# Golden attacked our 4 year old



## Tagrenine (Aug 20, 2019)

This is so sad and not normal, but even if you didn't see any signs there were likely signs. If a dog is eating, encourage children to leave them alone. On another note, you never mention how old this dog is, if it's an older dog, this could be a result of canine cognitive dysfunction or a hormone disorder. 

But regardless, any dog can bite when provoked, even when you don't feel it was provoked and with the next dog, I would strongly encourage your children to either leave them when eating or crating the dog to eat.


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## SRW (Dec 21, 2018)

This dog attacked one child so you took it in to "help everyone". You then allowed your 4 year old son near the dog while it was eating and he was attacked.
Your husbands lawyer would most certainly use this against you in divorce court.


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## ceegee (Mar 26, 2015)

This is very sad. I'm sorry for your son, and sorry for your dog. I hope your son is ok. It must have been very frightening for him.

There are always signs of an attack; you simply didn't recognize them. For example, the dog may have gone stiff, or stopped eating, or gone very still. The growl may have been a very low grumble, difficult to hear if you weren't right there. Because the dog had already attacked a child, the signs may have been more subtle than the first time. As aggressive behaviour escalates, the warning signs become shorter and less obvious.

Dogs are resource guarders and should always be left alone when they are eating. It's honestly a bit irresponsible to let a small child bother a dog during its meal, especially when that dog has already attacked another child. And an attack, even if it's the first one, is always, always serious and needs to be addressed. When a dog has attacked once, it's going to do so again unless you do something about it.

To answer your first question: no, this is not typical for Goldens. A small minority of dogs, regardless of breed, are more prone to resource guarding and need more careful management. Because it's a natural behaviour in dogs, they can often be trained out of it if you start early enough, as soon as the signs emerge. In some cases humans actually trigger the behaviour by disturbing the dog while it's eating, fiddling with the food bowl, allowing children to pet the dog while it is eating, and therefore forcing it to guard. In a small number of cases it's a lifelong behaviour that just has to be managed. 

To answer your second question: whatever breed you choose, please, please train your children to LEAVE IT ALONE AT MEALTIMES. Dogs take about one minute, twice a day, to eat their meals, and deserve to be able to do so in peace. This is a very simple rule to enforce and will avoid a whole lot of problems. If you do get another dog, I'd urge you to take group training classes with a good trainer who teaches humans how to train dogs using positive methods. It will help you to read the dog's behaviour and avoid problems like those you have had. Dogs are animals and need training if they are to function well in the human world.

Best wishes to your son for a speedy recovery.


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## puddles everywhere (May 13, 2016)

I hope your 4 yr old recovers quickly .. both physically and mentality. 
You may have had good intentions but this could have been avoided with proper management, this is on you not the dog. A dog that is reactive needs to be fed in a crate, somewhere where people will leave them alone. Before taking on a problem dog it's good to learn what is necessary to keep everyone safe.


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## cwag (Apr 25, 2017)

It's not normal for a Golden but your current situation sounds like it might not be a good situation right now. Not to be critical, everyone goes through stuff, but dogs pick up on the stress people are feeling. If a dog has been punished for growling in the past, it is more likely to bite without giving a warning growl. I hope your daughter's dog was put in a situation with people who know how to assess, manage, and help him. I hope your son recovers well in every way. Maybe consider giving them time to grieve giving up their dog and letting everyone settle down for awhile before trying to introduce a new puppy.


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## 3goldens2keep (Feb 13, 2019)

We had a male Golden that was aggressive. He bit me twice, both requiring trips to the hospital. We tried everything to first, understand what was going on, and then to 'cure' his problem. This all happened over a 4-5 year period. We finally found a well qualified animal behaviorist, after his review we understood that our dog was dangerous. In the end we had to have him put down. He never bit anyone again, but he did attack my wife in our bedroom. Fortunately, I was able to get between them and I was slowly able to calm him down, but it was scary! That was the last straw... 

Be very careful...these things can go south very quickly...


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## GoldenDude (Nov 5, 2016)

I am so sorry that the dog needed to be surrendered, but you did the right thing. This dog has now bitten two youngsters. It has no business ever being around a child again. I hope it's new environment will be child free and that new owner is aware that the dog is highly aggressive and a danger to children.


