Hi all im after some serious advice.

I have a 9 year old dog, he is a bearded collie and we have had him since he was 6 weeks old so he is like one of the kids.

However i have 2 young boys aged 5 and 3 and the dog is very grumpy with them , snapping at them if they get to close and grumbling at them to.

it seems to be getting worse.

last night my youngest lad stumbled over the dog whilst playing and the dog barked quite aggresivly at him.

then about half an hour later the dog was sat by the sofa and my youngest boy again sat next to him playing with his toys and the dog snapped and has bit him just under the eye!!! leaving quite a nasty mark.

I love my dog to bits but this is happening more frequently and the kids are getting older and arent going anywhere.

I really dont know what to do???? the dog is like one of the kids and we used to treat him as such as we thought we couldnt have children for a while, i guess he has become jealous of my boys.

what can i do!!!!

help

Steve

i’m sorry for your situation, so please ignore the next sentence.

it was a kids face that time!

back to my post…

if it was me i’d get the dog down to the vets 🙁 similar thing happened to one of our dogs and turned out she had a tumor in her skull and the pressure was what the vets thought was causing the change of behaviour 🙁

The dog is trying to defend its position in the ‘pack’ – it sees itself as dominant over the children and is asserting that dominance aggressively.

I’m not an expert but my view is you either need to get the dog to be convinced the kids are higher up the pecking order than it is or get rid of the dog 🙁

thanks for the reply.

he has had cancer before but had the tumor cut off!! wonder if it has returned??

its no excuse though i think i know what i need to do but cant bring myself to do it!!

Dog owners get on my tits. who else could justify their pet biting a kids eye as “aw he’s a bit grumpy”? FFS it’s not like one of the kids at all, it’s a bloody dog! it would be put down straight away if it was mine!

Assuming that there’s nothing medically wrong with the dog, does it have a safe space that is clearly a “no-go” zone for your kids. Having a crate that the dog can go to in order to get some space away from two small boys might be all that’s needed. I believe it’s not unusual for dogs to get a bit stressed out around energetic children.

Another option might be to pay an dog behaviourist to come and give you some frank advice about how various members of the family interact with the dog – everything may be fine, but it may be that one or two changes in the way some or all of you treat him will solve the problem.

Hope you find a successful resolution to the problem – must be pretty distressing for you.

http://www.apbc.org.uk/

We picked up a rescue spaniel a week and a half ago. 90% of the time he’s cracking, but he has a fairly tricky streak in him as well. Very possessive over balls and one of the sofas, so teeth bared and lots of growling.

Just a case of sorting out the pack order, both in our and your case I reckon. Interesting that it’s only just starting to manifest though. Any dietary changes? Increased drinking? Sleeping longer?

have a look at the Mikki muzzle , a tenner for peace of mind while you sort the behaviour problem out .

http://www.k9muzzles.co.uk/?gclid=CKivpPzk0qcCFRRC4QodhDaX9Q

to be fair the kids know not to go near his bed as that is his space .

the problem is he seems to getting worse , kids just walk past and he is grumbling at them .

I’ve got an older dog who sometimes gets grumpy if the others get too close. He’ll bark and air-snap if they stumble over him – the reason is that he’s got arthritis in his back end. We keep him comfortable with medication, but he doesn’t need to be banged about or have paws prodding all over his hips.

As a first step, have the dog checked out at the vets. Then try to explain to the kids that he’s getting on a bit and is getting a bit delicate. Maybe see if you can improve upon the supervision of your kids around the dog.

How about getting a dog crate – not so much to keep the dog in, but the kids out. Put his bed in, a few toys/treats, it would become his place of refuge. It doesn’t have to be a metal cage, maybe a soft crate similar to this:

http://www.doggiesolutions.co.uk/dog-soft-crate-8842-0.html

I’m fully with GW on this, its a dog, yes it’s been a friend to you for some time but for christ sake do you value its life over that of your children?

Dog owners get on my tits. who else could justify their pet biting a kids eye as “aw he’s a bit grumpy”? FFS it’s not like one of the kids at all, it’s a bloody dog! it would be put down straight away if it was mine!

And that’s why people like you should never own pets! Granted children come first but surly the dog deserves a chance to get the problem sorted/looked at? A lot of people just bin there pets at the first prob. Go to the vets make sure there are no health issues, if not see a behaviour expert and keep him muzzled if necessary and take it from there. hope things work out.

Its a bloody dog not a child, its old, no doubt had a good life but why keep an animal suffering? Thats just selfish and cruel. I’d take the old thing outside, shoot him and bury him in a nice spot in the garden.

Then you can get a puppy, the kids will prefer that to ol’biteyface I can guarantee it!

Its a bloody dog not a child, its old, no doubt had a good life but why keep an animal suffering? Thats just selfish and cruel. I’d take the old thing outside, shoot him and bury him in a nice spot in the garden.

Then you can get a puppy, the kids will prefer that to ol’biteyface I can guarantee it!
Does this logic apply to wives and girlfriends too? Children? It makes sense.

why not, this could be the foundation of a new world order!

Hmmm…. where did I put my spade?

racist!

😆 I should have seen that coming.

I’d agree with this…

The dog is trying to defend its position in the ‘pack’ – it sees itself as dominant over the children and is asserting that dominance aggressively.

