WWYD: Another dog thread involving biting

[golfgal]

Our dog bit our DD once about a year ago. Our DD was blowing in the dogs face and everyone knows how much they like that. She didn't stop when the dog growled at her. SHE got in trouble, not the dog.

 

[Luvchefmic]

Good advice you got here OP I wish you the best of luck

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

OP, it sounds like you have a dog who is food aggressive. I grew up with a food aggressive dog and my parents' current dog is also food aggressive. I knew from a young age not to approach the family dog when she was eating. To be honest, if that is the only time she is nipping, I would not even call that aggressive. The key is to make sure that you and your children understand that hwen she has a bone or food, not to approach her, at least until she has training (they can train dogs to be not so food aggressive).

I'm also not sure I would call the last incident aggressive at all based on your description. It sounds like the puppy was trying to get your son's food (a very normal dog behavior) and simply missed. The biting, by your description, was completely unintentional. That is not to say that it was not a problem. You may need to confine your dog so that when others are eating she is not near them, and train your kids not to eat on the couch when the dog is around.

I would also not let your son sit alone with the dog until you get a temperament test and some training as these all seem to happen when he is sitting next to her.

 

[jacksmom]

I am sorry that you have had problems with your dog, and I do realize all dogs are different! But, we have had 2 cocker spaniels with our kids growing up and they have/ were the best family dogs, loving our kids and putting up with lots! Our irst cocker spaniel baby girl was 3 years old when ds was born and she loved him from day 1 and was great even through toddler years when he would grab her by the fur! She died when he was 10 d/t congestive heart failure and we were all heartbroken. We missed her so much and ds mourned so much that we bought another cocker spaniel girl a few months later when dd was an infant.(baby and baby girl dog were born just days apart)! The girls are both 4 now and we have absolutely loved this cocker spaniel as much as the last! I am just don't want someone to think that Cocker Spaniels may not be good family dogs! I think each dog has its own personality and I would reccomend a Cocker Spaniel to any family! Hope you are able to find a solution that is of course safe for your child but is also okay for the dog!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

In this situation I would support rehoming the dog.

 

[LilyWDW]

Personally, I see an issue with a lack of training for both the dog and the humans in the pack. You said yourself you have not been consistent in the puppy's training... there is part of your problem. Early on you have to make your animal see you (and the rest of the family) as dominate. If you do not, the dog will keep showing behavior that shows THEM to be the dominate. This will include biting to get to food.

In the first situation, the pup was chewing on a bone. When your son moved, most likely the dog thought he was after the bone. So they defended their territory. You need to explain to your son NOT to move quickly around a young animal, especially one that has not been trained.

In the second situation, the pup wanted the food your son had so they tried to take it. If the dog had been trained correctly, this could have most likely been avoided. We had to do it with our labs so you need to do it with this dog.

If the dog attempts to bite or mouth on your hands, grab the animals muzzle firmly (but not so much it hurts the animal), lean over them in a dominate position, and say deeply "No bite". The same thing works with barking btw. BUT you HAVE to be consistent or no amount of training will help.

 

[aprilgail2]

I'd agree with the others to try a trainer, etc.. I wouldn't have recommended a cocker spaniel to a family with young kids to begin with though.

My vet AND dog trainer said the same thing after we had already gotten one, they would not recommend that breed of dog. I WISH I had asked them beforehand- we went to training together, over and over even tried different trainers, worked at home with him and he is STILL a terrible dog 8 years later. Now we just wait for him to go to Doggie heaven (which is NOT where this dog will be going!). I had dogs for the past 45 years, never ever have I had such a dog as this, and once he bit I could not stick some other poor family with him, I couldn't even get a shelter to take him because he had to be listed at a biter and would just be put to sleep....so here we are, stuck with this Cocker Spaniel 8 years later.
I would NEVER recommend a Cocker Spaniel to anyone!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I did not have time last night to explain why I'd favor rehoming the dog now.

While I agree the OP made some, and is still making some, mistakes, the facts won't change. This family and dog are not a good fit for one another. The child is going to continue to be hurt and I'd predict that the dog is ultimately going to lose his life over it. Better to find a person or family that's a better fit NOW than to wait this out.

