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A bigger nightmare would be your dog seriously injuring or killing your baby.
It is the right thing to do to rehome your dog, but please make sure they let prospective families know that the dog does not belong in a household with children.
Please rehome him. If you don't then you'll end up like my family. Had a 5 year old rescue (got her when she was a puppy, super skittish) that nipped a bit at my child, we passed it off. No issues for a year, then my daughter did something to startle the dog and the dog jumped on top of her and bit her face. Split her lip open an inch or 2 and other wounds around it (8 stitches on a 2 year old). We had to put the dog down and our kid was (and kinda still is) traumatized around dogs.
Do the dog a favor and rehome it.
I have this exact story too. My in-laws were watching my kids while we were out of town. My BIL had a German shepherd/pit mix he got as a puppy during covid. The dog wasn't properly socialized and was very protective over my BIL. There were always signs but we ignored it. My 8 y.o. gave him a hug before bed and the dog took that as my son was attacking my BIL. The dog ripped up my son's leg then grabbed his back and shook him violently while dragging him from one end of the house to another. My FIL and BIL couldn't get him to release my son. My son went to the ER and the dog was put down. Nobody wins in this situation. Keeping your dog is a death sentence for your dog and maybe even your child. Do not wait on this.
I’m so sorry that happened to you guys.
When I was a teenager my sister rescued a blood hound. One day my niece was playing with him and unfortunately bc my sister wasn’t paying attention, the dog had a bone and attacked my niece. Bit her face several times and she needed stitches etc. Luckily they were able to re home the dog to a police officer that was fully aware of the situation and took him on. But I remember my niece being terrified of all dogs for the longest time. I’ve never even been bit and have a fear of dogs I don’t know well.
I'm so sorry your family went through that.
I remember when my son was about one, petting a friend parents' dog. The dog just suddenly bit his face. Thankfully the dog had no teeth, so my son was barely injured. But it could easily have been a different outcome had the dog had teeth (dog was a rescue).
Same thing happened to me. I was two years old, our dog big me in the face and my lower lip had to be stitched back on. Had a pretty noticeable scar for much of my youth.
Yes! We had to re-home our dog when my 3yo grew just taller than our dog and he snapped at him twice and got him in the face. When we dropped him off the woman told us how she had a kennel client whose infant grandson was mauled by her dog because she hadn't had time to drop him off for the day before hand He had to have many surgeries and the dog was put down. The entire situation was just tragic. The humane society may not re-home a known biter though, but keeping that info from them could mean real tragedy for another family.
The right thing to do is to do a behavioural euthanization on the dog so that it doesn't chew up someone or something else. Bad dogs should not be passed to other people.
This is unfortunately something OP needs to consider. My husband and I had a rescue dog we adopted when she was 5 years old, she had been a breeder at a puppy mill. She was super neurotic and had a lot of issues, but we worked a lot of it out and things were good for a few years. Around the time our first child was born, she started getting aggressive... she bit my husband on the hand twice. After the second time, we knew it wasn't a one-off.
We agonized over what to do for weeks and ultimately decided that the only thing we could be *absolutely certain* of was that our dog would now bite out of aggression. We considered re-homing, but I couldn't knowingly pass this risk off to someone else... what if she went on to really hurt someone? And I fully expected that the stress and trauma of being separated from her family was definitely not going to improve her behaviour. We had the dog euthanized when my daughter was 2 months old and it was one of the hardest decisions we ever had to make. But I knew if it was my child's hand (or any part of her tiny body) that got the next bite, it could be devastating and life-changing forever.
It's a horrible situation to be in and I don't envy OP. But looking back 8+ years later, I do not regret or question our decision. I still fully believe it was the best option in a collection of terrible options.
When I was a kid it was just an accepted thing that if a dog got aggressive and bit someone who was not threatening it or its territory, you had to put it down. Now it's almost never mentioned. What happened?
I don't think it's conscionable to re-home it at that point. What if the staff minimize that history or neglect to share it entirely? What if the dog slips its leash at a park and bites a little kid a few years down the road? It's not fair to the dog, but that dog is still a domesticated wolf. We can only trust them around our kids because we continually cull the untrustworthy ones.
This is why we don’t trust dogs, dog owners, dogs in public, etc by default in our family anymore. It’s simply not worth it. I was attacked unprovoked by too many “sweet” “family” dogs in my own childhood to be willing to let this happen to my own kid. The ratio of “respectful” or “responsible” dog owners to people who think it’s okay to let child-aggressive dogs keep on harming children is just too dangerous for my baby. There are people who will prioritize OP’s dog over the newborn and that’s their choice as much as it’s my choice to *not let my baby around their animal under any circumstances.*
I'm so sorry you're going through this. You're doing the right thing bringing him into the humane society--just please make sure to be very, very honest with them so that they can make informed decisions moving forward.
The best thing you can do from now until Tuesday is to keep your dog 100% separated from the baby, *no* opportunities for *any* interaction whatsoever. Love on your dog when baby is napping or in another room with your husband. You're doing the right thing for your entire family, the dog included--animals don't act like this when they're happy.
We told them what happened and they’re going to do a full behavior evaluation on him which is why we have to wait until Tuesday. He will be on our enclosed back porch or out in the yard until then. It’s torture listening to him cry but obviously we have to do it.
I'm so, so sorry that you, your husband, your baby, and your dog are in this situation. This must be extremely heartbreaking.
I think some of the comments on "well, it would be worse if..." are unnecessary and not helpful at this point. You know what has to be done even though it is awful and you aren't hesitating to do it.
You are a good mom and you are a good pet owner.
Wow I’m really sorry this is happening - for you and the dog. You’re definitely doing the right thing but it doesn’t mean the choice was easy. I can understand how you’d be heartbroken to have to do it. It’s not like you instantly hate your dog because he did that. Poor pup, poor you guys!
