Worried about nipping/biting dog

[Savoir Faire]

Hello all!

We recently got a new dog (after our another new adoptee died) and he is a 9 month old lab/pit mix. Sweet guy-- but he's already pretty big (I can't pick him up!)

Backstory: This dog gets plenty of attention from us. Walks, playing/throwing/chasing his dog toys, belly rubs, you name it. I constantly am stuffing his Kong ball to keep him occupied-- otherwise he starts looking for kid toys to eat (ANNOYING! GRR!).

The other day, he was pretty riled up, playing with his toy. He was on the ground and I was leaning over the side of the couch, watching and smiling at how crazy he was.

And then, out of the blue, he turned around, jumped up and bit/nipped my face.

I'm not sure WHAT to call it because this bite/nip gave me a black eye and a bloody lip. Yes, that's how big his mouth was open.

I was upset but wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps he had just been too wound up. Either way, I started watching him like a hawk-- putting him outside if other kids came around and such. (I didn't leave him alone with kids-- if I take a shower, out to the back yard he goes).

Today, my 5-year-old daughter was sitting on the ground, playing with a telephone and he ran up and bit/nipped her face! This time, she wasn't having anything to do with him.

Again, he went for the nose/eyes...we're really lucky that he didn't hit either of our eyes.

I'm confused about what to do with him. I know that had he wanted to hurt either of us, he would have easily been able to do some serious damage-- but I'm scared of this continuing.

What to do with a nipper/biter???

[Momily]

I don't think you can keep this dog. Even if that means he's put down, I don't see how it's safe to have a big powerful dog that's drawn blood on 2 different people with no warning, and young children. A child that age can be counted on to provoke the dog (and if they went for the face and drew blood unprovoked, I can imagine that provoked might be much worse) and a dog that size can easily kill a child. My goddaughter at that age got attacked by someone's family pet who jumped the fence between their yards -- it's a minor miracle that the owner heard her screams and got there in time to pull him off while it was still only 3 or 4 surgeries, hundreds of stitches, and permanent scarring all over her face and one arm, worth of damage.

If you rescued this dog, ask about sending it back, but only if you're confident they won't place it with children. Otherwise I think your duty would be to have him put down.

I imagine that's not what you want to hear. I'm truly sorry.

[Tizzy]

Look in the safety forum...I think there's still a very long thread about a smaller dog doing similar things. A large dog, as sad as it is, should not get a 3rd chance IMO.

[SophieAnn]

Our pup was a bit like this when he was little, but he never drew blood. When he would get overexcited he would jump at our faces and snap his teeth, a few inches away - you'd hear his teeth clicking against eachother.

We knew this was over-excitement, and we knew that this behavior was completely unacceptable, so we worked hard on it by communicating to him every single time it happened that it was completely unacceptable. A loud "ouch", like a puppy yelp, play stops, toy goes away, and then we'd usually ask him to sit, or lay down for a short "stay". Then re-engage in more acceptable play. We had our guy from age 8 weeks and we consistently worked on stopping this behavior as soon as it started, so he doesn't do this anymore.

What worries me about your situation is that the dog is 9 months old now. How long has this been going on? It sounds like what (I do believe) was originally an expression of excitement has escalated out of control. Bite inhibition needs to be learned from a young age, and I would wonder if any sort of bite inhibition training ever happened.... This situation is even more important to address because there's kid(s) involved.

What would I do? Reread this book:
Before and After Getting Your Puppy: The Positive Approach to Raising a Happy, Healthy, and Well-Behaved Dog by Ian Dunbar

There's a lot on bite inhibition and basic puppy stuff. I would treat this dog as if it is a brand new (young) puppy - start from ground zero.

Meanwhile, look for a professional trainer you trust. Seek their help and expertise and work on obedience training as well as remedies to this specific issue.

If it doesn't seem like this can be resolved through training, then I don't think you can keep this dog. Your primary responsibility is to keep yourself and your kid(s) safe from harm.

[Savoir Faire]

Unfortunately, nobody was playing with him each this this happened. The first, he was playing by himself and I was watching from the couch and the second, my daughter was sitting on the floor, playing by herself.

Hmm.

[Ola_]

I'm trying to figure out exactly what happened. I mean like you said if he wanted to hurt your daughter that would have been so easy to do given his size and ability to access her face. Did he bite either of you, or was it a matter of a jump and him physically hitting you with his head/teeth?

I can't tell you is why he is doing it. But he's at the "bratty teenager" stage and I know my dog at that age was SUCH a handful. That's the most common age for dogs to be surrendered to shelters. My dog needed an enormous amount of exercise (I swear I'd exercise her for 50 min and in less than 10 min of rest she'd be ready for more, while I was still exhausted). Physical exercise as well as mental (training, tricks, little command drills sprinkled throughout the day) are crucial IMO.

I'd also put a lot structure in place for him. It's absolutely fine to use a crate (I hope you have one!) for "nap time" between activities. I'd probably do something like morning walk (30 min+), breakfast, play time, quick potty break, into crate with stuffed Kong/other toy till lunch, potty break, training session, play time, crate time with Kong/toy, afternoon walk, dinner, play time, more training, potty break, crate time for night. This is a rough outline and depends on your routine of course.

I'd also be asking him to do a down/sit or a combination of whatever non-pushy tricks he knows before you feed him, pet him, throw his ball, or give him attention. He needs a lot of exercise, training, and socialization/stimulation with the outside world. If you haven't taken any training classes I'd sign up for some pronto also.

Also, I'd be doing a lot of space games with him to enforce that he can't come into your personal space. I like the book My Smart Puppy for these. Many retriever breeds are oblivious to space because they are so physically insensitive. Sorry if this isn't very well organized, I'm just tossing stuff out as they come to me.

[greenmagick]

It really doesnt sound like aggression, it sounds like he just doesnt know how to play nicely and needs to learn bite inhibition.

A pp mentioned Before and After You get Your Puppy....I second that and guess what, its available as a free pdf!!!

Before You Get Your Puppy

After You Get Your Puppy

What training has he had? I would probably get a behaviorist involved as well just to make sure you are reading the situation correctly, timing things correctly, etc. It is a little disconcerning that he is 9 months so you definitely need to nip this in the bud.