Here's why:

The dog is young and his behavior is only going to strengthen as he gets older.

He's already "won" (in his eyes) TWICE against the child by biting him in the face. I'd ask what the repercussions were at that time for the dog? Did anything happen then? Were any changes made then? Make no mistake about it - it IS going to happen again, unfortunately.

The breed of dog - Cocker Spaniel. As others have mentioned, they are notorious for biting. I believe that many experts in the breed recommend homes with OLDER children to begin with. This is for a few reasons. A) a dog who tends to dominate can do it easier with younger children and B) older children are simply generally better at handling dogs than younger children. (And if anyone feels badly about my saying this, I can say it's true for my favored breed of dog as well: German Shepherds. I myself was turned down for rescuing a GSD when my children were below their recommended age level, also, despite a lifetime of experience with the breed. And I was really upset about it until a few years later when friends with younger children adopted a GSD - no holds barred - and the dog bit and severely injured a child visiting their home. The child required hospitalization and surgery, and the dog had to be euthanized. It was heartbreaking all around, and probably could have been avoided if the rescue group had the age rules in effect.)

Experience of the owners. No offense, OP, I'm sure you're a lovely person (you sound it). But a lovely person does not a firm and knowledgable owner make. And in today's world, that's what you have to be if you're going to own a dog in good standing. I am going to point out a few things for you, but also for others reading this who may be thinking about getting a dog or wondering about their own issues with their dogs, etc.

First, you really have to 1) sit down and do your research - yourself. Only you can know your own situation enough to make an informed decision. This process could take a very long time, as in months to years. (Which rules out impulse purchases right there.) Learn about the breed. Sure, dogs are individuals. But their behavior is driven by their genes and you can't change it, no matter how hard you try. (You can mold it, but not change it.) So it's necessary to learn what the breed was, well, bred for, because that will still be the type of behavior you see. Then you need to ask yourself if this will be a good fit with your family. What types of problems are known with the breed? Health, behavioral, longevity, etc. If you have children in the home, how are they generally with children? Visitors? You might want to look at "bite statistics", which I'm not sure are completely reliable (dependent on who's identifying these dogs - most mixes are called "Shepherds", for instance) but will give you some idea on how you need to proceed, etc.

Second, once you make a decision on what dog might work well in your household, you start figuring out how you're going to make this dog into a good citizen of your household and your community. That means a bit of studying (Good Owners, Great Dogs is the book I recommend most) and finding a good training group to join. Go and watch a class, watch what they're doing. Talk to the trainer. Research why group classes would get you and your dog off to a great start, and how to involve the kids in training.

When the dog comes home is when the real work has to start. And yes, it's a lot of work. Just about every minute of every day. It's a lifestyle, basically, especially when you own the type of dog that is known to have problems if left to their own devices. HOWEVER, with that said, it's a mistake to become complacent and think that the dog you own, even if it's one of the "friendly" breeds, will never cause problems. ANY DOG CAN BITE. Which is why common sense must rule. I shudder when I hear people say, "My kids can do anything to my dog and the dog is fine". NOT OK!! Kids HAVE to be allowed to respect the dog every bit as much as the dog needs to respect the kids. Never let kids poke, jump on, pull at, hit, tease, push, pull, kick the dog - ever. And in the interest of fairness, the dog should never be allowed to mouth, nip, push, growl at, knock over, take things from, etc, the dog. It's so much easier when these are the rules. But it generally is the exception. I'm always amazed at how many people, adults included, I see literally teaching their dogs aggression. It's giving the dogs mixes messages. Dogs are very happy to abide by your rules, whatever they may be. They just have to be clear to the dog. And consistent. Is it a lot of work? Yes, it is. But it becomes a way of life. This is when you have a dog that's reliable.