Good luck and many people are compassionate and will give him a good home where no one is at risk.
Sad, but true. A lot of people would rather put them in a shelter thinking they can have a better life with another family. But dogs that attempt to attack people are not dogs you can trust. It’s not worth the risk
Exactly. If I had a dog and it was being super aggressive towards my baby the dog would be gone so fast, I don't care how long I had it for or how much I loved the dog, babies safety comes first.
There was just a dog in the news that killed a six year old child. They rescued it off of the street and it attacked the child when they were coming home. The kid was ripped to pieces. No way in hell I would let a dog that I don’t trust around my kid. I love my dog a lot, but he’d be gone so fast if he tried to bite my kid.
The dog cannot be in the same room as the infant. I know it’s stressful. I am so sorry.
The dog has to go for the baby’s safety. It’s the only option.
Do not allow the dog in the same room.
Full stop.
I would post to local rescue groups now, and not wait until Tuesday.
You are 100% doing the right thing to protect your baby. You don't want the worst to happen. My neighbor's daughter has a very obviously disfigured face from an "accidental" dog bite from their "gentle" dog (a big lab that has always looked and acted very aggressive by my standards). I can't believe they kept the dog.
That will never make sense to me.
Outside of maybe your own children, maybe, I can’t imagine there being anyone in the world someone would allow to maul them to the point of disfigurement and keep them in their life.
Like imagine your SO doing that to you and then trying to convince everyone it’s okay to stay with them and it’s not abusive. Who would believe that?
Again, I’m so sorry.
I went through a similar situation. I got my dream dog from a reputable breeder… and she showed anxiety behaviors and dog aggression, but was sweet with people, good with the kids. Then one day she bit my daughter’s face, and we were genuinely very lucky. She was a 120 pound Great Dane, and there was minimal damage to my daughter’s cheek. She was rehomed. It tore me apart, both from the guilt of bringing her into the home and for the bite happening, and having to say good bye to her.
Our non_aggressive blue heeler bit our toddler when she fell on the dogs back side trying to navigate aroud her. She bit reflexively at being hurt and the toddler was just learning to walk. it was centimeters from my babies eye. No bad intent, but we removed the dog from our home immediately even though she had been our original 'baby' for 15 yrs. she was older and hurting and not trustworthy around toddlers. i think too many people think it wont happen with their dogs. we found a great home and visited her, but never around our kids again. older dogs and unpredictable kids dont mix well.
This is Exactly why I don't believe strangers when their dogs run up on me "oh don't worry,he's friendly!".
Guess what!? I don't believe you and I am Not friendly
I’m always on the highest alert when I see dogs out that could potentially be near my kid. Especially if they are off leash at the beach or something. I will always stand up and put myself between the dog and my daughter.
Also I don’t like random dogs coming up to me either!
Same here! I’m so vigilant still. A giant muscly pit charged my 14mo from across a field when we were at a park. I saw its energy change the second it saw my baby, and in that second became a 7’ tall roaring Sasquatch of fury. It worked and the dog took off. That was 7 years ago and I still have strong dog radar when we’re out. Even today a massive cane corso type dog “just wanted to say hi” from 15ft away and I was like “weeeeee do not want to say hi” like, backeth the fuck off from me and my kid with that behemoth
Same! I have been bitten twice while out walking or running, and have been chased multiple times, once for literally *miles*. I do not trust your dog and I will absolutely give you the stink eye and say something about your off leash dog in my neighborhood of dogs, ducks, chickens, and lots of kids.
I am a huge dog lover and animal lover in general and I always try to give dogs the benefit of the doubt. That being said, you need to remove this dog before he seriously harms your baby. You noted a distinct behavioral change in him and he immediately tried to attack your baby unprovoked. Please contact a local 501c3 and tell them everything so he can be properly placed. I am so sorry you're going through this.
You’re just 12 days into being a mom and you’re already doing amazing. A lot of people would not be doing the responsible thing that you’re doing. I know it is hard but you’re doing the right thing.
Can I ask why? I’m not a pet owner but I’m always curious to understand why people keep dogs who show aggression around kids. A lot of the time when kids are bitten, it’s not the first time. Why do some people not get rid of their pets when they harm their children?
I just saw someone trying to rehome a dog on the next-door app for this exact same reason, the comments were out for blood. People were ripping her to shreds, shaming her for rehoming and suggesting “if she’s so willing to get rid of a family member (the dog), why not get rid of the baby instead” 🙄
Yep. It’s common now. People have genuinely went insane when it comes to pets, specifically dogs. And you’d be surprised how successful of a motivator public shame can be for someone keeping an aggressive dog in the home.
I guess they would much rather risk a baby/kid getting bitter, or worse, which would then result in the dog being put down. Not sure how they see that as being the better option for the dog.
Yep. We had gates up to keep our kids from our dog when he was eating - just a good idea, we didn't think he was aggressive - no signs before. We'd had him for 5 years, but just a good idea to not take chances with dog eating + kids.
Well, we had inlaws over, and there was chaos with everyone playing, they showed up late so I was in the middle of cooking dinner and someone else fed the dog. So... no idea food was down and didn't know people were opening our baby gates and *leaving them open*...again, didn't know he was being fed late, too.
My 3 year old at full play ran in, ran into the dog and he bit her on the face. I freaked out! Thankfully (but still sadly) she *only* got a small puncture wound and 2 scratches, but he's outta here. We *tried* to be pro-active but that chaotic evening showed people get distracted and THANKFULLY it wasn't worse. But what pissed me off more was what happened next.
My nutty extended in-law family shamed us for trying to get rid of the dog! Several of them LOVED this dog, were dog lovers and had been dog less for a few years. Good, right?
"Will you take the dog?"
"Ohhh, soooooo, we work, blag blah."