I’m not an expert but my view is you either need to get the dog to be convinced the kids are higher up the pecking order than it is or get rid of the dog

Taylorplayer’s suggestion is good. Animals often react unexpected like that when they are in pain or feeling very unwell. First I would do is organise a visit to the vets.

Although I am loathed to comment on such a moronic statement as this :

“Dog owners get on my tits. who else could justify their pet biting a kids eye as “aw he’s a bit grumpy”? FFS it’s not like one of the kids at all, it’s a bloody dog! it would be put down straight away if it was mine!”

It should maybe pointed out that yes, owning a dog carries risks towards children, just like everything else in life, allowing them to cycle, go swimming, etc, but you don’t necessarily as a first option, stop the activity the moment you are presented with a possible problem. Owning a dog is a hugely beneficial experience which can greatly enhance people’s lives by making them more healthy and fun – including children’s. And there is also imo a moral responsibility to feel somewhat indebted to a dog/pet after years of providing loyalty and enjoyment, not to simply rely on the first, easiest, and cheapest solution.

Good luck.

or its got another tumor and when you next pop out it could turn on your children and tear them to shreds, still I’m sure it’s nice to have him around.

Could you ever forgive yourself? I think you know the answer, the old dog has had its day.

to be fair the kids know not to go near his bed as that is his space

Your kids should have priority over everything in the dogs eyes. If the kids are more dominant in the relationship than the dog they should be able to go and sit in it’s bed and the dog should except it.

(when i took my dog to training it was suggested to occasionally sit in the dogs bed to help assert dominance)

ha ha.. 😀

Pwned by the dog trainer!

or its got another tumor and when you next pop out it could turn on your children and tear them to shreds, still I’m sure it’s nice to have him around.

Gosh, that sounds scary. Have you got any other equally terrifying scenarios which you could apply to cycling, swimming, tree climbing, or being left alone with Uncle Dave ?

or its got another tumor and when you next pop out it could turn on your children and tear them to shreds, still I’m sure it’s nice to have him around.

Could you ever forgive yourself? I think you know the answer, the old dog has had its day.

Why would anyone leave a three year old and a five year old unsupervised with a dog ? It’s irresponsible.

Even if it turns out that there is nothing wrong with the dog, this situation could still be managed to the benefit of all.

Please take your dog to the vets to get it checked out before making any rash decisions. My friend works for a dog rescue and recently helped to rehome a dog that had originally been taken to the vets to be put to sleep for biting their son. The vet did a health check and discovered a wax crayon rammed down the dogs ear. I am not suggesting that your children may have initiated this situation but if the dog is feeling under the weather for any reason, being stumbled over by anyone (more likely a child due to their exuberance/not looking where they’re going abilities!) is more likely to gain a grumble from the dog.

The next step if the dog is physically fine would be a behaviouralist, your vet should be able to recommend someone with a good reputation.

If, after all this, the situation is the same then you have some difficult choices to make. An old dog that doesn’t like children could make an excellent companion for an older person who has no children in their life, it doesn’t have to mean the end of the dog.

Good luck.

Pwn it with bombers.

thanks for all the replies.

i dont think the dog is ill in anyway he has just taken a dislike to my kids as they are loud and bouncing around all the time like young kids do.

he doesnt like the fact they sometimes bump intoi them and he has had to take a backseat since we had children.

Has anyone said.. bloody hell phil got in there early! 🙁

what becca said. and what bullheart said too. its all about pack superiority. hes older than the kids so thinks hes higher in the food chain. vet, behaviorist then rehome if nothing can be done. either that or its the one way trip to the vets.

My wife is a bearded collie breeder
I have had them for 25 years

This is not normal behavior for the breed, something is wrong- get it checked by a vet or maybe talk to your breeder

i dont think the dog is ill in anyway he has just taken a dislike to my kids as they are loud and bouncing around all the time like young kids do.

This is not normal

he doesnt like the fact they sometimes bump intoi them and he has had to take a backseat since we had children

there is a long waiting list for rescue beardies at the moment, beardie rescue should be able to help

Where are you based?

Tickle his balls – always works for me.

Oh and long shot but if it’s one of ours we’ll always take him back (as most beardie breeders will)

i dont think the dog is ill in anyway

Excellent. How about getting a vet to check him just to be sure.

this isnt the first time he has nipped at them but it is by far the worst!

anyway he is now at rest ,vet put him to sleep this afternoon, one of the hardest decisions ive ever had to make.

i know for a fact he would not of settled with another family.

thanks for the replies

steve

sorry to hear that steve – you had to do the right thing for your children but not a decision anyone would want to have to make.

one thing I would add is to make absoultely sure that the child ho was bitten isn’t left with the impression that it was somehow their fault the dogs gone because they got bitten – kids have an odd way of internalising things.

one of the hardest decisions ive ever had to make.

I can imagine. And for that reason I’m sure it must have been the right one. I hope you focus on that, and wwaswas suggestion concerning the kids sounds very wise.

Sorry he had to go bud, you did the right thing no doubt at all, wwaswas is spot on too, could be worth asking your kids if they’d fancy a trip to the rescue center?

I dont think getting another dog is a good idea at all, not until kids are older