Question for Rescue Groups

[Olivia]

Please feel free to move this if it needs to be in another forum.

 

I am a member of a border collie rescue group that is a licensed non-profit, etc legitimate group. Lately we've been having a lot of dogs that have bitten a person trying to be surrendered to us, a couple of dogs that bit once they got into foster care and one dog that bit after it was adopted. I am defining "bite" as breaking the skin and bringing blood.

 

We've had a no-bite policy in the past and have euthanized dogs for this but now we have foster homes saying they want to keep these dogs. I don't think it's a good idea. The question has been raised "what if it was a fear bite, not an attack?". I still say no. I don't think it's worth the risk to the group to knowingly adopt out a dog, even to one of our volunteers, that we know has a bite history, no matter the reason for the bite.

 

Even if we had a person sign a waver a good lawyer could have a field day with a group that sent out a known biter out into society.

 

If anyone that is part of a rescue group would care to share their policies I would much appreciate it as we (the board of directors) are meeting next week to reorganize our policies and rewrite our contracts and such. If you would rather PM me that is fine too.

 

Thanks!

[Journey]

The only exception I have ever made was with Grace, the 8 week old so called "feral" pup that was p/u in the woods of GA. by AC. Otherwise, I agree with you entirely. An absolute no bite policy, of course, owners will lie to you....Grace, btw, is living in the life of luxury and is awesome.

[Dixie_Girl]

Holly will live out her life with me because of her bite history. That we were not told about! I can never let her go to another home, even though I really believe that hers was fear/anxiety biting. The thing is, if a dog only bites from fear, how do you guarantee the dog will never know fear? It may seem cruel, but if rescues have 5 fear biters, waiting for that perfect, dog savvy, no chance of future litigation home to turn up, how many wonderful, good, non-biting dogs will die or suffer because there was no room for them? Because of Holly's instability and wackiness, I am no longer able to take in fosters. I was concerned when my nephew moved in with his dog, Hank. But Hank is such a laid back dog, her snarkiness, and nipping at him didn't bother him. I wouldn't know this with a foster. We don't create the problems, we can only help what we can help. And a biting dog, unfortunately, is just not placeable.

[Olivia]

Thank you both for your replies. They echo my thoughts, that biters, no matter the cause, are not adoptable. Part of the problem is that we have some foster homes that are very nice people but aren't the most dog savvy owners/trainers. They do great with the easy dogs but when things get dicey I don't have a lot of faith in them. I know they mean well by wanting to keep the biters but I don't trust that they can keep themselves and the public safe. At some point these dogs will experience fear or whatever triggers their biting and we (the group) can't risk being held accountable.

 

And I agree, with every one of these dogs we keep permanently in foster care we take up a space that a nice, normal dog could be in.

 

Glad to hear that Grace is doing so well!

 

Holly is a lucky girl.

[workindogs]

I am a former founder and BOD member of what became a very large GSD rescue organization in the West. Aggression was the number one problem (fear, dominance, dog-to-dog, and dog-people).

 

As a whole, rescue volunteers have huge hearts and great love for dogs. A dog with a bite history not only occupies a place that could be occupied by a dog with no bite history....but placement of a dog with a bite history can jeopardize the future existence of the rescue and potentially pierce the corporate veil to jeopardize the personal lives of management. If you are considering placing a dog with a bite history, then I'd suggest a personal insurance policy.

 

We had instances of extreme and unreasonable pressure on a newly adopted dog (ie unsupervised children harassing a newly adopted dog endlessly and being bitten after crawling into the dog's crate where it had gone to hide or an attack by a small terrier where the new owners who were previously advised to introduce the two dogs slowly leaped into the fray to rescue "sweet poopsy"). The ensuing lawsuits threatened our very existence by the potential loss and/or loss of our insurance....which we could not operate without.

 

We did eventually develop "riders" which disclosed certain histories of puppy bites or extreme circumstances (a bite from a dog in extreme pain or whatever).

 

For the most part, it is prudent to euthanize...or "pass" on intervention.

 

Again, rescue volunteers have huge hearts and are generally passionate about rescuing misunderstood and mistreated dogs. Some pursue this with an unreasonable intensity. It's management's job to ensure the continuing existence and future of the organization with policies. You may lose some volunteers that can't see past the individual dog.....but the organization will continue and will attract new volunteers who will continue to rescue dogs in need who don't have bite histories.

 

Just my opinion.