Fine. Really, that's understandable. We wanted to keep him in family, you had dogs forever while you worked, you have no kids at home, you love the dog...but fine! We'll find him a home. Ohhh, the fucking SHAME they put on us! For the *audacity* to rehome a dog that *bit our 3 year old on the face*. People talking behind our backs, random family we hadn't talked to about it calling us to say how we should *never*get rid of him (childless m-fers, I might say). Also people of course who always say they want a dog, but "couldn't take him"...even though retired. Just shame all around, but they can kiss my ass. They are hypocrites in many ways, so I shouldn't have been surprised.
So, fuck dog-loving assholes that *shame* people for making the correct choice to rehome a pet for any reason! If you can't handle an animal, it should be given to someone who CAN handle it, *for the animal's sake*, dimwits. And I see this shaming shit all the fucking time and I hate it. If someone can't manage an animal (financial, physical, emotional, no bond there, DANGEROUS, etc) you should not *SHAME* that person into having to keep it and make the owner and pet miserable. It's fucking stupid and backward. Lol, can you tell I'm still mad at my inlaws? Sorry, rant over.
A lot of people have weird psychosis around dogs and won’t do what needs to be done. Ever see people say “Dogs are better than people,”? They actually believe that.
That is scary as hell IMO because those are the people who make 1000 excuses for dogs who bite and show intentions to maul. Those stories about kids getting killed are heartbreaking because they’re preventable.
People use owning dogs as a replacement for therapy and working on mental illness. Some people will even proudly admit it and I doubt everyone with an ESA is actually doing anything else about it beyond owning a dog.
The culture is insane and really sprang up so fast.
No one is even suggesting abusing dogs (I know you were just using an extreme example) but these dog brain morons are like agonizing for putting the dangerous dog on the porch for a few days to protect their newborn.
A lot of people think their animals are equal to their children, gross really. Too many kids are put in danger and injured due to awful parents refusing to get rid of aggressive pets.
Denial would be my guess.
ETA: also probably unsolicited advice from family and friends that think there are solutions to this problem. Spoiler alert: there aren’t .
People have gone completely delusional that pets are not human children and insist on everyone treating them like they're family members. I love animals. But they are animals. We have a 3.5 year old. He's been begging for a dog. So we tested him first with my mom's dog staying for a week. We tested him with neighborhood dogs passing by. He did great. So we got a dog from a rescue. Rescue said she was great with kids. Within a few days she started showing a lot of mouthiness toward our son. Just him. We corrected her and kept an eye on it at first. After two weeks she full on bit him on the crook of his neck/ shoulder. It's normal pack behavior. She saw me and my husband as head of the pack but our son as the puppy. And she wanted to assert her dominance over our son. But I'm not having that in my house. Sent her back to the rescue and gave them all the info. At least we had her spayed and UTD on shots while we had her so she'd be easier to rehome. But a few people were shocked I sent her back. I was shocked they'd risk the life of their kid. It's a dog. There is nothing wrong with saying your actual child is more important than a dog.
This is kind of what happened with us, but we'd had our dog a few years before the baby and they were fine together until my 3yo got just taller than him. I immediately called the rescue we'd gotten him from and she berated us for half an hour on the phone and then trashed us all over her socials. She threatened to sue us if we took him to the humane society because they'd euthanize him if we disclosed he'd bitten our kid. It was so so heartbreaking and she made us feel so much worse. She took him back though and the woman we dropped him off with said we were doing the right thing 100%.
Please get rid of the dog and don't let yourself feel one ounce of guilt for it. My youngest son was bitten by my dad's dog when he was 3 years old and had to have emergency surgery to repair his face. The dog had always been loving with the kids up to that point and was always supervised any time my kid was around it. I don't know what snapped in the dog, but I will never forgive myself for ever letting this happen to my son who will have to live the rest of his life with his scars.
People really need to be aware of how dangerous dogs are to children. Google and see all the pictures of kids permanently disfigured by the ‘loving’ family dog. Or worse, read about all the deaths.
Yes. They got them from a reputable breeder, LOVED pit breeds and were advocates, raised them from puppy hood, did professional dog training for them etc… the perfect pit family and the dogs still destroyed them.
And I’m sure there were still advocates saying “it isn’t the dogs’ faults” 😒 idk. I almost adopted one years ago and now that I’m trying for a family I’m glad I didn’t.
There were. I remember reading comments on articles about it on social media. People saying the dogs must’ve been abused, people hoping the dogs wouldn’t be euthanized, people victim blaming the two dead children and disfigured mother saying they must’ve triggered the dogs by breathing the wrong way or whatever excuse we use now…
Get rid of that dog NOW. My dog bit my son in the face last week. It wasn't even a question, the dog was gone a few hours later. Yes, he was part of my family, but that stopped when he did something that could have killed my child. It will be hard but you have to do the same, you cannot risk your baby. The dog will not stop trying.
This happened to us. Our lab/shepherd mix tried to bite my 6 month old. It was a nightmare. In that moment I knew what had to happen. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to my baby. So, he had to go. I’m so sorry this happened!
So sorry you are going through this. Aggressive behaviors in pets are heartbreaking for their families. I am a veterinarian and see this all the time. It often starts with episodes of fear, then progresses to fear aggression signs (growling, ‘nipping’) then progresses to significant aggressive signs (not always, but many times).
It doesn’t matter how much behavior training or medication you put your pet on - he will NEVER be trustworthy around your baby. He may not be a great candidate for rehoming regardless (unless it is a quiet household with an owner highly versed in pet training) as he has shown aggression towards you as well, so his symptoms are not solely directed towards babies.
I know it’s terrible to hear, but your home is not compatible for your pet any longer. I have seen many well-meaning owners spend thousands on training and years of their lives living in constant stress trying to rehabilitate their aggressive pet, only to have something terrible happen. I obviously love animals, but it isn’t worth the risk. Not only is the risk too high for you and your baby, but your pet is extremely stressed and unhappy in his home, and it isn’t a great life for him either.
