dog bit my 5yr old, 9yr old and me

[Michele Glass]

I am a f1b mini labradoodle owner. I live on an acre, and we've had our boy, Cody, for 2 yrs. He's been obedience trained and he's a very loving, fun, energetic, and smart dog. He has developed some
issues and he's started to become passive aggressive as the trainer
states. I have 3 gentle children who love Cody, but all 3 have been
subject to his aggression. I have also been a target and the trainer we
have been working with for 2 weeks is stumped because he's getting
worse not better.  The trainer says he's definitely fixable, but it will take time
and consistency which I'm willing to do, but .... I'm not willing to
risk my kids getting hurt.

Cody is just over 2 yrs old. He's white, 35 lbs., neutered, very well cared for and loved. He has learned agility in 4H, he's earned the CGC award
and he is obedience trained. He has a crate, that is his den, he loves
it. He is housebroken and very well mannered. He sits to be petted, he
stands at the door to be let outside when he needs to go potty. He
loves walks and heels nicely, he loves jogging and running along side
of me while I ride my bike. He loves the water and playing fetch. He
sits pretty when it's grooming time and he's got a beautiful woolly
coat. He's is an awesome dog, w/ issues towards guarding random things.
We never know what that item might be that turns on his aggression
which has makes it very hard for us to train him. We have never abused
him or mistreated him, we love him very much!!!

[Lori]

Wishing you the best with Cody, he is really cute - almost as cute as your Daughter!
Please keep us posted, I'm sure things will work out with a new trainer.

[shelly]

I feel so bad for you. Our dog will be 2 in March and she too - actually twice has shown this type of behavior. She did bite me and my mother-in-law... I don't let the kids try to get anything from her anymore once she gives that growl and raises her lip. We KNOW she REALLY means get away. It IS only when she takes something SHE wants and knows she can't have. The first time it was me and she really went after my hand when I tried to take something away, and drew blood. She KNEW she was wrong. A trainer suggested that maybe it was b/c my hand came from the outside of the bed she was hiding under, and my mother-in-law did the same thing when she was under our dining room table. She NEVER does this with her food. I can take her food put my hands by her when she's eating, anything, but it's only when she has something. NOW I know to try and trade her for a treat of high value - now it's turkey. But other than that she TOO is great! She actually has trained us to approach her now in a way that is not threatening to her... do I think she would do it again??? YES! We just have to be careful on how we go about getting her to DROP the object she values. Good luck! You are not alone...

[Julie B.]

I agree with everyone that you should try another trainer but... I also would really evaluate the entire situation. Are your children's faces worth rehabbing a dog?? Some dogs are just not meant to be around kids and even if you re train your dog can you ever trust him? I don't think I would risk my children for an animal even if he has become part of the family. I know that sounds harsh but I would really think hard about this one.

[Julie Mison]

Hi Michele,
My mom and I have posted frequently about our doodle, Chewie. He is only 9 months but has had on-going issues with resource guarding and growly/snapping behavior. We are on our 3rd trainer...and this one uses positive reinforcement and clicker trainer. I have 2 kids...8 and 6 years old so I TOTALLY get your issues. We LOVE Chewie sooo much but hate that we can't completely "trust" him and worry about this issue. "Most" of the time ...he is the best dog. But...those times that he acts this way are soooo upseting. He is unpredicatable in this behavior which makes it more complicated. I DO think another trainer needs to be consulted. I firmly believe that since they are animals they WILL defend and protect themselves if they are feeling scared or backed into a corner. Maybe your dogs behavior has gotten worse because of the dominant and negative techniques the trainer is /was using. I guess I always tell myself that we will probably never fully trust our Chewie BUT should we ever fully trust ANY animal??? Maybe it is on a continuum and some dogs need more "work" or more strategies in place...kinda like a special needs situation. I think the hard part about it is when we sign up to get a dog we know it will be a lot of work and responsibility but don't anticipate this kind of issue. Nonetheless, we love them and so do our kids. However, we do need to make sure everyone is safe and know what our limits will be.

Sorry for rambling...we are sorting through some of the same issues. Has your Cody ever had handling issues.. hugs, kisses, picking him up, etc? Just curious.

Please keep us posted and Iet us know how things are goiing or if you just need support. It can feel very isolating and overwhelming.

Best,
Julie

[Michele Glass]

Thanks so much for sharing that Julie. Your right about never fully trusting any animal, but it's really hard when I can't even let Cody in the room anymore w/ out a muzzle. Right now it is so hard because Cody is being isolated and my kids are frustrated and sad just like I am. The one positive is my husband who never really takes an active part in taking care of Cody is stepping up to help. On the days where I'm ready to throw Cody out the door he helps me realize there's hope. The unfortunate thing is he really likes the Cesar Milan strategy, I'm learning how wrong that is by reading practically all day yesterday about it. I am showing him and slowly I think he might be changing his mind. We have contacted a certified trainer and behaviorist who has already sent me lots of instructions over email about why and how to stop what the 1st trainer has taught us to do. She works w/ clicker training and positive reinforcement. I hope she will be the right trainer for us, I'm hopeful again.