[MrSnappy]

We have a policy of not adopting out dogs with a bite history as a general rule, and I have euthanized a handful of dogs for biting over the years. We have made several exceptions - I do not discriminate against dogs who have bitten children, specifically.

 

I HAVE let foster homes keep dogs who have bitten people, but only if I feel the foster home is equipped to manage such a dog. Usually the dog has bitten them. Most of the foster homes I give difficult dogs to are either capable of managing a dog like this for the rest of its life, or else they are the sort of foster home that is on board with euthanizing a dog that is dangerous. I don't give those difficult dogs to foster homes that are not unable to manage or rehab a dog, or who are likely to fight me on the euthanasia issue.

 

In the cases where the foster homes have elected to keep their dogs that have bitten while in foster care, they are required to sign a liability waiver and it is witnessed. In some cases, the dog has eventually been euthanized anyway. In others, the dogs have gone on to excel ... in one notable case, the dog is a stellar agility and flyball dog, and very exquisitely managed by his owner, who does a wonderful job with him. I have talked a few foster homes out of keeping their dangerous dogs, and in time they admit that correct decision was made and are grateful for my intervention.

 

I try not to take dogs who bite people at all. If an owner or a shelter tells me the dog has threatened, bitten, redirected or otherwise laid teeth on an adult, I decline to take the dog, unless there are extenuating circumstances. In the cases where I have been fooled or the dog has shown suspect behaviour later on, I euthanize it.

 

It becomes difficult when the politics of foster homes become an issue. Some foster homes take great offense to the suggestion that their dogs be euthanized, and even greater exception to the notion that they are not, in my opinion, capable of managing a dog that bites if they want to keep it to spare it euthanasia. For this reason, I have fewer foster homes than other groups, and over the last 12 years have gotten considerably pickier about what I will and will not take into rescue. Frequently I am "the bad guy" who makes tough choices about dogs' fates, but someone has to do it. While I have lost some foster homes over euthanizing dogs, over the years I have also cultivated a keener sense for the kind of foster home that is on board with how I operate, so it happens less and less.

 

I would rather take fewer dogs and ensure they are all good representatives of rescue dogs than help everything I can and risk taking in a load of dogs that are dangerous, or difficult / impossible to rehome.

 

RDM

[eclare]

My first major dog bite came from one of my fosters. He broke the skin in multiple places and I ended up spending most of the next two days in the emergency room with an IV drip of antibiotics to deal with the resulting cellulitis. We still adopted the dog out, and even though I had no part in the decision to do so, I agreed with it given the context of the bite and what I knew of the dog's general behavior. I'm not sure what the organization's specific policy is, or if they even have one, but in general they seem to cover all of their legal bases quite well, so I assume they've done their homework on this one.

 

I was very up front with the adopters about the bite. I explained exactly what happened, what signs they should look for for agitation in this specific dog, whom I had had for several months, and what human actions might trigger a negative response.

 

So maybe it was irresponsible of us to adopt the dog out, but it didn't seem right to condemn him for the utter stupidity on my part that led to the bite.

[juliepoudrier]

Eclare,

While I agree that utter stupidity on the part of the human might be a mitigating factor when it comes to bites, people do lose focus, forget themselves, and make mistakes, and when that happens, bites happen. I don't think it's worth the risk. Perhaps in very controlled situations, such as Sheena describes, but otherwise I fear it's setting the dog and the human adopter up for failure, and could also be setting the dog up for some serious mistreatment if the injured person (or their loved ones) decides to retaliate on the dog after a bite. (It's this latter possibility that actually really makes me not want to place a dog with a known bite history--too great a risk that the dog will bite and will be abused, or worse, as a result.)

 

I've had a dog for nearly 11 years that I took in at 18 months with the intent to place. I discovered he is a fear biter. He has bitten me on maybe four or five occasions, once seriously (broken skin, necessary trip to urgent care--this occurred in the past year, after years of successfully managing this dog). With the most serious bite, I was managing him the way I always have and to this day I'm still not quite sure what happened (long story, but I suspect that fact that he was in a smaller than normal crate at the time played a role). Every other bite incident was because I "forgot myself" and did something I knew to be a trigger (e.g., reaching for his collar). As he has aged, he has gotten less predictable, and things I used to be able to do to him (say, grooming, for example) I can no longer do because he threatens to bite. Despite years of careful management, he hasn't improved; in fact, he's gotten worse.

 

There is no way I could have placed this dog when I first got him and realized what he was. And even later, and even though the bites that occurred were due to *my* mistakes. I'm a dog savvy person, and I have managed this dog for years with only the one serious incident, but I wouldn't dream of expecting someone else to manage him that way. That's why he's still with me, and that's why, if anything should happen to me, my dog directive explicitly states that he is to be euthanized.

