessity of doing something about it before anyone else gets hurt. :-\
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men Gosh, that's awful - poor dog. I can't understand people that don't understand how serious this is - biting people! Dogs can do a serious amount of damage.
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men If someone felt that strongly about it then they could go to court and get a destruction order, especially with the changes to the dangerous dogs act. To be honest, and I hate that I'm saying this, perhaps having him PTS might be the solution - the owner seems unwilling to do anything about it, and the dog being teased by the teenage children is likely the root of the behaviour. I would be extremely wary of allowing my child to visit the house as it just takes one tiny little mistake for an incident to happen, even with sensible children. The fact that the dog has bitten several times already - and adults who are supposed to know better, would have me extremely worried.
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men That is awful it sounds very much like your friend is in denial (just like a lot of parents do with their kids!). Can you try having another word with them and explain that so done might end up reporting the dog then it would be out of her hands? Good luck either way x
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men I'm with Julie. I cannot understand how the owners cannot see how serious this is. I worry about Molly's jumping up. I can appreciate that this can seem agressive and be frightening. Another thing I cannot understand is, if they are not going to walk it and are allowing kids to tease it, and heaven knows what when there is nobody around to witnes it, why have a dog in the first place. I think people with smaller dogs sometimes tolerate undesirable behaviours simply because as the dogs are physically smaller.
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men If your friend isn't concerned about the dog's fate perhaps she'll be concerned about the potential fine and jail term : https://www.gov.uk/control-dog-public/overview
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men Maybe if you told her Joseph can no longer come and visit, as you are afraid he will get bitten, that will jolt her into realizing the true state of things?
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men A very sad situation almost certainly due to the dog being teased by the children and that is the only way he has been able to get some relief. If the dog isn't ordered to be PTS and Joseph continues to visit the house, tell him not to stroke the dog, not to look at the dog and not to feel afraid as the dog will pick up on that. He could drop little treats so that the dog sees him as a friend, but the owners may not like this.
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men I agree with Karen. I would not let my son got to a house with an unpredictable dog like that around. Its not the dogs fault at all but I would not gamble with my sons safety. Also as someone else said it may make your friend stop and think about her management of the situation. It looks a sad future for the poor little dog unless your friend changes.
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men What a horrible situation. The owners don't seem to care about the poor dog. They really are in denial. Eventually, if they're not careful the situation will be taken out of their hands. It's not fair on the dog, why have they got a dog if they're not going to take care of it. My first call would be to take him to vet for check up. He could be in pain but they need to do something. They're putting people at risk.
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men Helen, another one here who wouldnt allow Joseph to visit, its just not worth the risk , of course we can tell children not to touch a dog but its hard to police when you arent there . The recent changes to the dangerous dogs act makes it a real risk that someone will report the dog and it could well be ordered to be euthanised . Your friends first trip should be to her Vet to have a full check up carried out, but make sure you keep your family safe Helen please x
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men How terrible for that poor little dog No visiting for Joseph from me too. Any dog known to bite would have me keeping him well away until they'd got to the bottom of the issue and I felt they weren't putting anyone at risk. Vet first, behaviourist next and some proper rules on how the dog gets treated!! Poor animal
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men Ah it's a sad story Helen and not one that will have a happy ending if something doesn't change for the better and soon x
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men Wow. I can only agree with what has been said already Helen. :-\ If your friend doesn't sort this in some way there is only one way it's going I'm afraid. It's a very difficult situation for you but she can't ignore the fact her dog has bitten three people. Maybe keeping Joseph away will get it through to her although not very fair on Joseph. Maybe you could spell it out in no uncertain terms that if the dog is reported he could end up being put down and she could face a fine. Money if not the dogs fate might hit home. :-\
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men Thanks for all your replies and of course keeping my son safe is paramount to me. This is a difficult situation for me as I have only known her for about 6 months, our sons are both Autistic and have become friends which isn't easy at all for children with Autism and I don't want to spoil this for either of them. Joseph is almost 17 so not a small child and I have discussed the temprement of the dog with him and to keep away from him which he will, but I am going to suggest that his friend comes to our house until she sorts this out. One of my closest friends is a friend of hers too so I am going to discuss this with her to see how best to proceed and see if she can talk to her about getting some help from her vet. I too am so sad for the dog as he is so young and it's just not fair :'( Many thanks again. xxx
Re: Friends Dog Attacking Men [quote author=charlie link=topic=7421.msg103400#msg103400 date=1408555777] but I am going to suggest that his friend comes to our house until she sorts this out. [/quote] Sounds like a plan Helen. You have your priorities right, just sorry to hear you are having to make these decisions. Joseph sounds like a pretty sensible lad, and I hope his friend and his parents see that this is the right decision for you and it doesn't spoil their friendship. x