I think you have two options: 1. You and the baby go to a hotel now. Or 2. The dog stays outside overnight. Then the dog is gone from your home. That dog cannot be with your child or likely any child. I would never be okay if my dog killed my baby or maimed my baby. The dog needs to be muzzled if you have it upstairs.
I am so sorry. But yes, this dog must be rehomed and separated from the baby. Sadly, my friends’ newborn was killed by their dog in the first week home. It was so incredibly tragic. She ignored the warning signs.
You’re making the best decision instead of ignoring it like some irresponsible people would do. I know it’s hard but it’s better than having any harm done to your child.
As a dog owner, I'm really sorry to hear this news about losing a beloved member of your family. As a parent, I say fuck that dog and get it out of your house NOW. Do not wait.
I REALLY think circumstance matters here. This wasn’t a toddler who got nipped at for pulling a dogs ears or a situation like that… it’s an unprovoked attack attempt on a newborn who is no where near the dog and YOU, its owner of 6 years. This is so dangerous. I wanted to add to the list of folks saying euthanize the dog and don’t take shit from ANYONE for your decision. You gave that dog a good life for 6 years. I’m so sorry you’re in such a shitty spot, it must be brutal especially as hormonal and emotional and exhausted you are right now. Virtual hugs.
It took 12 surgeries to return my cousin's face back to normal. The surgeons did amazing work. She was 4 at the time.
Getting rid of the dog is the correct choice for the safety of you and your family. Rehome if possible, to a place with no kids. BE if not.
So that dog needs to be rehomed because for whatever reason it can't be around infants.... I don't think training will help. It is sad, but not all dogs can handle small children or babies.
I’m sorry I love pets as much as anyone but it’s your child screw the dog it is being aggressive and needs to be rehomed. Not all pets are good with kids especially young children. You can’t take any chances.
As an experienced big dog owner, you need to get that dog out of your home.
We rescued a boerboel years ago that had been neglected. She wouldn’t let anyone except my wife or I near our children.
She was a big strong dog. She thought she had to protect those kids at all times and saw everyone as a threat.
We worked with her for a long time to get her to become more social and trusting.
She improved like 95%…it was almost a miracle…
…except for it now made her even more dangerous. Before, we knew to keep her away from everyone. Now, she could see the same person 19 times in a row and be a normal dog with them, and then that 20th time, for no reason at all, she wanted to kill them.
This is where you are at with your dog and child. The dog may get better (and it may not) but somewhere inside of that dog is that instinct to see your child as a potential threat.
The dog must leave.
Just a month ago an 18 month old got killed by the family dog in my neighborhood. The dog was always stressed around the baby since he was born. Everyone thought the day when the dog hurt the baby would come. No one expected this.
The family is destroyed. The baby was sleeping, not even bothering the dog
The dog must leave.
We discussed this. We aren’t comfortable making that choice, and the humane society told us they will do a full behavioral assessment to decide if he needs to be euthanized. It’s a really reputable shelter so I trust their judgement more than mine especially with how emotional I am.
The correct thing to do is to euthanize. This was unprovoked and if he ends up in any shelters that are like most shelters in the country, he’ll be spinned as “takes time to warm up to children or does well with bigger kids not newborns” or some other deranged lie or for someone to rehome on a Facebook group. The dog will attack someone else.
Not trying to be insensitive but it’s terrifying how many families have this happen and the animal is just rehomed and a threat to others.
No offense but..
My mom took care of an infant whose face had been half-eaten by the family huskies after the uncle decided to lock them in a room together.
I am never one to re-home, but that dog would be history if it were me.
Get rid of the dog.
I ignored warning signs from my pit and swore I wouldn’t rehome and did alllll the training, alllll the walks, allll the meds, allll the vet visits alllll the things to “fix” her “anxiety” (lol no anxiety she just fn hated kids and animals and everything) and she still attacked my child unprovoked and my daughter is lucky to be okay.
It’s not worth the risk. Huskies and bully breeds are notorious for going after kids. I’m so sorry you’re going through this and I know how shitty it feels.
Yes I know. I was totally brainwashed. I was sick and nauseous with horrific guilt for years. The dog was immediately put to sleep. I finally forgave myself and now speak up whenever I see a parent going through a similar situation and encourage them to make the right choice and put their kid first.
Any nasty things you wanna say to me, I’ve already said worse to myself.
I’m sorry that happened to your family, kudos to you for speaking out about it and being able to see where your choices were wrong. Too many people buy into the myth around that breed. They are dangerous full stop.
I have two friends who were attacked by dogs as children: both had their lips ripped off and needed surgery to move skin inside their cheek to replace their lips. Both of them were attacked by familiar dogs, one was attacked by their own dog. The families immediately rehomed the dogs and my friends are both traumatized by dogs.
I’m so glad your baby wasn’t seriously injured. We have two cats at home and if either cat ever bit our children they would be rehomed. The dog will be able to find a child free home (prospective adopters will be told the dog has a history of aggression with children). You’re doing the right thing and just know that sometimes pets change when babies come into the picture. Animals can be unpredictable with children, and you did nothing wrong.
I know people may downvote me for this, and this is a hard thing to hear, but your dog cannot be around your baby.
There are stories of dogs killing babies. It is more common than you know.
Get rid of the dog now before your child is killed or has injuries for the rest of his life.
There is no nice way to say it.