In my home, the rules are clear. No dog teeth on human skin EVER. No tug of war games that pit the dog against the person. No teasing the dog; no nipping the kids (a constant challenge with a herding breed dog - I taught my dog, for instance, to carry a soccer ball in her mouth when she's out with the kids, knowing her instinct to herd them will never go away. Instead of nipping, she bumps them with the ball and it's a win-win situation instead of a potentially harmful one). Is my dog a deprived, lost soul? Hardly. In fact, because she's generally well behaved she gets more priveledges than a dog who's not. She acts as an ambassador to the breed when people can come up and pat her (as long as they behave; please don't come up and slap her in the face trying to get her to "play rough" as I've had people do; or growl in her face to see what happens, etc). Over 4th of July we sat near a family with a special needs boy who was fascinated with her, and he sat patting her for much of the night. By contrast, my DH saw people walking two GSDs and asked if he could pat them but there was no way, they were wild, barking and pulling, and the people said no. ) When I have my dog out, people often tell me how "lucky" I am to have such a great dog. Sorry, but there was no "luck" involved whatsoever. She was my most challenging dog to train ever and I've worked my butt off with her for the last six years. But my hard work has paid off and she's a great dog now, for the most part.

In the OP, this came out at me:

Anyway this is the story: We have an 8 month old cocker spaniel puppy. Our family (myself, DH, DS7 and DS4) got her when she was ~7 weeks old. As a puppy she has been a nipper, never bad enough to hurt anyone. We've worked to eliminate that behavior, although she does "mouth" our hands still sometimes. About 2-3 months ago when she was around 5 months old, she bit my 4 year old on the cheek. The bite was not hard enough to break the skin, but his cheek got a small bruise on it. My DS4 was not bothering the dog, he was sitting next to her while she chewed on a bone, and I think he moved to get up and was bit. We looked up solutions online, and started to do things like not allow her on the couch (although admittedly we have not been completely consistent) in order to show the pup that the boys were dominant over her. Things had been going well without incident until Monday when she bit DS4 again. They were sitting beside each other (DS4 and the dog) and I think the dog went for something he had in his hand. DS4 was bit on the finger.

DH and I have since been discussing re-homeing her, but haven't decided yet what we'll do. The dog is very very sweet. She loves to be around us, loves to be pet and rolls right onto her back when she comes to us. DS7 and DS4 still love her and want to keep her, although I know DH and I have to make the best choice.

I'd love to get some opinions on this. Could professional training help break her of biting. I'm not sure the two incidents are bad enough to re-home her, but I worry about her doing it again.

Clearly, you made some mistakes. But from the dog's perspective, he's been allowed to get away with biting your DS. IMO it would be very difficult at this point, if not impossible, to get the dog to the point where you could insure he would not do it again. Note, I may not feel this way if you were very experienced and firm owners. You were somewhat on the right track when you thought about training and stopped her from getting on the sofa, but you never followed through. From the day the dog entered your household, he should have had firm rules about what he could and could not do. You, unfortunately, dropped the ball on that one and there's no going back now, at least to the point where you can feel your DS4 is safe around the dog. I'd tend to think that the dog would be better off in an adults only household with experienced Cocker Spaniel owners who are firm and consistent with him. Or a home with (much) older children who are also experienced and consistent. It will be easier while he's young to find him a new home.

When and if you decide to get another dog, I think you'll have a better experience all around if you research it a little better and educate yourselves about what it takes to mold a dog to be reliable around young children. Pick up a copy of Good Owners, Great Dogs, by Brian Kilcommons and Sara Wilson.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[MouseLovinMom]

Please talk with your vet about your dog. She's still a puppy and more than likely will be a wonderful family pet. Puppies bite and chew until we teach them not to. Most times it's not an aggressive act. Teach the kids about the puppy, as well. It's tough for little ones to realize that the new dog is different from the old dog.

We adopted a shelter puppy prior to having our son. The dog doesn't like kids, never did, never will. Through the years, he's bitten our son a couple times, nothing serious. The bites were a response to something done to him (the child accidentally stepped on the dog, and the startled dog snapped at him, etc.). When our son was small we didn't allow them to be together unsupervised. Now that he's older, our son and the dog play together BUT the child is old enough to know not to tease the dog, mess with his food, disturb him while sleeping, etc. We still don't allow the dog to be around other children without our supervision, just as a precaution.