 

I'm sure there are extenuating circumstances (mistreatment, a dog in pain, children being obnoxious) that could be considered, but I think a rescue would have to be very careful in those circumstances--as Elizabeth notes, problems down the line could mean the end of the rescue altogether.

 

J.

[Dixie_Girl]

Julie, exactly why Holly is still with me and will be for her life. There are too few people able to handle dogs like these and for me to have adopted Holly out, IMO, would have been irresponsible on my part. My rescue did leave the decision to euthanize with me.

[Dal & Mad's Mom]

Our policy is no biting and we really dont do foster homes. The worst bites I've ever had came from a foster for another shelter who had that"well meaning heart" and tried to transfer 2 biters who were being put down locally at the spca to us. She didnt disclose their bite history. The first one savaged me in a store parking lot landing an unknown amount of bites but, my coat deflected the bulk of the damage. The second was euthanized later for biting us repeatedly.

 

We really dont take owner surrenders esp Border Collies anymore because they are pawning off a dog that they dont want to euth. We actually returned one to an owner and made them take the responsiblity to euth after they flat out lied about the terrible bite history the dog had. It cornered my mom in a room over food. The dog had become so food agressive that it no longer applied to his food bowl but, the container any dog food or treat might be stored in.

 

Bottom line there are so many nice dogs who need homes and are kind and gentle. To the foster who wants to keep it. The total decision is going to be based on what happened, how severe the incident was and their plan for the future.

[MrSnappy]

If I had a dog in foster care who bit someone - anyone - as seriously as your foster bit you eclare, I would have immediately euthanized it. I don't know what the extenuating circumstances were, but the seriousness of the bite, and the amount of time you'd had the dog before the bite, suggest to me that the dog wouldn't be what I would consider "safe." While I am keenly aware that just about any dog can bite in the 'right' circumstances, unless you were kicking the shit out of it beforehand, or ran it over with your car first, I would not consider anything you did to be 'justification' for that kind of bite. It suggests to me that the dog is likely to bite again, and I would not like to see anyone a victim of that.

 

One of my first foster dogs many years ago savaged my partner in my absence. I was at class and he had done nothing more than get up to use the bathroom and she launched at him and ripped open his hand and arm - when I came home, he was still locked in the bathroom as he was too afraid to come out again. I took her in first thing the next morning to meet her maker. It is very hard to do this with a dog you have lived with, but if she would do this to someone she lived with, I cannot imagine what she would be capable of doing to someone she didn't know that set her off.

 

OTOH, my TWooie dog bit me several times when he first arrived. He did not ever break the skin and I would consider him neither fear biter nor aggressive ... in fact, his default reaction to being afraid is to stick his head in my armpit. But when he first arrived he bit me when I groomed his tangly pants, and in one case, snarled me across the yard when I tapped him on the butt with the Chuck It for grabbing my pantleg when he got all worked up about the other dogs being excited. I do not make excuses for dogs who bite, yet there was something about The TWoo that suggested to me he would not be a problem once he decompressed - and today, I could not get TWooie to bite me if I tried, and nor could anyone else. I can do absolutely anything I want to him and he wags his tail at me. TWoo is a dog who simply needed to learn a new way to communicate his concern and because I am extremely positive with him, he has learned it. However, IME with a number of dogs I have attempted to rehab, TWoo is a rarity in this regard. Sadly my experience, like Julie's, has been that most of the dogs we get in who bite will bite again. I do not think it worth the risk, when there are so many other dogs out there who do NOT bite and need help and homes too.

 

Last night at agility class Mr. Woo got so excited that he jumped up in the air and bit me square in the boob. I definitely threatened to blue juice him, but as he is right now wrestling with my foster dog Maggie, it was obviously an empty threat ;-)

 

RDM

[eclare]

Like I said, the decision wasn't mine and maybe it wasn't wise, but that's what we did. I'm almost too embarassed to talk about the circumstances because I was so completely idiotic, but what happened was that Red (the foster) and Daisy were on the verge of getting into a brawl over a bone. I was distracted because I was on the phone, so rather than handle it rationally by sticking Daisy in her crate before taking the bone from Red and putting it away, I just reached down to take it from Red, at the very same moment that Daisy did. Red tried to snap at Daisy, but my arm was in the way. So, I guess in my view it was a case of dog on dog resource guarding that typically doesn't warrant euthanasia or an adoption ban. Under normal circumstances he let me take things away from him with no problem, but he and Daisy, although they typically got along pretty well, had been known to argue over food and toys.