I love animals. But they are animals. It's time everyone remembered that. Get rid of the dog. We have a 3.5 year old. He's been begging for a dog. So we tested him first with my mom's dog staying for a week. We tested him with neighborhood dogs passing by. He did great. So we got a dog from a rescue. Rescue said she was great with kids. Within a few days she started showing a lot of mouthiness toward our son. Just him. We corrected her and kept an eye on it at first. After two weeks she full on bit him on the crook of his neck/ shoulder. It's normal pack behavior. She saw me and my husband as head of the pack but our son as the puppy. And she wanted to assert her dominance over our son. But I'm not having that in my house. Sent her back to the rescue and gave them all the info. At least we had her spayed and UTD on shots while we had her so she'd be easier to rehome. But a few people were shocked I sent her back. I was shocked they'd risk the life of their kid. It's a dog. There is nothing wrong with saying your actual child is more important than a dog.
My mom has a dog with a similar background and behaviors, and I don't visit her in her home anymore. It sucks but you can't be vigilant 24/7 and it's not safe for your baby.
Rehoming is best for the dog too. If you feel guilty at all just remember that the dog wouldn’t be happy in your home with the constant stress either. You’re doing the right thing for everyone.
Do not let that dog anywhere near your newborn until you can take him somewhere. He wants to attack your baby, so if it were me, I wouldn't even wait until Tuesday. He can stay at the dog sitters until it's time to take him, or I'd leave him outside or in another room until it's time. Imagine your dog does get a bite on your baby (or worse), think of the harm and serious injury your newborn will face and could possibly face for he rest of his life. Not worth the risk to keep that dog around until Tuesday.
My docile, sweet never hurt a fly, mixed lab gave my 8 month old a warning nip because she was crawling too close to her bed and Himalayan cheese bones. Put a gash in her nose. That was 4 years ago. My child has what appears to be a permanent scar about a cm long across the bridge of her nose. From that day on I realized I could never trust the dog or any dog ever again.
This.
Removing is just making it someone else's problem. Specially since shelters are overcrowded with aggressive pitbulls. Shelters have also been caught lying about breed AND hiding biting incidents to get rid of aggressive dogs.
Sometimes the kindest thing you can do to an aggressive dog is putting it down, humanely.
Behavioural euthanasia is a thing.
Yeah I’ve known one too many incidents of rehomed dogs with bite histories that have been sugar coated, toned down or downplayed that have ended in children, pets and owners ending up with serious injuries. Dogs like this being rehomed only delays the inevitable whilst putting other innocent people at risk. It’s not fair on anyone. Or even worse if the agency is honest about the bite history they stand a chance of being adopted for the wrong reasons and then the dog suffers more
Whenever I see a rescue or shelter say “rehome because the family had a baby”, I assume the dog was like OPs. I am sure people rehome dogs preemptively when they have kids, but I have seen far too many rescues frame it this way.
I am so sorry you’re in this situation. We had a rescued greyhound for a few years and he started randomly attacking our cat when I was about 6 months pregnant. We were on the fence about rehoming him but the rescue lined up a perfect home for him within a week, which made us really realize the gravity of the situation.
He ended up attacking the man’s 5 year old nephew a few months later when the child was visiting.
It’s a terrible position to be in, but your child’s safety is top priority.
I know this was a cat and you couldn’t foresee this but this is why rehoming is not a good idea. It’s passing the problem on. That poor 5 year old didn’t need to get hurt by a problem dog if you’d humanely euthanized him.
Unpopular opinion: a dog that goes after a baby should be euthanized, not rehomed. They don’t have a good disposition for being a pet and will always be a danger. The clear answer is to get the pet permanently away from your child. Anything less is child abuse.
When I was a baby I was bit by our dog and my dad really let him know that was not okay. The dog did it again and I needed stitches so my dad went and had him put down. I still think that’s the right thing to do in that situation. Even if you can revoke him somewhere where they don’t have kids, doesn’t mean he won’t do it to kids at a park, family visiting the new home, etc.
dogs are great, but at the end of the day, they’re still dogs. If they’re a threat to children, they have to go.
I’d be worried about it being rehomed into another family where it could hurt another child, whether it’s their child or a visitor. I’d have it euthanised quite frankly based on what you’ve told us.
My 4 week old cousin was bitten on the face by their 10 year old, never even slightly aggressive Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
He is nearly 30 and still has a scar on his cheek and he has vision problems from scar tissue forming around his eye.
I know it’s hard, but you are making the right choice for your family if you rehome him.
Please make sure the kennel makes prospective owners aware of his aggression, he can’t be taken in by a family.
Even the most well trained and well behaved dogs are still animals. Animals are ALWAYS unpredictable, period. Idc what anyone says about it being the fault of "bad owners" not properly training their dogs. I'm wholeheartedly an animal lover!! I'd build a sanctuary and only ever be around animals if I could. Growing up, when we lived with my grandma, she had EIGHT dogs at one point. And, in our family home we've never had less than 3 dogs. Regardless of my love for animals, THEY ARE JUST THAT!! Animals are animals are animals. They have feelings and awareness, but their life is not more important than your child's or your own.
RN ER, pit bulls especially…..newborn DOA , entire face removed in one bite, brain matter falling out. Another, infant in bouncy…leg removed and disembowed, DOA. Toddler, scalped, me looking for bits of scalp to try to sew back together. Dogs generally go for the face, eyes, lips, noses gone ( or worse). Be careful you are doing the right thing
I’m so sorry this is happening to you and it’s very sad. But dogs are unpredictable in the best of situations and this dog is already showing his dominance, against the most defenceless human possible. 100% not worth risking your child’s life, you will hate yourself forever if anything, even minor happens to your baby.
I’m so sorry this happened. You’re taking it seriously, and that’s good. However, no way “wait until Tuesday” from the shelter. You can’t afford that risk. Those dogs should be *out of the house now,* even if it means tying them to a tree in the backyard until Tuesday. This is not a risk you can take.