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

I'm really sorry this happened to your child, hope he will be alright. 

I don't know what your State Laws are, in my State, when a child or adult gets bit by a dog and receives treatment at ER or by a Dr., it is reported to Animal Control. Animal Control takes possession of the dog for a certain time period and the dog "may" be euthanized. AC gets a copy of the Police Report, depending on the situation and the severity of the bite determines whether or not the dog is euthanized. 

If your State had this law, it would have prevented your child from being hurt.


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## Henry’s Dog mom (Jul 23, 2020)

Tagrenine said:


> This is so sad and not normal, but even if you didn't see any signs there were likely signs. If a dog is eating, encourage children to leave them alone. On another note, you never mention how old this dog is, if it's an older dog, this could be a result of canine cognitive dysfunction or a hormone disorder.
> 
> But regardless, any dog can bite when provoked, even when you don't feel it was provoked and with the next dog, I would strongly encourage your children to either leave them when eating or crating the dog to eat.


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## 3goldens2keep (Feb 13, 2019)

CAROLINA MOM said:


> I'm really sorry this happened to your child, hope he will be alright.
> 
> I don't know what your State Laws are, in my State, when a child or adult gets bit by a dog and receives treatment at ER or by a Dr., it is reported to Animal Control. Animal Control takes possession of the dog for a certain time period and the dog "may" be euthanized. AC gets a copy of the Police Report, depending on the situation and the severity of the bite determines whether or not the dog is euthanized.
> 
> If your State had this law, it would have prevented your child from being hurt.


We did have a problem with our Home Owners Liability Insurance, they cancelled us at renewal time. Fortunately, we found another company to cover us....!

The hospital told us to expect a call. Never got one. Yep, he had 2 reports from my bites... During the time after my last bite, he was not allowed to be around anyone except my wife , my adult sons and I. He was always on lead when outside, and never physically close to anyone other then my wife, by adult son's, and I. The odd thing about all of this is he was one of my best water dogs. He was the only dog I have had that would actually dive underwater after a wounded duck. Scared the heck out of me the first time he did it, but he came up with the duck in his mouth....this all made it much harder to make the final decision...but the next time when he threatened my wife...I took him in...!


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

ETA - somehow or other, I read that your mauled child was a female - skimmed read over the section that made it clear that you have 2 kids. 🤷‍♂️ The point remains unfortunately that your 7 year old (seeing your comment to SRW, am assuming daughter is 7 and son is 4, though reading it twice, I'm confused again) while she is old enough to be scarred by this experience - she will have to wait until the younger child is a few years older and more manageable for you. In 4 years, she can take a more active role in training and raising the next pup.



Henry’s Dog mom said:


> also, I should note this dog has been my daughters dog for his entire life and lived with her dad (at a separate house) but had to leave because of an attack on her four year old cousin. So we took him in, hoping it would help eveyone by keeping the dog with her and because this was the first attack to a kid at all we didn’t think it would be a ongoing issue. So in total that was two attacks on four year old kids in a months time. We are horrified, and devastated. To say the least, we would love to help heal my daughters heart with another dog but should we look into a dog that isn’t a golden?
> Please help!


Wait until your kids are older and you have more time to monitor/train the kids + dog.

Your dog was resource guarding over his dog food bowl when you allowed your daughter to approach him - and this was knowing that he had attacked another small child.

The first attack on the other child means that he LEARNED that behavior worked to get an annoying and probably unwatched kid to back off. What this means is that not only was he still prone to attack small kids, but he was that much more prone to doing so immediately.

That is a dog who cannot be in a home with kids ever again. Period. And should not have been in your home if he and your daughter were not being kept absolutely separate.

At 5 years old, your daughter will forget about the dog. Wait until she's older.

It was not the breed that made this happen.

ANY DOG BREED PERIOD - this would have happened.

Goldens ESPECIALLY are prone to develop resource guarding and snap behaviors. Maybe not mauling like you describe (if there's multiple bite marks on your daughter's face, she was mauled vs the dog just doing a defensive one time snap), however goldens rank high up there for this kind of thing happening.

A lot of the time - the reason why is people labor under the misapprehension that a "child safe" breed is bomb proof. No breed is bomb proof. And goldens while they are softer and sweeter than many, but they are still dogs. They are not children with fur.