 

Anyway, that's what happened. Again, I don't know what the organization's policy is on biting dogs, so I can't speak to what they would do under other circumstances, but it still felt like the right decision.

[Ms.DaisyDuke]

The rescue I'm with is a little different. All of our dogs have been abandoned or are strays. We rescue them from rural areas and First Nations communities so most of them just float around peoples houses looking for scraps of food. None of them have had great experience with humans. Sometimes puppies we get in are semi-feral or scared sh*tless. These pups go to experienced foster homes who can deal with proper socialization issues. We have had to leave behind or euthanize a couple of completely wild puppies, but not very many. The adult dogs are different. They only go to foster homes who can deal with potential issues and be honest with the dog program coordinator about their ability to rehabilitate. We also have a trainer at our disposal to help assess dogs and trouble shoot potential issues. We won't pick up dogs who show severe dog or human aggression, but we do deal with fearful dogs quite often.

 

If a previous adopter wants to return a dog to us for biting or aggression issues (dog or human) etc. we don't generally take them back. We will point them in the appropriate direction to getting the proper help and will have our trainer asses the dog to determine if the owner can work with the dog or if it should be euthanized.

 

Last summer I did have a foster that was a return who had bit her previous owner. Broke the skin, drew blood, but I don't think he required stitches. We didn't hear about this until after we took the dog back. I sat down with our trainer, she assessed the dog, and we found out the real reason of the bite. The owner had cornered the dog, was yelling at her and tugging on her chain (she was tied to a tree) and then proceeded to alpha roll her for not coming when called... she was tied to a fricken tree. I monitored her for quite a while and she showed absolutely no issues with strangers, men, other animals etc. and she absolutely blossomed with positive training. She was re-homed and she is one hell of a dog now. That is only one dog with a bite history out of who knows how many in the last 5 years that I've been volunteering that wasn't pts though.

[Tommy Coyote]

I am taking care of a dog right now that is a terrible biter. Springer spaniel bitch. It's a tough call for some people. They really love their dog. She does pretty well with women but when I take care of her I never push her on anything. I just let her do whatever she wants to. I don't trust her at all.

 

And she just plain attacks men. They have a man who comes in to help with the garden and housework. They didn't realize that Skippy was out in the house and they just yelled at him to come on in. Skippy nailed him while he was standing in the front door - and it was bad enough that he has scars. She got him on the arm and on his thigh.

 

And she also starts awful fights with their other dog. The poor owner who is in her 70's has been really hurt trying to break up the fights. The other dog is a little English cocker and she always gets ripped up. And then they have big vet bills.

 

Sorry, but I wouldn't put up with that. That dog takes all the fun out of owning a dog. And life at home is always centered on getting along with the dog so she won't bite someone and attack another dog. But its not my call. I just take care of her and thank goodness I don't have to try and live with her.

 

I take care of another springer that isn't this bad but he is really snarky, too. I wonder if it is kind of a breed thing?

[njnovice]

I am taking care of a dog right now that is a terrible biter. Springer spaniel bitch. It's a tough call for some people. They really love their dog. She does pretty well with women but when I take care of her I never push her on anything. I just let her do whatever she wants to. I don't trust her at all.

 

And she just plain attacks men. They have a man who comes in to help with the garden and housework. They didn't realize that Skippy was out in the house and they just yelled at him to come on in. Skippy nailed him while he was standing in the front door - and it was bad enough that he has scars. She got him on the arm and on his thigh.

 

And she also starts awful fights with their other dog. The poor owner who is in her 70's has been really hurt trying to break up the fights. The other dog is a little English cocker and she always gets ripped up. And then they have big vet bills.

 

Sorry, but I wouldn't put up with that. That dog takes all the fun out of owning a dog. And life at home is always centered on getting along with the dog so she won't bite someone and attack another dog. But its not my call. I just take care of her and thank goodness I don't have to try and live with her.

 

I take care of another springer that isn't this bad but he is really snarky, too. I wonder if it is kind of a breed thing?

 

My ex's parents had springer spaniels, and from what I understand, they can be pretty bitchy, even towards family. That's something I won't put up with.

 

Though, I'll manage a dog that's dog aggressive or aggressive towards strangers, provided they're excellent with me (or whomever lives in the house). I've never had a dog that wasn't trustworthy with the family. Allegedly, Mick was biting my ex, but I never saw proof of it, and if so, all I can say is, Mick tends to be an excellent judge of character...LOL.

