Could I get advice from knowledgeable dog people?

[Anne in CA]

Two nights ago while we were eating dinner a man and his son came to our front door and told me that my golden retriever had reached over the fence and bit his son. The son was a large teen, and wearing thick clothes, it is really cold here, and the man said his son was not hurt, but concerned that our dog would bite a small child.

 

To set the back ground, we were not allowed to build a tall enough fence to keep the dog from putting his paws on the top. He cannot reach far over the fence, the ground is lower on his side than the sidewalk side. He cannot reach more than maybe six inches past the fence, and the sidewalk is a little more than a foot from the fence, so his was off the sidewalk if indeed he did get bit.

 

More background, the dog has never bitten anyone, and he is four years old. I have a very hard time imagining that after being patient with all manner of people he suddenly bit someone. I have seen teen boys reach over the fence and torment him and he keeps wagging his tail and barking. I have seen him scare some small girls walking by by barking and their father maliciously hit him on the head with a bicycle helmet and he did not offer to bite the man, so why would he do such a thing unprovoked?

 

I don't really believe he did, but I am wondering if it is possible for a dog to change after four years and start biting. I have kept him in the house to watch him closely, but he seems his sweet self. I suspect that the boy was lying to his father to get attention, or the boy did something really awful if the dog really bit him. But isn't that what most people think about their wonderful dog?

 

Is there anything I should look for? He just was at the vet and the vet said he was fine. I hate to take him back, but maybe I should? I don't know.:bigear:

[Live2Ride]

I think someone is not telling the whole story...and it sounds like the boy. Hang "Beware of Dog" signs on your fencing facing outward. Tell the neighbors to not reach over. You could always run an 'underground' fence wire around the perimeter of the fence and set the collar to keep the dog so many feet from the fence.

 

I think your dog was threatened some how. Many dogs take being provoked quite a bit before lashing out. Biting is their defense. It's not one that we want to encourage or allow, but it's there just the same. I would keep an eye on your pet for a while, especially when he's outside and the neighbor boy is outside. You will be able to see how your dog reacts to the neighbor. Could be that your dog just plain doesn't like him. I have a GSD and he is very particular about people he likes. We just kennel him when people visit, but we also have a 5 foot fence so that helps.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

While I think in this situation, the dog was clearly provoked by the teen in question, some dogs can change. We had a dog when I was growing up who suddenly started growling at the family and actually did bite the mailman. The vet said he had a brain tumor. So, a nice friendly dog can change if he is ill.

[DarlaS]

The dog was very likely provoked, however, goldens are known for being very territorial. This would be particularly true when their owner is not around.

 

It is also something that would not likely happen when still young as puppies tend to love everyone. So a personality change as the dog ages is pretty normal. I'd keep an eye out for how he reacts to strangers when he can't see you.

[TheHomeScientist]

I've had at least one and often several Border Collies since my parents brought the first one home when I was six years old, 52 years ago. I've also worked with highly-trained personal-protection and attack-on-command dogs.

 

Unless you have very good reason to believe otherwise, don't assume that the neighbor boy was lying or exaggerating or that he did anything to provoke the dog. Any dog may bite if it feels threatened, is protecting its territory, is injured or frightened, and so on. In particular a fence gives a dog a concrete boundary for its territory, and someone merely walking or even reaching into that territory may be attacked.

 

Most dogs escalate aggression, starting by growling, then barking ferociously, and perhaps making feint charges toward the intruder. If the intruder ignores the warning or shows aggressiveness (such as making eye contact or even smiling, AKA showing fangs), the dog continues to escalate. It may nip or snap before pressing a full attack.

 

Your dog may also have been abused by someone else when you weren't present. A few years ago not far from us a girl of 12 or so was savagely attacked by a neighborhood dog. It turned out that she'd been viciously taunting the dog and throwing rocks at it every day when she passed its house on the way home from school. That day, the dog got loose. Frankly, as much as I hate to see any child bitten, I think that dog was entitled to defend itself. It's possible that someone else did something to you dog recently, and it remembered that when the boy reached over the fence to pet it.

 

I think the idea of installing an invisible fence a few feet inside the real fence is a good one. An invisible fence won't stop a dog that's determined, but it will condition the dog to keep its distance from the actual fence, and that could make all the difference.

[Lolly]

Yes, a dog can change as they get older to become more aggressive. You have to believe the man and his son. I too would advise getting an invisible fence to keep the dog off of the real fence. Think of it as protection for your dog.

[AK_Mom4]

If cost is a problem, you could even put up a small fence or temporary barricade a couple feet inside your back fence to keep your dog away from the neighbor.

[Ellie]

Did you *see* blood and torn clothing?

 

Although I trust the folks who have said that a dog's personality can change, the situation still sounds fishy to me, given your description of your fence and whatnot. If your dog can only reach about 6" over the fence, it seems to me that the boy must have been messing with the dog such that the dog decided he was a threat and told him to back off the only way he can, KWIM?

[Anne in CA]

Thank you, I am glad to get so many good responses. I will try to keep in mind that it is very possible that the dog did bite the boy and not be so defensive. I will see if dh thinks we can install an invisible fence, although from what I have seen people might entice him over it.

 

He hangs over the fence with a ball in his mouth hoping for people to throw the ball. If he thinks they will, he might suffer the fence, I don't know for sure, but it sounds like it would help. Dh is thinking about running some wire along the top of the fence, but that wouldn't stop someone from putting their hand through.

 

I am watching him closely for sure.

[LauraGB]

What do you think your dog is capable of doing? Do you think a bite is possible if provoked?

 

When we had our Golden, if anyone had suggested something like that, it would have been absolutely laughable. However, I have learned since then that many Goldens have been inbred to a disgusting level (ours died from hip displaysia and genrally shotty bones at 5 years old), and that, sadly, territorial anger issues have been one of many noted results. While I don't have experience with that personally, it's something I wanted to share (I love Goldens - they are my favorite breed). With my own current dog, who is not a Golden, but where I can see the scenario you describe being a possibility, I might believe it, but I would need proof and I would need to know exactly what provoked her because I know she wouldn't bite anyone just for the sake of wanting something to bite.

Edited December 15, 2011 by LauraGB

[black_midori]

Run some electric fencing wire with an electric fencer attached across the top! Do it with the long attachments that puts the electric wire 6-12" away from the fence - your dog will absolutely stay away from this (mine keeps 1200+ pound horses who like to push through non-working electric fences at bay when it is on) and it is fairly likely that people will stop reaching in as much. No more putting the feet up & getting close enough to worry about biting!

 

I have to say - regardless of whether or not your dog actually bit this boy, you really really really need to protect your dog *and yourself* now from future allegations/issues by taking care of this however you can. Either get an electric fence (relatively inexpensive), get an invisible fence (very expensive), or build an interior barrier - but please please keep the dog away from the fence!

 

If he is close enough to irritating people who torment him over the fence or hit him with helmets, he is close enough to react aggressively at some point and hurt someone. When this boy steps forward and tells people "I told them the dog bit me", that will be 2 strikes & may make him end up being put down.