16 Month Old Staffie Nipped Neighbours Son

Hi,

I'd really appreciate some advice and have tried to give as much info as I can think of.

Maisie our dog (spayed bitch) was out with me and my daughter, who is 16, this evening for her walk - on leash and harness - and we bumped into our neighbours little boy who's about 9 (Adam) and he stopped to say hello to her.

She jumped up on him and my daughter pulled her back but as we did so she made a funny growling noise and then I noticed Adam rubbing his wrist. I asked him if he was ok, he said he was and walked away.

At first I wasn't sure if Maisie had caught him with a claw when she jumped up so we made our way back home and I went over to my neighbour to make sure Adam was ok.

It turns out that Maisie has actually nipped him - this must have happened ultra-quick as I didn't see her do it - his skin wasn't broken and his parents couldn't have been more understanding.

I've spoken to my husband who has told me that the last couple of times he's taken Maisie out with him when he goes jogging she's lunged at people as they pass - more jumping up lunge rather than trying to take a swipe at them.

We've had Maisie since she was 12 weeks old - she was handed in to the local SSPCA centre as her mother attacked her and she was our second dog at the time - sadly our other dog (Border Terrier) passed away in the summer and since then Maisie has become quite dog aggressive but now I am very concerned that she's nipped a child as we also have a 3 year old son.

Adam didn't approach Maisie in an aggressive/quick manner and she jumped up on him a little but was pulled back straight away as we're discouraging this behaviour as part of her training.

We also found out recently that she had a pelvic fracture that had gone undetected - the vet suspects this may have happened when her mother attacked her when she was tiny. Although I don't see why this would have affected her behaviour tonight.

Any advice would be gratefully received.

Pamela (and Maisie)

hia from me and sasha,you say you didnt see it happen cos it was so quick,do you think the little boy got mixed up and it was one of her claws that caught him?

Hi,
Thanks for reply.
No, they have a dog of their own. I saw his arm and it was a small raised weal, skin not broken, thank goodness.
She's caught me like that before if she's been playing and trying to get a toy and maybe nipped my skin through my sleeve.
Pamela

i would just keep my eye on her when she is around him,they are excitable when greeting people so im sure it was an accident,sasha is 8 and when playing with my oh she still some times catches him,she always licks him to bits after to say sorry

If it was me and she'd done that at home she'd lick me to say sorry.
The fact it was a little boy outside who was just coming to say hello worries me.

If a dog is in pain it can lash out and show signs of aggression. Has the fracture healed completly? If not she needs to be able to rest so as to not further injure herself.

If she is jumping up at home you have to train her not to do this. Turn around and ignore the behaviour. The same goes for nipping. Until you are confident in her behaviour I would speak to people before they interact with her and make them aware of the issue. Have your dog sit calmly and then allow her to interact with the person.

Hi 7 welcome to the forum.

Oh dear, poor Adam. I hope he's ok?

As for Maisie, I doubt very much if it was aggression. A previously friendly dog (with humans) won't suddenly become nasty. You say she growled? Was it a proper growl or an excited 'rumble'?

I think what you're going to have to do is discourage her jumping up under any circumstances. I would imagine that she has nipped without even realising it herself. Any time she jumps up, whether in greeting or during play etc, say "no" & turn around immediately with your arms either straight at your side or crossed in fromt of you so that she knows you're not playing. Do this every time, and tell anyone you meet to do exactly the same thing.

How old is she by the way?

My boy is 3 and he still sometimes 'mouths'. When people make a fuss of him and then they stop he will often gently grab their wrist to pull their hand back down again to carry on petting him. This can result in either my pulling him quickly back or the person pulling their hand away quickly and it can be mistaken for aggression. He has never broken anyones skin or hurt them and I just wondered whether this is what happend with Maisie when you pulled her back.

Hi,
Thanks for the replies.
She's 16 months old. We're discouraging jumping up and chastising her for this and she is showing signs of improvement from how she'd been before.
Adam is fine - like I said his Mum and Dad couldn't have been more understanding - think as they have their own dog.
I called our rehoming centre today for some advice and they suggested a "Gentle Leader" to give me more control when I'm out with Maisie - she's currently walked on a lead and Puppia harness. A muzzle has also been mentioned for piece of mind so I'm planning to go buy these tomorrow.
Re the fracture - according to the vet it is an "old" break. X-rays had been taken and our vet had sent these on to Glasgow Vet School for a second opinion - but they've come back and said they're happy it's healed ok. The little boy was nowhere near her back/rump - he approached her face to face so I'm not sure she was reacting to pain.
I am going to make her an appointment to get checked over to make sure we rule out anything else.
Pamela (and Maisie)

*** Just re the other post about mouthing - she does this with us but as I said this happened so quickly that I think she has taken a nip as all in all the entire encounter must have taken less than a minute ***

I can personally vouch for the Gentle Leader. I use one on my boy because he pulls like a train - it gives total control. If he's on the leader, you won't need a muzzle because it loops around their nose, and IMO, muzzle's make a dog look a lot scarier than they are. I wouldn't use one unless you really are concerned that she may hurt someone.

I hope Adam is okay and it was hope it was just a one off with your girl. My boy does a low growly rumble when he wants people to fuss him - it sounds like Maisie did the same and got a bit over excited when Adam petted her.

Thanks Shontelle. I feel the same about muzzles (wouldn't hesitate to use them if it was a matter of safety though) but I always feel people make rash judgements about dogs wearing them.
I'll give the Leader a try and see how we get on with that.
I'll keep you all posted and thanks again for the words of advice, they're very much appreciated.

I agree with the gentle leader - it could well help. I wouldn't use a muzzle unless absolutely necessary - a muzzle (apart from looking bad) can make a dog feel vulnerable & may actually worsen the problem.

Good luck - let us know how you get on.

Hi,
Just to give you a wee update ...
My friend has a Gentle Leader that she let me borrow today (mine ordered and on way) so we could walk Maisie and try it out.
She hated it but quickly realised if she struggled it was useless.
My friend has 2 Siberian Huskies so Maisie and I followed them round their usual walk - we were joined by a handsome Staffie, Freddie, who would have loved to play with Maisie, a German Shepherd as well as passing various other dogs and she mostly took it all in her stride.
What a fantastic difference.
I think I'm feeling much confident in knowing she can't lunge at dogs or people so will keep you posted how we get on over the coming weeks.
Pamela (and Maisie)

Sounds promising! Keep it up!