 

They should put their two dogs on a crate and rotate schedule. It's a pain, but better than two ripped up animals/owner and vet/medical bills.

[geonni banner]

My ex's parents had springer spaniels, and from what I understand, they can be pretty bitchy, even towards family. That's something I won't put up with.

 

Though, I'll manage a dog that's dog aggressive or aggressive towards strangers, provided they're excellent with me (or whomever lives in the house). I've never had a dog that wasn't trustworthy with the family. Allegedly, Mick was biting my ex, but I never saw proof of it, and if so, all I can say is, Mick tends to be an excellent judge of character...LOL.

 

They should put their two dogs on a crate and rotate schedule. It's a pain, but better than two ripped up animals/owner and vet/medical bills.

 

You might find this interesting. It's an article about Springer Spaniels and the behavior called by some people "Rage Syndrome."

 

Oops. Forgot the link for everybody else... (I PMed Njnovice)

 

http://www.essfta.org/health_research/aggression.htm

[njnovice]

You might find this interesting. It's an article about Springer Spaniels and the behavior called by some people "Rage Syndrome."

 

Yeah, I've actually heard about that before. I heard Golden Retrievers can get it, too. So did my ex, actually.

[sea4th]

In the Archived Thread section is a thread "does he live or does he die". This thread is about Sam, a rescue dog I had who, for a minute, I considered adopting out, but never did and thank goodness. I don't know what was wrong with Sam. He was an incredibly smart dog. The post script to his story is that it's been 2 yrs. that I had him euthanized --- that, after 2 years of working with him. I would have kept him had he continued to be predictable, but two years ago, a routine interaction with him put me in the hospital and as I type this, I'm reminded of the plate and 3 screws I have in my hand because of that encounter.

 

Even so, I'm not always quick on the uptake, when sitting at my vet's office with Sam, who was on his best behavior at the moment, I started to have second thoughts about ending the life of this otherwise healthy dog. I said to my vet and her staff --- who thought I was doing the right thing --- to do some quick talking because I was beginning to have second thoughts. And talk they did and everything they said made sense -- and so that day, Sam died, muzzled on the examination table, and I told him as his life slipped away, that I was sorry that it didn't work out, sorry for what he might have gone through to make him the way he was. I had a lot of regrets that day, but releasing him from the pain I never could see, I don't regret.

 

I know I did the right thing for Sam and saved him from possibly a much worse episode in his life, had he bitten a stranger. I think I saved him from that and in that, I have to take comfort.

[juliepoudrier]

Even so, I'm not always quick on the uptake, when sitting at my vet's office with Sam, who was on his best behavior at the moment, I started to have second thoughts about ending the life of this otherwise healthy dog.

I think this is a perfectly natural response. It is probably the main reason that my known biter is still with me. I've thought about what happens if he bites a visitor. There are children who come by here. In general, my biter likes people, but it's also clear that his triggers have expanded or become more hairlike over the years and I've wondered if I am not really taking a great risk (for others, more so than for myself) by keeping this dog. And yet I can't bring myself to do otherwise. Because it's not really his fault that he is the way he is. Not a great space to be in.

 

J.

[Tommy Coyote]

I think this is a perfectly natural response. It is probably the main reason that my known biter is still with me. I've thought about what happens if he bites a visitor. There are children who come by here. In general, my biter likes people, but it's also clear that his triggers have expanded or become more hairlike over the years and I've wondered if I am not really taking a great risk (for others, more so than for myself) by keeping this dog. And yet I can't bring myself to do otherwise. Because it's not really his fault that he is the way he is. Not a great space to be in.

 

J.

Yea. It's a hard decision to make when the dog lives with you and is basically OK a lot of the time. I'm so lucky that I don't have to deal with that. All of my problem dogs have died of old age. My two left have really good temperments and it is so nice to not have to worry. They get along with people and with each other.

 

It was interesting that the two dogs I had that had serious personality problems both finally died of brain problems. I got both dogs as rescues at about 5 years of age. Molly couldn't stand for anyone to touch her. She wouldn't attack but if you so much as moved a hand in her direction she would just curl up in a ball and pee and scream and snap. She did pretty well after while as long as I didn't try to make any changes to her environment. She never did get so that I could reach for her collar but I just kind of worked around that one. I never took her around other people.