We love our dog. He's an amazing pet. We had our doubts early on...but through some training (the dog) and some education (ours), everything has worked out great. Good luck.

Agree with what above poster says about "rules." I think that's why we've been successful. We are very consistent in enforcing the dog rules. He definitely knows the boundaries, right down to where his "place" is in each room, which rooms he's not allowed in, and which toys on the floor are NOT his. We're not mean to him, we love him and he's plenty spoiled, we are just always consistent with the rules.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

If the dog attempts to bite or mouth on your hands, grab the animals muzzle firmly (but not so much it hurts the animal), lean over them in a dominate position, and say deeply "No bite". The same thing works with barking btw. BUT you HAVE to be consistent or no amount of training will help.

I agree with all but grabbing the muzzle. A simple but firm and consistent NO will do. Grabbing an animal's muzzle, to an animal, is perceived as an aggressive act. We need to be consistent - no aggression on either side. And just to clarify, that doesn't mean we can't be dominant over the animal. It just means we're not inviting problems when we don't have to. An animal whose muzzle is grabbed (and hurt, whether you think it or not) will develop sensitivity in the muzzle, and heaven help the unsuspecting person who touches it by accident, even years later. Why even go there?

 

[kacaju]

I did not have time last night to explain why I'd favor rehoming the dog now.

While I agree the OP made some, and is still making some, mistakes, the facts won't change. This family and dog are not a good fit for one another. The child is going to continue to be hurt and I'd predict that the dog is ultimately going to lose his life over it. Better to find a person or family that's a better fit NOW than to wait this out.

Here's why:

The dog is young and his behavior is only going to strengthen as he gets older.

He's already "won" (in his eyes) TWICE against the child by biting him in the face. I'd ask what the repercussions were at that time for the dog? Did anything happen then? Were any changes made then? Make no mistake about it - it IS going to happen again, unfortunately.

The breed of dog - Cocker Spaniel. As others have mentioned, they are notorious for biting. I believe that many experts in the breed recommend homes with OLDER children to begin with. This is for a few reasons. A) a dog who tends to dominate can do it easier with younger children and B) older children are simply generally better at handling dogs than younger children. (And if anyone feels badly about my saying this, I can say it's true for my favored breed of dog as well: German Shepherds. I myself was turned down for rescuing a GSD when my children were below their recommended age level, also, despite a lifetime of experience with the breed. And I was really upset about it until a few years later when friends with younger children adopted a GSD - no holds barred - and the dog bit and severely injured a child visiting their home. The child required hospitalization and surgery, and the dog had to be euthanized. It was heartbreaking all around, and probably could have been avoided if the rescue group had the age rules in effect.)

Experience of the owners. No offense, OP, I'm sure you're a lovely person (you sound it). But a lovely person does not a firm and knowledgable owner make. And in today's world, that's what you have to be if you're going to own a dog in good standing. I am going to point out a few things for you, but also for others reading this who may be thinking about getting a dog or wondering about their own issues with their dogs, etc.

First, you really have to 1) sit down and do your research - yourself. Only you can know your own situation enough to make an informed decision. This process could take a very long time, as in months to years. (Which rules out impulse purchases right there.) Learn about the breed. Sure, dogs are individuals. But their behavior is driven by their genes and you can't change it, no matter how hard you try. (You can mold it, but not change it.) So it's necessary to learn what the breed was, well, bred for, because that will still be the type of behavior you see. Then you need to ask yourself if this will be a good fit with your family. What types of problems are known with the breed? Health, behavioral, longevity, etc. If you have children in the home, how are they generally with children? Visitors? You might want to look at "bite statistics", which I'm not sure are completely reliable (dependent on who's identifying these dogs - most mixes are called "Shepherds", for instance) but will give you some idea on how you need to proceed, etc.