No dog for a few years. Your daughter will be OK. If anything she will learn that it is very important to know how to read dog behaviors and listen to you... so the next dog (that you get when she's 8+ years old) is raised and kept successfully.


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## Dunmar (Apr 15, 2020)

I'm sorry to hear about your child.
While I chose a golden due to their usual temperament, I have been in EMS a long time and have seen a lot of horrendous dog attack victims. One being an 11 month old shaken by their head by a very benign family pet. 
 I think almost all of us here would think our dogs would never do that but the scary reality is it does happen. 
I hope you can get your son to a possible pet therapy handler as he may have a lifelong fear of dogs after this.
Thinking of you all. Hoping for fast healing.


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## Henry’s Dog mom (Jul 23, 2020)

Oh I’m sorry, he is seven. We talked to him forever about it but he just wouldn’t be


SRW said:


> This dog attacked one child so you took it in to "help everyone". You then allowed your 4 year old son near the dog while it was eating and he was attacked.
> Your husbands lawyer would most certainly use this against you in divorce court.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

By the way, my dogs are raised to allow me to handle/touch them when I feed them, or I touch their food, etc.

I also both train them to respect each other's bowls (they don't dive into each other's bowls) while I feed them side by side by side. 

I have very sweet and soft dogs who I fully expect to live their entire lives without once growling or snapping at a human being, including small humans. Dogs however they have their own ways of communicating with each other + pups are always learning things - so while I knew what I had in these dogs, I did not throw them all together and let them be. Management and training and gentle knowledgeable handling is the key to raising dogs so they never are in the situation where they distrust another dog or a human being (where resource guarding starts).


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## Henry’s Dog mom (Jul 23, 2020)

It was living with her dad in a house of 10 people and 8 dogs, it was the first attack and we thought it was a environment issue, it didn’t have its own food bowl, kennel or anything. So we took it in to our family being the only dog with plenty of room. My husband and ex husband both talked about it extensively and agreed it should be a good fit, and besides this one instance it was incredibly great, he was a very loving dog. He and my son would even cuddle on the ground and take naps. Besides the issue with rubbing his back there were no other issues, also my daughter who grew up with him would always be next to him eating at her dads house. It’s not like I was looking to get my son attacked by any means


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## SRW (Dec 21, 2018)

Henry’s Dog mom said:


> Oh I’m sorry, he is seven. We talked to him forever about it but he just wouldn’t be


So you’re saying it was your seven-year-old child’s fault that he was attacked. Never mind the fact that you brought a dog into your home that had attacked another child just weeks previously.
Don’t get another dog.


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## SoCalEngr (Apr 11, 2020)

There is a lot to parse here. You're obviously upset over the attack on your son, and it sounds like you're also trying to salvage relationships with both your current husband and your daughter. Without a doubt, you're plate is full.

First, to your question about "what dog should we get as a replacement?". While I can understand your desire to get a replacement dog for your daughter, "now" is not the time. Based on your post; you're working through issues in your current marriage, and your 4yr-old son needs time, and space, to heal. Aside from the fact that this is not a healthy environment to bring a puppy/dog into, the last thing you're going to need is a puppy/dog to deal with if you end up back in family court.

I am new to goldens, and it's been a while since I've had dogs in the house. But, "growling" is a natural (albeit disconcerting) display, and there are cautions from trainers about punishing dogs for growling...as this can simply remove this behavior as the buffer between "you're annoying me" and "I've had enough". Unfortunately, since the dog was raised and trained in another household, it's difficult to say "why" this happened (other than the "don't bother dogs when they're eating").

Irrespective of breed, I do not understand bringing a dog into a house with children when it has already attacked another child. We had a beagle. Our infant son pulled on its ear, and the beagle growled and snapped. No contact, "just a display". The beagle was re-homed that week (with people who were aware of what had happened, and already had a beagle pack to integrate our beagle into). Obviously, others on this forum share my incredulity that you and your current husband thought bringing this dog into your home was a good idea.

Anyhoo...

In addition to having a full plate, even before this attack, I can't see where bringing a puppy/dog into an unstable home environment can be a good thing for anyone, and the puppy doesn't get a say in the matter. I can see where you may have issues with your daughter over this, but that's manageable.