 

Bandit grew up in a backyard with people who never paid him any attention. He simply did not respond to people - not good or bad. I might as well have been a post as far as he was concerned. He was big and smart and an obnoxious bully. He was just a mess but he was my mess and I loved him anyway. He didn't bite except for one time when he got his foot caught in the fence and I tried to get it out - but he was frightened and it hurt so I discounted that one.

 

After they both died of brain problems I began to wonder if maybe their personality problems might have been related to being smacked in the head at some point. That's the problem with rescues. You just don't know what on earth happened to them that is making them so wierd.

[Tommy Coyote]

You might find this interesting. It's an article about Springer Spaniels and the behavior called by some people "Rage Syndrome."

 

Oops. Forgot the link for everybody else... (I PMed Njnovice)

 

http://www.essfta.org/health_research/aggression.htm

Thanks. I have heard of rage syndrome in springers. That article is helpful. I kind of wondered if it might not be a bunch of different things.

 

I heard about a chow puppy one time that attacked his owner when the owner turned around to go up the stairs. They had to kill that dog to get him off. I'm not sure where I heard that. I kind of wonder if it was just an urban legend that was going around.

[njnovice]

Thanks. I have heard of rage syndrome in springers. That article is helpful. I kind of wondered if it might not be a bunch of different things.

 

I heard about a chow puppy one time that attacked his owner when the owner turned around to go up the stairs. They had to kill that dog to get him off. I'm not sure where I heard that. I kind of wonder if it was just an urban legend that was going around.

 

Well, I consider Chows the ONLY breed I do not trust. Every Chow I worked with I could not get a reading on, and they were all biters...without any of the usual warnings. Give me a cane corso (or any of the typical "really scary" dogs) any day over a chow. Where I worked, they refused to take in purebred APBTs (don't know how that was enforced since we didn't ask for dogs registration papers) or male Rottweilers. Yet, Chows were common and all of them were nasty as hell.

[in2adventure]

Well, I consider Chows the ONLY breed I do not trust. Every Chow I worked with I could not get a reading on, and they were all biters...without any of the usual warnings. Give me a cane corso (or any of the typical "really scary" dogs) any day over a chow. Where I worked, they refused to take in purebred APBTs (don't know how that was enforced since we didn't ask for dogs registration papers) or male Rottweilers. Yet, Chows were common and all of them were nasty as hell.

 

Hate chows. I've met only one nice one in my life and she currently lives a couple houses down from me. She's a mix and only her body is chow. Her head is whatever else and her personality is pure sweetness. They are one of the nastiest breeds I've encountered. Totally unpredictable. My Mom's friend just had one of hers (she had 3) put to sleep do to aggression. It has put WAY more holes in people than should have allowed and he went down fighting at the vet's office, even after they gave him sedatives at home to make the deed easier.

[Smokjbc]

Hate chows. I've met only one nice one in my life and she currently lives a couple houses down from me. She's a mix and only her body is chow. Her head is whatever else and her personality is pure sweetness. They are one of the nastiest breeds I've encountered. Totally unpredictable. My Mom's friend just had one of hers (she had 3) put to sleep do to aggression. It has put WAY more holes in people than should have allowed and he went down fighting at the vet's office, even after they gave him sedatives at home to make the deed easier.

 

Chows are unpredictable and I've never liked them, but almost as bad are Lhasa Apsos. They can be hard to read, like a chow and have a cuteness factor that can be deceiving. Add that with bigger mouth than many small dogs have and they can do quite a bit of damage. I have a three inch scar on my calf to prove it - dog had bitten someone earlier that day but in a situation where the person acted wrongly (grabbed him when he was trying to escape.) He was fine for a bath and brush out, anal glands and nail trim that day (muzzle on, but never offered to bite or acted up) but when I tried to exit his run after taking the muzzle off, he tried again to escape. Simply tried to block him as I exited and he literally attacked me. I had bruises through my sneakers and finally he hit pay dirt and lacerated my left calf. Finally I got smart and opened the run door and let the little darling free - lassoing him at the door with a slip leash and placing him in a kennel with the leash attached so no one had to go in after him. Of course, his owners stated he had already been slated for euthanasia in the past but they changed their mind. He had bitten everone in the family and even after sending two vet employees (the first girl had multiple puncture wounds, I got five staples) to Urgent care, they still haven't made the decision to euthanize. The dog is as cute as a button and will seriously hurt another person or even worse, a child.

[in2adventure]

I agree about the cuteness factor of some dogs. It's so deceiving when they are cute and fluffy. So many owner are afraid to put their dogs to sleep but of the cuteness. "but he only bites once in awhile"