Posted on 12/04/2013 7:00:11 PM PST by Usagi_yo
He's a male Blue point Doberman, rescued from the animal shelter at a very young adult age. He's actually grown a bit over the 2 years we've had him.
Well he's starting to have some biting problems now after 2 years. He's bitten my sister (the owner) 3 times breaking skin each time, bruising bone and requiring antibiotics. These have happened to her at night when he's sleeping with her and her husband. Seemed it was some type of sleep problem from being woke up from dead of sleep.
Now he's bitten me. I've had direct contact with the dog almost everyday and pet him, give him biscuits, he loves to get facial rubs from me.
After coming in, he had one of those giant burrs from a sweetgum tree in his front paw. I've picked them out of his paws many times, and I know how to pick up a dogs paw. Well this time he latched on to my arm, pretty vicious, drew blood in multiple locations. Deep enough I'll have to go to the Doctor and get x-ray and antibiotics.
If you own a doberman you know they don't growl or warn before biting.
Suggestions? We have 5 dogs between the two of us. We live on about 10 acres in separate dwellings with both houses fenced in for a common dog area. Non of the other dogs are problems, German Shepard, Red Heeler, Basset hound and a hybrid 1/4 wolf 1/4 Malamute the rest Husky. None of them have been a problem or challenge the doberman.
What to do? Is this fixable? My sister doesn't want to put him down. Her husband is pissed. I say have his canines pulled.
I just can't tolerate a dog like this. Not knowing it's going to go off on any slight, perceived or otherwise.
The tricky part is someone has to be boss, otherwise there is anarchy.
“Since this is such a new problem I suspect it may be caused by a medical condition possibly neurological.”
Yeah, okay, it’s a freakin doberman.
doofus! Ever owned one? Or been worshiped by a dobby?
Total agreement, but I think there is a moral obligation to not just drop the dog at the pound. Anyone who adopts this dog must know about his bad habits.
It would take a lot of courage, but I think I would put the dog down myself. I would not be happy about it, but I would know I had done the right thing.
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How’s your insurance? Are you sure it will cover you if he bites a kid? Your entire net worth is at risk.
It is even worse than you think, I am not a lawyer, but I have seen some pretty bizarre legal stuff go down, and this could turn into a nightmare in a heartbeat. The dogs are all kept in a common compound, and are tended by people related by blood or marriage, who all live in buildings on one parcel of real estate.
If the dog bites anyone, the one who is bitten will sue, and will want to confuse ownership enough so that you and your sister, plus spouses are all liable together for the behavior of this dog. This means there could be two or more insurance companies they want to make responsible for paying them. Since they can't sue insurance companies, they will sue both you and your sister, plus spouses, and anyone else they can think of.
On the other hand, your insurance companies will want to say that only one of you can possible own the dog, and that it might just be the person who spent the most time caring for the dog. On you and your sister's side the insurance companies will be fighting to make the other one liable.
This is not a good legal place for you and your sister to be. The dog must go.
Ping for your input, if any.
My Uncle Buck was the best dog trainer I have ever seen. He had a German shepherd who would do just about any trick you wanted.
He also kept him away from livestock by having the dog stay inside an area marked only by a rope on the ground. This gave him maybe a 40 yard square place.
Uncle Buck would reward the dog but he would also strike them when he thought they needed it. A chicken made the mistake of getting inside the rope and old bright killed it. Uncle Buck tied the chicken around his neck.
Aren’t you the guy who found the Bassett Hound the other day?
Yes, there is doubt.
She could do it 50 times without a reaction and the 51st get badly mauled if the dog was in pain or having a bad day for any other reason.
That dawg is not being aggressive, the child is not being aggressive, but pee paw is telegraphing passivity.
My dogs knew I was boss. With the first I just expected her to do what I said and rewarded her with praise and attention when she did it. She had not been abused physically but had been very lonely as her former owner was afraid of her. Dumb ol me didn't have enough sense to be afraid and was not inclined to let her run things either so we got along just fine after the first day.
That is why you train your dogs.
I won’t tolerate it.
No aggressive action to toddlers.
That is, after all, how dogs establish dominance and discipline. Dogs need to know where they are in the pecking/biting order.
If you let it get really out of control:
Love em and dote on them but never let them get alpha on you.
I’ve always used a rolled up newspaper as the noise getting swatted with it bothers them more than a physical blow from my hand, which they would barely feel.
Hitting a dog with your hand is always a bad idea because then they get afraid of hands and may well bite someone defensively if they go to pet them, look at a dog tag, or whatever.
Plus the sight of the rolled up newspaper becomes immediate feedback that they are in the Bad Dog doghouse! In fact, they didn’t get actually swatted more than a few times. After that, showing the paper is enough.
Don’t whackem with the newspaper either..
Sharp name call followed with a loud noise.
That SHOULD get their attention.
I follow up a good reaction with praise.
I follow a bad reaction with “temporary” banishment, but not physical abuse.
Response is met with reward.
Dogs are funny critters.
The largest problem is when you allow an animal to become the alpha.
Trouble is sure to follow.
I would say put it down.
Dogs like that (and I know, I know) the owner will blather on and on and on about how sweet it is, etc, yada yada blah blah
But any dog that bites it’s owner is inherently a ticking time bomb.
And if it latches on to a two year old kid, that’s something you cannot undo, no matter how much you try.
There are many, many gentle, family friendly dogs available who would be eternally grateful to have a loving home.
And I’m a dog lover all the way.
Yep. Our dogs do not even come in our room. They sleep outside the door. We have incorporated retired military attack dogs, catahoulas (a very challenging breed), cast offs, orphans and prissy spoiled dogs into our pack with never a biting problem. We have taken dogs with behavioral problems and cured them through HUMAN DOMINANCE. They all know they are at the bottom of the pack. They adore the two crawling grandkids and show NO aggression towards anyone in our pack.
I disagree, because I could be calling them sharply for any number of reasons including imminent danger and why make them try and interpret the subtleties of my tone?
The newspaper is visual and a whack on my own thigh adds the audio if necessary .This is as easy as it to make the dogs understand exactly what the situation is.
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