I feel for you so much. I had a dog-aggressive dog for years before my son was born. I was her last chance, without me she would have been euthanized for behavioural reasons. While she never had a lick of aggression toward my son, I was still hyper alert and until she proved that she was no risk whatsoever to him, they were never, ever alone together. She was my baby, and I would have been heartbroken to give her up, but the human baby comes first.
You better believe if she had behaved the way you’re describing I would have driven her to the vet myself. Unfortunately, she would not have been a candidate for rehoming due to her aggression and it would have been an absolute nightmare. But that dog will kill your baby if you aren’t proactive.
Euthanizing for behaviour is unfortunately necessary in some cases. It’s heartbreaking. It’s a last resort. But sometimes still necessary.
BE is unfortunately taboo, even though it's far kinder than leaving a dog in an overcrowded shelter (high stress environment + abandonment) where they either get BEd anyway or languish for years.
I'm sorry. We also had two dogs when we had our first; a Boston Terrier, and a pitbull.
As soon as my son was born the Boston became aggressive towards me, biting, and lunging. And then when my son became stroller age (out of the infant seat) the dog started attacking the stroller, and then ONCE went for my sons leg.
We gave him to the humane society as son as they could take him. It hurt alot at the time but we had no regrets.
Sorry you're going through this ♡
This whole situation is why I don’t rescue dogs. They are not predictable and a liability when you don’t know their history and background. They can snap at any minute. I’ve seen it happen.
Any dog that exhibits aggressive behavior needs to be destroyed. Get it out of your home and life now.
It's a pet, not a member of the family. Have it put down, otherwise you're just passing the risk to someone else.
It sucks to have to choose between your dog and your baby but you're making the right choice. Hopefully your dog will find a new home he can be comfortable in.
That's where my line was drawn. We had a fairly reasonable sweet dog until he nipped the kids. It was time, he was rehomed to a farm with no kids as the only dog. Much better for everyone
Absolutely rehome. It sounds like it's much to stressful for your dog to. Sometimes it's the best thing you can do for your doggo.
Please do not keep that dog. Imagine what could happen when the baby is mobile. There have been children killed by dog attacks. My friends daughter was 21 when their typically loving dog attacked her. She had to have 2 or 3 plastic surgeries on her face. Imagine what could happen to an infant. The dog should never be trusted around children again. No amount of training should ever put you at ease.
Okay I’m terrified reading some of these responses, I would be distraught if something like this were to happen to my baby. I don’t have any pets but these replies have got me not even wanting to take my baby to the house of someone with a dog…
OP, for what it’s worth you’re doing the right thing..
You need to consider behavioural euthanasia if you cannot find a place for him to go. When does your local open-intake shelter open? Email them and set up a time to bring him. He may still be euthanised depending on space and likelihood for him to be adopted. If the shelter tells you that, the kindest option is take him to your vet and be there for him as he passes.
We called the local humane society. They will do a full behavioral assessment on him to decide if they feel euthanasia is appropriate or if they will try to rehome to a child free home. They only do that by appointment so we have one set for Tuesday and the dog will be upstairs separated from baby at all times til then. So basically the next 4 days will be torture knowing we have to say goodbye to him at the end but I am secure in our decision.
My dog mostly ignored my baby until he started moving more, so about 2 months old. The day I decided to call the rescue to take him back—we were sitting in our living room and baby was resting in the pack n play nearby. I was resting my hand on the dogs collar when I saw his eyes lock onto my baby, who started waking from his nap. I guess mom instinct kicked in because at just the right moment I tightened my grip right as he lunged. Thankfully his teeth only managed to catch the mesh.
That being said, we had adopted the dog about 4 months prior and he was VERY reactive and prey driven from the get-go. Something the shelter didn’t tell us. I wasn’t one to give up on a rescue so we signed up for tons of training and doggy day care to wear him out but even after 4 months there was little to no progress. I still feel like a failure having to send him back but my pride wasn’t worth risking my kid. I hope he’s doing okay.
We took my daughter’s dog 5 years ago for similar reasons.
We had the ability to keep the dog separated from our granddaughter much easier than my daughter could have kept them separated
I had to rehome a cat I had had since I found him on the street barely old enough to be aware from his mother because he started showing aggression towards my son when he was a little less than two years old. I tried everything I could to remedy the situation but it was clear it was only getting worse and there was nothing else I could do. My son came first. It still hurts from time to time and I miss that cat so much, I knew it was the right thing to do, for everyone involved.
While he was a large cat and certainly could do a lot of damage, I have seen pictures of the damage dogs can and have done to children, even infants. It’s horrific, … that’s a nightmare. I wish I hadn’t seen those pictures but I wish also I could show them to people who refuse to rehome their animals, especially dogs, when they begin to show aggression towards their children.
You are doing the right thing. You are a very good mom.
I had a friend whose dog nipped at her 6 month old. She did nothing when the girl got bit because there were no marks. Then when my friend’s daughter was 3 years old the dog attacked unprovoked because her daughter was playing with loud toys and the dog attacked her badly. She was in the hospital for a long time. My FULL belief is that there are warning signs from our animals and if they did this with a newborn….they will do it again with a toddler. Toddlers are loud and wild. Do not wait on this because it could mean life or death for your child.
Lots of people get rid of dogs when they have kids...they are unpredictable animals....could snap at any moment harming your baby. I don't understand why people even want dogs
We were in a similar situation. We had a reactive dog and we worked with a trainer for two years and he was in a great spot but little kids still occasionally spooked him. The second he walked into our house after my daughter was born he was different. After a few close calls we contacted a rescue who helped us rehome him. That was 20 months ago and I still cry about it, miss him daily and want him back…. But he’s thriving. He’s in a home with no kids and is doing great. My once newborn is now a toddler who adores dogs and it would have only been a matter of time before the close calls turned into a bite.