Best wishes, I hope your son heals well, and I hope your family issues resolve to the point where bringing a puppy into the equation is a reasonable option.


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## GoldenDude (Nov 5, 2016)

Megora said:


> By the way, my dogs are raised to allow me to handle/touch them when I feed them, or I touch their food, etc.


This. Totally this. Everybody should be doing this.


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## jdavisryan (Jan 28, 2018)

GoldenDude said:


> This. Totally this. Everybody should be doing this.


I agree so hard. From day one I hand feed a little bit of kibble, maybe wiggle my fingers in the bowl, give a gentle pat and praise, and then let them eat in peace. We’ve never had an issue with food guarding with any of our dogs and I think this training builds trust. When I fill his bowl Woody waits, expecting to be stroked and praised before he digs in. The OP’s story is heartbreaking in so many ways and I hope her children recover well from this trauma, but I also feel for the dog who was placed in an unsuitable environment for his temperament. The whole thing is just sad.


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## Henry’s Dog mom (Jul 23, 2020)

CAROLINA MOM said:


> I'm really sorry this happened to your child, hope he will be alright.
> 
> I don't know what your State Laws are, in my State, when a child or adult gets bit by a dog and receives treatment at ER or by a Dr., it is reported to Animal Control. Animal Control takes possession of the dog for a certain time period and the dog "may" be euthanized. AC gets a copy of the Police Report, depending on the situation and the severity of the bite determines whether or not the dog is euthanized.
> 
> If your State had this law, it would have prevented your child from being hurt.


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## Henry’s Dog mom (Jul 23, 2020)

Our state did register the attack with the shelter, and the next morning a lady was here to pick him up, it was for ten days and on day five or six they called and asked if it needed to be rehomed and we had to make the decision to re-homed it. Just because we do have a four year old and felt it could easily happen again. The biggest tear in his face was only a inch for the jugular in his neck so to us it was a high risk. We would love to get another golden as a puppy and have it grow up with our family this time so it’s used to all of us, not just my eldest daughter. But before doing so I wanted to get into forums and see if this was a normal issue as I had never heard of it before.


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## SRW (Dec 21, 2018)

jdavisryan said:


> From day one I hand feed a little bit of kibble, maybe wiggle my fingers in the bowl, give a gentle pat and praise, and then let them eat


I do the same thing but I would still never allow a child near my dog when eating.


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## DevWind (Nov 7, 2016)

GoldenDude said:


> This. Totally this. Everybody should be doing this.


Yes! I can take food from ANY of my dogs....even the resource guarder. (She came to us the way) I train them that way so if a forbidden food is dropped, like a grape or piece of onion, it's easy to get it back from them. 

BUT no children are allowed in the kitchen while they eat. For 2 or 3 minutes a day, no child is allowed near them. 

To the OP:
No, goldens aren't typically aggresive. If they feel threatened, they will defend themselves though. My complete softy of a golden has defended himself when attacked. So sorry that happened to your child. Whenever I'm asked if mine can bite, I say any animal with teeth can bite but mine probably won't. 

A 7 year old is too young to take care of a dog. A fish or hamster is more appropriate at that age. My granddaughter is 9 and very mature. I have just now told her that she can start saving for a puppy. Of course, it will be at least a year or two before she raises her portion of the money.


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## 3goldens2keep (Feb 13, 2019)

Megora said:


> By the way, my dogs are raised to allow me to handle/touch them when I feed them, or I touch their food, etc.
> 
> I also both train them to respect each other's bowls (they don't dive into each other's bowls) while I feed them side by side by side.
> 
> I strongly agree with this, we have done it with all of our Golden's over the years, including the one we had that was dangerous, that we ended up having to 'put down'! He did not mind us messing with his food or him when eating. The only time he got dangerous is when someone touched him on his chest! Hard to explain, but that's the only thing that set him off....


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## Popebendgoldens (May 16, 2008)

I would like to know why the dog bit the first time. Was it food related or something else.
For anyone that has a child, make sure play is supervised. Many children are allowed to manhandle dogs and cats and not expect the animal to react. 
Remember goldens are dogs first and as such should be respected. That doesn’t mean that dogs should dominate or bully children and visa versa. 
I do help that this dog finds a new adult only home.


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