Second, once you make a decision on what dog might work well in your household, you start figuring out how you're going to make this dog into a good citizen of your household and your community. That means a bit of studying (Good Owners, Great Dogs is the book I recommend most) and finding a good training group to join. Go and watch a class, watch what they're doing. Talk to the trainer. Research why group classes would get you and your dog off to a great start, and how to involve the kids in training.

When the dog comes home is when the real work has to start. And yes, it's a lot of work. Just about every minute of every day. It's a lifestyle, basically, especially when you own the type of dog that is known to have problems if left to their own devices. HOWEVER, with that said, it's a mistake to become complacent and think that the dog you own, even if it's one of the "friendly" breeds, will never cause problems. ANY DOG CAN BITE. Which is why common sense must rule. I shudder when I hear people say, "My kids can do anything to my dog and the dog is fine". NOT OK!! Kids HAVE to be allowed to respect the dog every bit as much as the dog needs to respect the kids. Never let kids poke, jump on, pull at, hit, tease, push, pull, kick the dog - ever. And in the interest of fairness, the dog should never be allowed to mouth, nip, push, growl at, knock over, take things from, etc, the dog. It's so much easier when these are the rules. But it generally is the exception. I'm always amazed at how many people, adults included, I see literally teaching their dogs aggression. It's giving the dogs mixes messages. Dogs are very happy to abide by your rules, whatever they may be. They just have to be clear to the dog. And consistent. Is it a lot of work? Yes, it is. But it becomes a way of life. This is when you have a dog that's reliable.

In my home, the rules are clear. No dog teeth on human skin EVER. No tug of war games that pit the dog against the person. No teasing the dog; no nipping the kids (a constant challenge with a herding breed dog - I taught my dog, for instance, to carry a soccer ball in her mouth when she's out with the kids, knowing her instinct to herd them will never go away. Instead of nipping, she bumps them with the ball and it's a win-win situation instead of a potentially harmful one). Is my dog a deprived, lost soul? Hardly. In fact, because she's generally well behaved she gets more priveledges than a dog who's not. She acts as an ambassador to the breed when people can come up and pat her (as long as they behave; please don't come up and slap her in the face trying to get her to "play rough" as I've had people do; or growl in her face to see what happens, etc). Over 4th of July we sat near a family with a special needs boy who was fascinated with her, and he sat patting her for much of the night. By contrast, my DH saw people walking two GSDs and asked if he could pat them but there was no way, they were wild, barking and pulling, and the people said no. ) When I have my dog out, people often tell me how "lucky" I am to have such a great dog. Sorry, but there was no "luck" involved whatsoever. She was my most challenging dog to train ever and I've worked my butt off with her for the last six years. But my hard work has paid off and she's a great dog now, for the most part.

In the OP, this came out at me:



Clearly, you made some mistakes. But from the dog's perspective, he's been allowed to get away with biting your DS. IMO it would be very difficult at this point, if not impossible, to get the dog to the point where you could insure he would not do it again. Note, I may not feel this way if you were very experienced and firm owners. You were somewhat on the right track when you thought about training and stopped her from getting on the sofa, but you never followed through. From the day the dog entered your household, he should have had firm rules about what he could and could not do. You, unfortunately, dropped the ball on that one and there's no going back now, at least to the point where you can feel your DS4 is safe around the dog. I'd tend to think that the dog would be better off in an adults only household with experienced Cocker Spaniel owners who are firm and consistent with him. Or a home with (much) older children who are also experienced and consistent. It will be easier while he's young to find him a new home.

When and if you decide to get another dog, I think you'll have a better experience all around if you research it a little better and educate yourselves about what it takes to mold a dog to be reliable around young children. Pick up a copy of Good Owners, Great Dogs, by Brian Kilcommons and Sara Wilson.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

I am going to agree completely with Pea-n-me. I have been around dogs my whole life, from showing to working at a vet and now back to shows with my daughter.

As Pea-n-me has experienced, I also have people tell me how lucky we are with our dogs, how well mannered they are. They are this way because we put the time into training them.

if you ever get a chance, go to a dog show. You will see just how well behaved dogs can be.