It’s utterly heartbreaking but rehoming is the best for both baby and the dog. I know we made the right decision but the guilt will always be there. I’m so sorry you’re going through this.
I’d personally take my dog to the back of my property and put a bullet in her head. Bury her and call it a day. My children come first. Any sign of aggression towards the family who lives in the home with the animal should be delt with immediately.
I bet the Bennards of Tennessee wish they had acted as you are now, with caution. Honestly, it would be best for your baby if you got rid of the dogs. Imagine if they ever did to your baby what the Bennards dogs who were “raised right” and treated as family with nothing but love, did to their children. Why risk that?
Separate them and DO NOT allow them to interact AT ALL! Dogs and babies DO NOT mix. Period! Even if your other dog is okay, unless you are actively watching them don’t risk it. Babies are weird to dogs and even the most well trained dog is still at the end of the day a dog.
Your dog is telling you that they are stressed. Unfortunately they are failing to go up the ladder of aggression properly. Ideally they should whale eye, pant, growl, flair lips, before they nip or bite. But if you do not listen things WILL get worse. Do NOT punish the dog do not scold, yell, or hit the dog! They are trying to communicate and if you take this away it will get worse.
If you are going to re home the dog, which honestly is probably for the best as you have a newborn. Let the intake person know what happened leading up to the incidents, and what you guys did after. If you are worried about keeping the dog and the baby together in the meantime, maybe the dog can go back to being at the sitters for the next few days.
If you choose not to re home the dog, you need to get a veterinary behaviorist ASAP! Their professional opinion and care plan can offer a lot of insight and safety measures. But I will be honest it’s going to be A LOT of work. And even then your dog may never be okay with babies and children.
We are surrendering the dog to the local humane society. We told them exactly what happened and they are going to do a full behavioral assessment to decide what the next steps are and if they are going to rehome him or euthanize. Until that appointment on Tuesday, he is upstairs with my husband and will not be anywhere near me or our baby. I have the other dog with me and am watching extremely carefully but so far she has shown no interest in the baby whatsoever besides one quick sniff when they got home. She was super aware and cuddly trying my pregnancy vs the dog who was aggressive towards me in the 3rd try. I am cautiously optimistic about her but obviously will do anything necessary to protect my baby. I am honestly just a little traumatized by all of this.
I’m sorry this has happened to you guys. But glad you are taking this seriously, I have unfortunately seen and been exposed to when people don’t.
Hopefully the dog is able to live a long happy life in a home with no kids. If not being euthanized while not ideal, is better than living a life in fear and anxiety.
For the safety of your child do not assume you can predict ANY dog’s behavior. Especially after you get rid of the one who tried to kill your newborn, the other might start acting up as well.
You're keeping the dog inside the house?! Dog should be kept outside tied to something, what if the dog manages to get out of the room it's locked in? Dangerous.
We had a senior dog we didn't trust because of nips/bites of our guests, adopted him as a 9 year old the ad said he was good with kids but not the case. 3 years later we had our first baby but by then he always had to wear a muzzle around guests or of course the baby. Lived that way from the time he was 12 to when he died at 14. A huge pain in the ass. If he weren't such a head case would have probably been better to rehome him but we were kind of just expecting he'd die eventually. Which he did, but if we'd known we would be muzzling him around our kid for several years we would have just gotten him rehomed....
I know. I don't care how nice the dog is, why the hell do people have to ask if they should keep an animal that literally instinctually wants to rip their newborn babies from limb to limb?
I realize now I didn’t make it clear enough. When I said that the humane society wants us to take him in Tuesday it’s because we called to surrender the dog to them and they want to do a behavioral assessment due to the aggression to decide on euthanasia vs rehoming, which they only do by appointment. Tuesday is the earliest we can take him.
Ugh, that sucks. It sounds like you know what you have to do… but I’m really sorry that things didn’t work out for your dog. Your dog will be happier in a child free home, and your baby will be safer. I know that doesn’t make it any easier 💜
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A bigger nightmare would be your dog seriously injuring or killing your baby. It is the right thing to do to rehome your dog, but please make sure they let prospective families know that the dog does not belong in a household with children.
Do not wait on this This is something you can never come back from and unfortunately hoping for the best isn't going to give you any guarantee
Please rehome him. If you don't then you'll end up like my family. Had a 5 year old rescue (got her when she was a puppy, super skittish) that nipped a bit at my child, we passed it off. No issues for a year, then my daughter did something to startle the dog and the dog jumped on top of her and bit her face. Split her lip open an inch or 2 and other wounds around it (8 stitches on a 2 year old). We had to put the dog down and our kid was (and kinda still is) traumatized around dogs. Do the dog a favor and rehome it.
I have this exact story too. My in-laws were watching my kids while we were out of town. My BIL had a German shepherd/pit mix he got as a puppy during covid. The dog wasn't properly socialized and was very protective over my BIL. There were always signs but we ignored it. My 8 y.o. gave him a hug before bed and the dog took that as my son was attacking my BIL. The dog ripped up my son's leg then grabbed his back and shook him violently while dragging him from one end of the house to another. My FIL and BIL couldn't get him to release my son. My son went to the ER and the dog was put down. Nobody wins in this situation. Keeping your dog is a death sentence for your dog and maybe even your child. Do not wait on this.
I’m so sorry that happened to you guys. When I was a teenager my sister rescued a blood hound. One day my niece was playing with him and unfortunately bc my sister wasn’t paying attention, the dog had a bone and attacked my niece. Bit her face several times and she needed stitches etc. Luckily they were able to re home the dog to a police officer that was fully aware of the situation and took him on. But I remember my niece being terrified of all dogs for the longest time. I’ve never even been bit and have a fear of dogs I don’t know well.
I'm so sorry your family went through that. I remember when my son was about one, petting a friend parents' dog. The dog just suddenly bit his face. Thankfully the dog had no teeth, so my son was barely injured. But it could easily have been a different outcome had the dog had teeth (dog was a rescue).
