Rehomed

by Bema Self

Created on: June 29, 2011

I would first like to clarify, that there is certainly a difference between dogs who have a "bite history" and dogs who are violent. Any dog of any temperament can have a bite history, even if they've only bitten once, and even if the bite did not cause serious damage. I feel it's important to make this distinction, because dogs with a bite history are not necessarily violent dogs. Where as, dogs that are violent, are continuous biters and will often bite in any situation, whether provoked or not. Even with that being said, I don't feel that any dog with any bite history should be put down for that reason alone.

There are many reasons why a dog will bite, whether it be another animal or a human. It can be from provocation that is unnoticed by humans, but more often then not, dog aggression comes about due to human error. It is not often that it happens just because the dog couldn't help it, or because of their breed or any other misconception.

The most important part to remember, is that no matter how tame you feel dogs are, and no matter how long we humans have domesticated them, they are still wild animals. Which means that they don't function along the same rules as we do, and they don't see things the way we do. Even the most well behaved dog can become a biter in the right situation. It doesn't matter if they're obedient, submissive or any other logic we can throw at the situation. Dogs are animals, and they will act according to dog rules, not to human rules. They do make great strides to act the way we ask them to, according to our rules, but you must understand a dogs views in order to understand that no matter how well you train them, they might still bite.

The most common reasons a dog will bite:

*Protecting it's home or family

*Human emotional response

*Prey response/drive

*Poor training

*Youth Training

*Fear

The top reason a dog will bite another animal or human, is because it feels it is protecting it's home, territory or family. Usually this only happens when another animal or suspicious person enters your property when your not around or supervising. However, it can happen at other times, such as when you are walking your dog on a leash. Though more often then not, this happens because the dog does not feel protected by it's owner. Which is translated in canine language to mean that the dog should assume the role of protector. On the flip side, if your dog knows and feels that you will always protect it and yourself, then it has no reason to be protective when you are there.

In another twist, dogs will often bite a person or another animal because of the response from their human caretaker or from other humans involved in the situation. This is another human error, as many people may come across a perfectly friendly dog that got lose, and find themselves suddenly afraid because they don't know the dog. The person might yell at the dog, kick at them or get aggressive in another way. To the dog, you are basically saying that you are an unpredictable and potentially dangerous person. Even if you don't do anything obviously aggressive, your emotions give you away. This can also happen if you are walking your own dog, and find yourself afraid or upset about a person or animal that comes near you. Your own dog senses your emotional response and will do everything they can to protect you and themselves, even if there really isn't any reason to do so. Dogs don't play by human rules, and they don't understand mixed responses.

A strong prey drive can cause a dog to go after smaller animals that run, though it's also the same drive that causes them to play fetch or tug-o-war. Poor training can also contribute to dog bites. Especially with owners who feel it's okay to let their dogs bark at other dogs while going on walks, or when they let their dogs behave in rude ways (both human rude and canine rude). You may think it's cute because your dog is small or goofy, but improper training and poor manners are often direct causes of dog on dog bites, or dogs biting people. Yet and still, it's another human error that is often blamed on dogs.

One of the most interesting, and also the most scary times is when dogs bite children. Many people assume that the dog must just be bad, poorly trained, aggressive or bad around kids. In reality, the dog is training the child in the same way they would train their own pups. Through nips, growls and redirection. It may be unacceptable in the human world, but even the best tempered and most well behaved dog sees it as okay and sometimes necessary. Especially for a child that continues to pick on them or do dangerous things. This is another human error, as you can't train that instinct out of dogs. What you can do, is never leave your children alone with your dog unsupervised, no matter how much you trust your dog or your kids.

Fear is another very common reason for a dog to bite. It's important to remember to, that a dog that is submissive, isn't submissive just because they are like that, they are being submissive because of a fear response. They don't want to be bitten or over dominated by other dogs or people. So they submit. Though at any time, they might turn around and bite another dog or a person, if they sense that being submissive isn't going to be enough.

I feel that dogs with a bite history should be rehomed. Mostly because it's not often the dogs fault that they were put in a situation that allowed the bite to happen. It's usually a human error combined with a misunderstanding of doggy body language. A dog whose tail is wagging, does not mean that dog is happy. They wag their tail under almost any emotional condition. It's also often dogs who don't bark or make any noises that are more likely to bite, then dogs that are being clearly vocal about their emotions. So a dog that can be rehomed to live with someone who understands them better, has a chance to live a better quality life without any more biting, when they are paired with a person who understands their behavior better. Putting them down doesn't help anyone.

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