Doodle bite! Help!!

[Deeann Roesser]

Hi everyone. Our 5 month old Goldendoodle, who we love so much, just bit my husband and drew blood. This was not play biting, it was aggressive, guarding behavior when my husband was trying to take a receipt from her that she picked up. She growled a little at first and would not let go, then she bit him and he reacted by swatting her, then she lunged at him again. He moved just in time to avoid another bite. We are so upset because we have two granddaughters who come over often and that's why we got this breed.

BTW, she has never been hit by either of us before, so this was a first for us. We are so upset, even thinking of taking her back to the breeder. Please, please give any suggestions on what we can do to retrain her so this never happens again. We are so sad!

[Deb, Connor & Simon]

good advice Susan

[Marilyn and Sherlock]

I know positive reinforcement works well in time but when it is a bite that draws blood, I feel something more firm is needed because that could have been a baby's face not her husband's hand..... that happened to a friend of mine and her granddaughter still has the facial scar when all the baby wanted to do was play ball with the puppy. I too would have grabbed the muzzle and firmly say no bites...... that is how mothers corrected them, with a mouth on the muzzle.... but of course I wouldn't be willing to use my mouth......

[Susan and Bentley]

I agree, but a child should never be pulling anything out of a puppy's mouth.  She's a puppy, and she didn't just bite out of nowhere, she was resource guarding.  Deeann said she never did anything like this before.  Until she has proper training, no one should be pulling anything out of her mouth.   If she was biting all the time, for no reason, that would be a big problem. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I agree completely with Susan. She's a baby. Puppies use their teeth the way we use our hands. Her bite wasn't saying "I want to hurt you", it was saying "I don't want you to take this neat thing away from me". Right now, until you can implement a good solid all-around training program and teach her that she doesn't "own" anything, your first priority has to be to keep anything you don't want her to have out of her reach. Start carrying high value treats on your person at all times, and if she does get get hold of something she shouldn't have, "trade" her a treat for the item. Practice this even with things she can have, like her own toys. Start working  on "leave it" and "drop it", also using high-value treats.

No child should ever be unsupervised with any dog, no matter what breed mix and no matter what age. Children also have to be instructed in how to behave around dogs. Things that seem harmless to you can be misinterpreted as threatening acts by dogs. Hugging, for example. To us, a child wanting to express affection for the dog by hugging him seems very sweet. To the puppy, that's about as threatening and aggressive an act as there is. The same with hands coming at their faces or heads.  Children, especially young ones, can have jerky, unpredictable movements which can frighten or confuse a puppy, and puppies also use their teeth in play with their littermates. Supervision is always necessary. 

[Cindy and Olive (Ollie)]

Yes, 'the living with kids and dogs' link above has great info and pics on this topic! So many kids think hugs are ok. We had a visit with a nine yo boy and his dog the other day and I had to keep very close watch as he hugged his dog (despite my saying that no dogs enjoy hugs) claiming his dog likes hugs even if Rippley does not. His parents didn't chime in. I sent his parents the link above too, because it is so important for children to understand how to treat the dog respectfully, know the body language signals, and when to give affection appropriately, IMHO. Prevention is key! It's just that the learning curve can be huge, and people have to be willing...

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You are so right, Cindy. The learning curve can be huge, and people have to be not just willing, people have to be committed. 

Some of you know that issues between dogs and kids are the number one reason doodles end up being relinquished to doodle rescue, despite (or maybe because of) the "good with kids" hype. No dog is born "good with kids". These kinds of expectations, that a certain breed or mix will automatically be good with kids, or anyone else, doesn't work in the dog's favor. We have to be committed to teaching both the kids and the dogs to live together harmoniously the same way we would be committed to working out issues between two kids in a family. 

[Cindy and Olive (Ollie)]

Yes yes and yes. And sorry to hijack the post with another thought but it is important to mention this in puppy madness... If I was warned of all these requirements in order to raise a well behaved dog, I may have been scared off and backed out. But, I'm so lucky that I was a bit of a nut with: preparing, reading, learning, training and this site - because now we are so very much reaping the rewards. I never realized how much we would enjoy having a pup. DH and I were reveling I this fact the other day. We're so grateful - he is a joy. We have become total "dog people!" I'd like to think it is because of all the training and not that we just "got a good one." I always flinched when people claimed that, because I solidly believe in teaching. :) you can do it!! And Cheryl, that building block analogy is a good one. Very true! Best,

[Cheryl and Finnegan]

So so true.

[Deb, Connor & Simon]

Great post!

[Deb, Connor & Simon]

That isn't the way the mother dog does it. A human grabbing the dog by the muzzle is only inviting more unwanted behavior.

[Cheryl and Finnegan]

Glad to hear you've started training. She's a pup and it's usually about this age they try to test their place in the family.   These pups are so cute and "good" that  sometimes we cuddle and spoil them and don't realize until something like this happens that they have begun to think of themselves as the "deciders" when it comes to something they want. You're not alone. It's a normal human reaction to react with a swat but it can have the undesired effect you experienced. Because doodles can be both stubborn and intelligent, this method often escalates into a fight because, remember, the pup thinks they are equal and dealing with a littermate.  Better to start on the sit, stay, "leave it" command using your body, your calmness and confidence to block the pup from getting to a treat at first rather than your hand.  Eventually you can do it with paper or anything the pup views as high value.  Training is a whole process, like a set of building blocks, and I'm sure your trainer will have a lot of ideas. Since you have grandchildren, it's going to be especially important to train in different situations so that your girl realizes no matter who takes her object of desire, it's her job to give it up.  It will take time but you can succeed :)  Keep us posted.

 

[Susan and Bentley]

yes yes to everyone!  lots of love and training for us all!  it takes a village....