 

[LilyWDW]

I agree with all but grabbing the muzzle. A simple but firm and consistent NO will do. Grabbing an animal's muzzle, to an animal, is perceived as an aggressive act. We need to be consistent - no aggression on either side. And just to clarify, that doesn't mean we can't be dominant over the animal. It just means we're not inviting problems when we don't have to. An animal whose muzzle is grabbed (and hurt, whether you think it or not) will develop sensitivity in the muzzle, and heaven help the unsuspecting person who touches it by accident, even years later. Why even go there?

I have trained 6 dogs in this manner using 4 different schools and ALL suggested gripping the muzzle. I would do nothing that would hurt my animals. All of these schools had multiple people in each class and multiple classes at the time I took them. So that means they were ALL telling 100's of people the wrong thing? I doubt that.

 

[luvmy3]

I agree with all but grabbing the muzzle. A simple but firm and consistent NO will do. Grabbing an animal's muzzle, to an animal, is perceived as an aggressive act. We need to be consistent - no aggression on either side. And just to clarify, that doesn't mean we can't be dominant over the animal. It just means we're not inviting problems when we don't have to. An animal whose muzzle is grabbed (and hurt, whether you think it or not) will develop sensitivity in the muzzle, and heaven help the unsuspecting person who touches it by accident, even years later. Why even go there?

What you say makes alot of sense which is why I'm very surprised that the vet we saw last week told us to do this exact thing to our puppy when she bites us

 

[Pea-n-Me]

There are lots of things that people still do and still recommend that are really just dumb when you think about them. The reason they're still recommended is because, to a degree, they work. But let me ask you this (you to nobody in particular, just a you in general): WHY would you want to grab a dog's muzzle (likely in anger, if you're dog just nipped), when a simple NO will do? Ask yourself, does this make sense?

 

[LilyWDW]

There are lots of things that people still do and still recommend that are really just dumb when you think about them. The reason they're still recommended is because, to a degree, they work. But let me ask you this (you to nobody in particular, just a you in general): WHY would you want to grab a dog's muzzle (likely in anger, if you're dog just nipped), when a simple NO will do? Ask yourself, does this make sense?

Yes, it does. It is not done out of anger or with enough force that it would harm the animal. You put the four fingers on your hand on the top of the muzzle and the thumb underneath. You do not squeeze or grab violently. Considering this is based off of actual pack dominance behavior, yes I think it makes sense.

And I trust my vets and known animal experts. Why shouldn't I? They love these animals as much as I do and would do nothing to harm them.

*Edit/add* I just want to note, I'm not trying to be rude. Right now though, the posts I responded too felt like a bit of an attack on how I treat my animals. This is most likely just an emotional perception that I am having. We had to put one of our labs down last weekend because of illness. She could no longer fight infection by herself at all and could barely walk. She lived to be 14 happy and healthy and then started to go downhill. It was one of the hardest things I have had to do as I felt like I was giving up on her, even though I knew deep down that her quality of life wasn't good at all.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Yes, it does. It is not done out of anger or with enough force that it would harm the animal. You put the four fingers on your hand on the top of the muzzle and the thumb underneath. You do not squeeze or grab violently. Considering this is based off of actual pack dominance behavior, yes I think it makes sense.

And I trust my vets and known animal experts. Why shouldn't I? They love these animals as much as I do and would do nothing to harm them.

Well I disagree, Lily, and that's ok. I'm not going to get into a debate about it. People can decide for themselves what works. We've both given them food for thought.

BTW, I did not mean to imply you'd intentionally hurt your dog(s). I just meant that when a dog's muzzle is "grabbed" (which is how you phrased it originally and exactly how people likely interpreted it), especially if it's done as a correction for a nip or bite, it can indeed be painful to the dog (try doing it on yourself) and can indeed cause sensitivity to the muzzle area. You may be gentle when applying this maneuver, but it doesn't mean the vast majority of people are. And all when it's unnecessary in the first place. ETA often a dog bites it's own tongue in the process as well.

If you want to get into pack behavior, I can go there. Mothers in the wild use a stare at their babies to correct them the vast majority of the time. It's all that's necessary.

