My dog playfully "attacks" my son!

[Anita]

My goldendoodle, who is now almost 2 years old and 90 pounds, treats my 7 year old son like a puppy. He will start jumping and humping him and then wrestling him to the ground! He does this "all in fun" and does not mean any harm. 

 However, my son will fall to the ground frequently, and I'm worried that he'll get hurt.  Also, if my son is wearing a coat/jacket, my dog will grab the coat by the sleeve, "playfully" tugging at my son  The problem with this is that my son's coats end up with tons of holes in them. 

 

We've tried putting a leash on him when he's outside playing with my son, but my son can't handle him even with the leash.  It seems that I can't leave the dog alone with my son due to his antics; it's also interesting that my dog only does this to my son when they are both outdoors.

 

Any thoughts?

[Richard Crowe]

Puppies in a litter spar with each other to sort out who is the alpha dog of that litter.  Puppies will also sometimes be feisty towards the mother who will usually correct them in no uncertain terms.

 

Your doodle has become the alpha dog and has asserted himself over the smaller member of the litter.  The best way to stop this is to have halted the behavior from the beginning.  I never punish any of my dogs but, I will not allow the dog to become the leader of the family pack. Biting, even in fun is not allowed and any other aggressive behavior is not tolerated. What seems like cute behaviors when exhibited by a ten pound puppy can have serious consequences when a 70+ pound dog exhibits the same types of rough behavior. 

 

I would try not having your son alone with the dog outside.  Have the dog on a long lead and a training collar.  Give the dog a correction with the lead any time he exhibits this behavior and scold him.

 

Make sure that your son doesn't aggravate the problem by squeeling or running, this just reinforces the alpha behavior.

 

A possible intervention would be to bring the dog to obedience classes and have your son do the training.

 

A final, but expensive, solution would be to hire a personal trainer.

 

Some dogs have a stronger alpha characteristic than others.  Holly doesn't seem to have an alpha cell in her body.  All we need to correect her from any unwanted behavior is to scold her.  Other dogs need more and different types of training.

 

 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I agree that your Doodle has decided that your son is the "weak" member of your family "pack".  I also agree that this behavior can't be allowed, or it could lead to lots of other more serious problems.  If you can do it, I think either a training class with your son and the dog together or a few visits from a private trainer would be the best approach for you.  In the meantime, I think you'll want to prevent (or stop) these occurrences so that the dog can no longer "practice" this inappropriate behavior.  Good luck and please keep us posted.  If you do go the "training" route, maybe you'd like to join us in the Training Group and share your experiences.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I would highly agree with getting into some training classes (or a personal trainer if you can afford one) and have son involved in the training classes.  With a dog this size, it is very important that you get this under control.

[Lesley, Wellington & Bingley]

 

It sounds like your doodle has just got used to playing with your son as he would play with another dog. The only problem here is the way your son plays with the dog. For example a great rule for children and dogs is to always have a toy to play with. So games become 'find it' and 'fetch' games - not bundling around on the floor, or 'catch me' games. The later encourage grabbing and play biting - whilst these are normal in inter-dog games they become unacceptably where people (especially children) are concerned.

 

Rewrite your rule book. Explain to your son that running fast and playing rough with your doodle is a bad idea. Encourage your son to play fetch and find games with your doodle. Encourage him to train tricks in these sessions too - both doods and kids LOVE tricks! (paw, roll over, turn around ect)

 

As soon as play turns to mouthing or grabbing STOP. Wait till your dood has calmed down and continue the appropriate play. Realising when both children and dogs are getting too wound up will be the key to success here.

 

You will be amazed how quickly the problem dissapears with if you are all consistent in this.

 

 

[Carol Brand]

Lesley had some excellent advise.  I would also add Nothing in Life is Free training for you dog, directed by your son.