As far as Cody having handling issues, the only time is just lately the night b-4 last, I tried to physically move his position while he was laying down to scoot him over a bit. He growled at me. He had never done that before and has no other issues with picking him up or anything.

I groom him myself, and he used to snap and bite when I would clip his nails and when I needed to check his ears or put meds in them. He also bit when I put flea med. on his back neck. I have worked with him alot on these things by just rubbing his paws alot, taking it slow, and clipping a little at a time giving him treats and praise. I did that on my own before a trainer came into the picture just because it made sense and it worked.

I do feel very overwhelmed right now and everyone in my family is telling me to get rid of Cody, that I shouldn't take a chance on the kids getting hurt. It's so hard to know what the right thing to do is. I certainly don't want to jeopardize my kids or put them in danger, and I think if I felt like they were in danger I would definitely know it and I would find him a new home. But right now, I feel like there is new hope and I can do what needs done to fix this.

[Julie Mison]

Hi Michele,
Hang in there. It sounds like you are doing an incredible job and have been all along. My husband thinks we need to set our dog straight and doesn't seem to understand the other approach as well....although I'm not sure how well I've done at getting him on board. My mom and I spend the most time with Chewie as my hubby works. Oddly, Chewie does seem to relate differently to him than us. But, we now have established this type of relationship with Chewie and I do not think a dominant technique will work for us.

Here are some articles that might help and the position statement our trainer provides on use of Dominance theory from the AABP and American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior....

I'll be thinking of you...best to you!

http://www.clickersolutions.com/articles/2002b/aggression.htm

http://www.clickersolutions.com/articles/2002b/objectguarding.htm

http://www.sspca.org/Dogs/AggressiveBehavior.html

http://www.avsabonline.org/avsabonline/images/stories/Position_Stat...

http://www.associationofanimalbehaviorprofessionals.com/theoreticor...

[Michele Glass]

Thanks for the links, I have read them and passed them on to family too. This forum is so wonderful.
Thank you!

[Lynne B]

there are cage muzzles that allow the dog to drink water and accept food, you might ask your new trainer what she thinks about using one of those for awhile so that Cody can be around the kids without you worrying about it.

[shelly]

Hi Michele. When this happened to me I have posted. Did you try search for the other postings on the forum about this? I too got a lot of good information and help. The main thing I did was go back to "showing who's boos". She was tethered to me the whole time I was home (not at work). I went back to making sure I went in and out of the doors first, and again made her sit and wait before I allowed her to eat (as she was really good with her commands ~ even the "give it"). She learned pretty quickly AGAIN who was boss. My husband too was not involved as much in her training, but he would get the respect that we did not get at that time. His idea about Tori going to bite was "she's a DOG, that's what dog's do", but I just was not satisfied with that.Do I trust her fully now... no. I DO NOT let my kids take anything away with out me there. We can tell when her growl means - LEAVE ME ALONE with this, or "oh you caught me". At times we use a broom to take away an object. But mostly now I can coax her into dropping on her own for her new favorite treat 'turkey', but not always so she doesn't associate taking something with getting turkey. It's still a work in progress. I DO know EXACTLY how you feel. The first time she bit me... I had everyone crying when I threatened to 'get rid of her' in haste in the middle of the experience..

[Carole (*Koda*Monty*Bindi)]

He bit me several times when trying to take these items away. I finally learned to offer treats instead. lol

This is just a shot in the dark and I'm going to preface this by saying I am nothing more than someone who shares her life with dogs and am not a trainer but is it possible that by giving him treats after he bites you that you are in fact reinforcing the behavior? I know, by our experience, that when our Madison was younger we had trouble getting her back into the house. Not knowing any better we gave her a treat each time she came in when called. That was years and years ago. To this day if you yell "TREAT" she will come right to the door. LOL They learn quickly. We very rarely now use treats when working with our dogs. We alternate with hugs and praise and treats so they never know. It's possible that Cody is thinking that if he bites you he'll get a treat?

What a tough situation Michele and I wish you all the best. I agree as well that I would have Cody checked for medical issues too.

[Michele Glass]

Oh, I see how you got that idea. No no, I didn't ever give him a treat after biting. I just learned for the next time instead of trying to take it away from him, I would trade him, a treat for the object. It works great.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

First of all, let me say that I am really sorry your family is going through all this. I'm sure it is extremely traumatic for all of you. You must have done a great deal of training with Cody to earn your CGC. You must have built up trust and respect from him to accomplish that. I know that designation is not easy to get. In your training, what did you use as a correction? It must have been something that Cody responded to. Also, did you work on the "drop it" command? Did you do your drop it training with high value items? I'm really puzzled about a dog who does so well with training that he earns a CGC and now is resource guarding and biting. I also wonder if there is some physical issue contributing to the behavior as others have said. I am so glad you got rid of that trainer. I think it is possible that she did way more harm than good, and that her methods actually eroded Cody's trust in you. I think you're on the right track with a new, positive training method. It also sounds like you're doing a good job of keeping the kids safe until this gets sorted our. I admire you very much for all you're doing for Cody. I'm sure there are others would not be as committed. I will you good luck....I really feel that there will be a "happy ending".