 

[LilyWDW]

Well I disagree, Lily, and that's ok. I'm not going to get into a debate about it. People can decide for themselves what works. We've both given them food for thought.

BTW, I did not mean to imply you'd intentionally hurt your dog(s). I just meant that when a dog's muzzle is "grabbed" (which is how you phrased it originally and exactly how people likely interpreted it), especially if it's done as a correction for a nip or bite, it can indeed be painful to the dog (try doing it on yourself) and can indeed cause sensitivity to the muzzle area. You may be gentle when applying this maneuver, but it doesn't mean the vast majority of people are. And all when it's unnecessary in the first place.

If you want to get into pack behavior, I can go there. Mothers in the wild use a stare at their babies to correct them the vast majority of the time. It's all that's necessary.

Yea, I use the word "grabbed" and it's not really the best word to use. It is more of a way to gain some control of the animal so that you can apply the dominance behavior. It is so much easier to show then to explain because the words just are NOT matching the actual actions. Know what I mean? My wording was bad, so I believe that what people are visualizing is NOTHING like what I was meaning.

We can agree to disagree, I understand that. I just didn't want anyone to think I would intentionally injure my dogs or suggest that someone else does so. No one way of discipline is going to work on every animal. It's just like with a child. What works on one may not work on another. For our current dog (our other lab) the muzzle thing did not work. He thought we were playing. It took a LOT more work with him (both because he was the most stubborn dog I know and because we had one member of our household who babied him and was not consistent in the training like the rest of us).

However, this is just an internet forum. Anyone who is having behavioral issues with their pets should speak to their vets for suggestions and references for good trainers.

And I am sorry for allowing my emotions get the best of me and make me more defensive.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

*Edit/add* I just want to note, I'm not trying to be rude. Right now though, the posts I responded too felt like a bit of an attack on how I treat my animals. This is most likely just an emotional perception that I am having. We had to put one of our labs down last weekend because of illness. She could no longer fight infection by herself at all and could barely walk. She lived to be 14 happy and healthy and then started to go downhill. It was one of the hardest things I have had to do as I felt like I was giving up on her, even though I knew deep down that her quality of life wasn't good at all.

I assure you, I was not attacking you, just responding to your comments the way I see them based on my own knowledge of dogs and dog training. I am very sorry about your loss.

 

[EllenFrasier]

If it was me, I would either contact my vet and ask for the name of a positive dog trainer, or I would do some research on google.com and look up "positive dog trainer" in your area where you live.
It is no fun having a dog that you know can bite. We used to have a dog that had the potential to bite. If the kids went too close when he was chewing a bone, woke him up suddenly, that kind of thing - he growl and lunge, but he never bit them. Then one time he was limping and I went to look at his paw, had not touched him yet, and he bit me! Hard and it hurt. When he finally let go of my hand, I shoved him out in the yard where he stood at the sliding glass door wagging his tail like nothing happened.
We took him the next day to be euthanized. He was 10 years old and had been like that for 8 years. So far, he had been all noise but once he actually bit someone, I was afraid he would bite our children who were young at the time and could fall on him or walk too close when he was eating. I do not think any training would have worked on him because he had acted like that for so long, but in your case the behavior just started, so it's worth a try.

 

[jt'smom]

i have 2 pure-bred cockers, both boys, 5 years old, from the same litter. this breed has had a lot of issues from overbreeding, and there are horror stories out there, but they really are great dogs if given consistent training early on. cockers are HUGE foodies, anyone who has one will tell you that they beg like no other, and for that reason it is really important to establish boundaries with the dog. also, in the first year they are big-time chewers (ours ate an entire upholstered ottoman and the runners off a wooden rocker) so they need plenty of appropriate chew toys! our "boys" were never mouthy with us, but we did get lots of advice and training from a trainer when they were puppies. my son was 8 when we got them and we never had a problem, but oddly enough he was attacked by our neighbors cocker spaniel and bitten so bad he had to go to the emergency room!

the vet and trainer should be able to help, but for me personally, i'd make sure to keep my kids up and away during mealtimes. i hope it works out and you are able to keep the puppy