Murphy just went to proper bite my son :(

I think you all know how i feel about staffies they are lovely and i am aware murphy is a x breed but i have to say im petrified. I can assure you me and our my son has never treated him badly he is well loved and never shouted at.
My son was sat on the sofa next to murphy not stroking him or anything just sat next to him as usual and Murphy all of a sudden goes to bite his face
OUT THE BLUE!!!
This was not a play mouth it was intended as a bite luckly hubby got him away before any great damage was done, how has this happened im devastated

What was Murphy doing before he went to bite? Was he eyeing your son at all? Has he ever growled at you or anyone you know and have you corrected him for growling?

yes he was eyeing him it was strange i have obviously missed something
I always correct him for growling he nipped back when he first came home but has seemed to stop?

is he getting daily walks?

He just had his second inoculation on friday he came to us with nothing. i was told to wait a few days before walking him although he needs it i can tell he is frustrated

how old is he?

yes he was eyeing him it was strange i have obviously missed something
I always correct him for growling he nipped back when he first came home but has seemed to stop

I just wanted to get a fuller picture before I replied. Only a dog with severe mental problems would attack without warning. If a dog is corrected for growling again and again then they gradually learn that voicing their displeasure is wrong and will start being a 'silent attacker'. As he couldn't growl to show his anger he was 'eyeing' you/your son instead, this is a big warning sign that something is up. Something must have obviously upset him. Had he been for a walk that day? Have you examined him to check he has no injuries-this would be the first thing to check. If he's sore he might be feeling out of sorts. If nothings wrong with him physically then I would ask how often he gets walked, what sort of food he eats and is he useally well behaved? Also is he a rescue dog? You mentioned he is an x breed, do you know what with? If you have a picture handy I could probably identify it for you.

He is 13/14 weeks steve i got him at 11 weeks. He is a jack russell cross he is my profile pic. As i have explained i have not been able to walk him as he has only finished his innoculations on friday he came to me with nothing. He is currently on iams puppy food but i usually feed him royal canin. Untill now he has been fab with my son.
He has no obvious injuries at all he is teething however x

i know its not good but at 13/14 Weeks he still a baby and he only been with you a few weeks and is still settling in i think it needs to watched as it not behaviour you want .
i deff think the teething may have something to do with it
good luck with it

Not to condemn the breed but Jack Russells can be really snappy. I have had experience of several and I love them but they can be nasty little b*ggers. They're a lot more difficult to train then a straight staffy and need a very firm hand. Hes still a puppy so I wouldn't panic too much, I thought he was an adult!
Sounds like he's pretty bored and in pain from teething and this combined with his terrier snappiness led to him lashing out. Of course its not acceptable and you must nip it in the bud but hes still young and learning his boundaries. You must keep a close eye on his body language, Jacks are notorious for eyeballing before snapping. I don't mean to sound rude but to say you're petrified of a puppy is a bit melodramatic. Is this your first dog?

Well it is rude and no its NOT MY FIRST DOG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I ment i am pertrified of my sons face getting bitten badly but thanks!!!

he still very young be consistent with him and he will come good, every dog is different my xena was prefect i didn't need to do much trainning she pick up up everything really quick, my sam was abit more work he used to bite my nose all the time when he was that age.

Thanks steve i will keep working on him. It was unexpected is all especially as my son has only just turned three he could get hurt easily x

when he gets daily walks he would learn quick

I know i cant wait till friday i may walk himfrom now it cant make that much of a difference two days can it?? x

i would wait for 2 days just in case

i suppose your right he just really needs it xx

get him toys to play with

i run a pet shop he has loads he still prefers to eat the wall :/ or toilet rolls or anything ceramic or jake x

dont he like balls? what i did with my dogs when they was pup i bought plenty of toys and place them all over the room yes it's messy but it works when they done with one they will move to the next one and hte next and so on they end up finding them asleep behind the sofa or on their bed they have hours of fun.

Steve wrote:he still very young be consistent with him and he will come good, every dog is different my xena was prefect i didn't need to do much trainning she pick up up everything really quick, my sam was abit more work he used to bite my nose all the time when he was that age.

tell me about nose biting steve memphis cought me atleast 4 times on the nose and it hurts and dont half bleed

he is still very young,am sure it must of really scared you,it would me!im sure soon as he starts getting the exercise he needs he'll be a different and calmer dog,good luck with him

I hope so stella hun im sure he will he is usually very happy and calm around him he just needs out roll on friday

samprettypawsboutique wrote:Well it is rude and no its NOT MY FIRST DOG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I ment i am pertrified of my sons face getting bitten badly but thanks!!!

Please don't be offended, the post was meant with the best of intentions.

Without having been there & witnessed it, it's difficult for anyone to say for certain that he was being aggressive. I know that you have your son to consider, and I don't blame you for being apprehensive now.

I would say that his innoculations, lack of exercise & teething have probably driven him up the wall, and a puppy can only express itself in so many ways. For the time being I wouldn't let him on the sofa at all. Keep him firmly on the floor where you can keep an eye on him. Don't get down on the floor with him either as this will over excite him.

Like you, I don't allow my dog to growl at me or my immediate family. I don't care if he doesn't want to do something, if I tell him to do it, he does it & if he growls I tell him off. However, if I do something to hurt him or irritate him, I would expect him to tell me! The only way he can do that is a growl or a yelp. So if he growls at me I first consider (very quickly) why it happened. If it's because he's unwell or hurt I just say "Ah, ah!", stand back and then forgive.

It's difficult to teach a toddler what to do with a dog, but for the time being I'd tell your son that the dog must not get on the sofa & if he does, he's to tell you & not try to get him off himself. Also tell him that for a while he must not get on the floor with the dog.

Hopefully, once he's over the vaccinations, the teething & frustration from lack of exercise you'll see a different dog!

P.S. You could try some mind games with him, like "Seek" to tire his mind while his body isn't getting what it needs. Oh, and what do you feed him & how often?

samprettypawsboutique wrote:
OUT THE BLUE!!!
This was not a play mouth it was intended as a bite luckly hubby got him away before any great damage was done, how has this happened im devastated

It couldn't of been out of the blue other wise it couldn't of been prevented. lucky it was prevented but there must of been something that ticked him off. sat on his paw/tail/blowing at him. from the dog stiffness/silence/staring.
It is obviouse though that this was not an attack, it was probabilly a warning snap (not acceptable either) Dogs don't just spring an attack no animal would there must of been something.
Seens you can not physically stimulate him try mentally stimulating him, puzzle toys are a plus, practice lead walking around your house, tricks/commands