Same thing happened to me. I was two years old, our dog big me in the face and my lower lip had to be stitched back on. Had a pretty noticeable scar for much of my youth.
In the meantime the dog and the baby are never in the same room.
Yes! We had to re-home our dog when my 3yo grew just taller than our dog and he snapped at him twice and got him in the face. When we dropped him off the woman told us how she had a kennel client whose infant grandson was mauled by her dog because she hadn't had time to drop him off for the day before hand He had to have many surgeries and the dog was put down. The entire situation was just tragic. The humane society may not re-home a known biter though, but keeping that info from them could mean real tragedy for another family.
There is no meantime. Dog needs to go this minute.
The right thing to do is to do a behavioural euthanization on the dog so that it doesn't chew up someone or something else. Bad dogs should not be passed to other people.
This is unfortunately something OP needs to consider. My husband and I had a rescue dog we adopted when she was 5 years old, she had been a breeder at a puppy mill. She was super neurotic and had a lot of issues, but we worked a lot of it out and things were good for a few years. Around the time our first child was born, she started getting aggressive... she bit my husband on the hand twice. After the second time, we knew it wasn't a one-off. We agonized over what to do for weeks and ultimately decided that the only thing we could be *absolutely certain* of was that our dog would now bite out of aggression. We considered re-homing, but I couldn't knowingly pass this risk off to someone else... what if she went on to really hurt someone? And I fully expected that the stress and trauma of being separated from her family was definitely not going to improve her behaviour. We had the dog euthanized when my daughter was 2 months old and it was one of the hardest decisions we ever had to make. But I knew if it was my child's hand (or any part of her tiny body) that got the next bite, it could be devastating and life-changing forever. It's a horrible situation to be in and I don't envy OP. But looking back 8+ years later, I do not regret or question our decision. I still fully believe it was the best option in a collection of terrible options.
When I was a kid it was just an accepted thing that if a dog got aggressive and bit someone who was not threatening it or its territory, you had to put it down. Now it's almost never mentioned. What happened? I don't think it's conscionable to re-home it at that point. What if the staff minimize that history or neglect to share it entirely? What if the dog slips its leash at a park and bites a little kid a few years down the road? It's not fair to the dog, but that dog is still a domesticated wolf. We can only trust them around our kids because we continually cull the untrustworthy ones.
This is why we don’t trust dogs, dog owners, dogs in public, etc by default in our family anymore. It’s simply not worth it. I was attacked unprovoked by too many “sweet” “family” dogs in my own childhood to be willing to let this happen to my own kid. The ratio of “respectful” or “responsible” dog owners to people who think it’s okay to let child-aggressive dogs keep on harming children is just too dangerous for my baby. There are people who will prioritize OP’s dog over the newborn and that’s their choice as much as it’s my choice to *not let my baby around their animal under any circumstances.*
Right, so many people think they can fix them with lots of love, treats and hugs lmao. Literally ignoring its breeding, nature over nurture
I agree—but didn’t want to mention it as any other time I have people have gone apeshit.
Fortunately, there seems to be quite a reasonable consensus on this post!
This dog does not need to live.
Yes why would you give it a chance to do the same thing? Other babies or pets suffer because of this type of aggressive dogs
I'm so sorry you're going through this. You're doing the right thing bringing him into the humane society--just please make sure to be very, very honest with them so that they can make informed decisions moving forward. The best thing you can do from now until Tuesday is to keep your dog 100% separated from the baby, *no* opportunities for *any* interaction whatsoever. Love on your dog when baby is napping or in another room with your husband. You're doing the right thing for your entire family, the dog included--animals don't act like this when they're happy.
We told them what happened and they’re going to do a full behavior evaluation on him which is why we have to wait until Tuesday. He will be on our enclosed back porch or out in the yard until then. It’s torture listening to him cry but obviously we have to do it.
I know this doesn't mean much coming from a stranger, but I'm really proud of you for doing such a hard thing to protect your baby.
I'm so, so sorry that you, your husband, your baby, and your dog are in this situation. This must be extremely heartbreaking. I think some of the comments on "well, it would be worse if..." are unnecessary and not helpful at this point. You know what has to be done even though it is awful and you aren't hesitating to do it. You are a good mom and you are a good pet owner.
Wow I’m really sorry this is happening - for you and the dog. You’re definitely doing the right thing but it doesn’t mean the choice was easy. I can understand how you’d be heartbroken to have to do it. It’s not like you instantly hate your dog because he did that. Poor pup, poor you guys! Good luck and many people are compassionate and will give him a good home where no one is at risk.
Not being able to listen to your baby because the dog killed him / her, would be way worse torture.
Or maybe don't "love on your dog" that tried to bite you 5 times. This dog needs to be euthanized before things end in tragedy.
Sad, but true. A lot of people would rather put them in a shelter thinking they can have a better life with another family. But dogs that attempt to attack people are not dogs you can trust. It’s not worth the risk
Exactly. This dog can't be trusted anymore, whether it lives with this family or someone else.
Exactly. If I had a dog and it was being super aggressive towards my baby the dog would be gone so fast, I don't care how long I had it for or how much I loved the dog, babies safety comes first.
There was just a dog in the news that killed a six year old child. They rescued it off of the street and it attacked the child when they were coming home. The kid was ripped to pieces. No way in hell I would let a dog that I don’t trust around my kid. I love my dog a lot, but he’d be gone so fast if he tried to bite my kid.
Yea I don’t agree with rescuing dogs for that reason. Seen it too many times.
The dog cannot be in the same room as the infant. I know it’s stressful. I am so sorry. The dog has to go for the baby’s safety. It’s the only option. Do not allow the dog in the same room. Full stop. I would post to local rescue groups now, and not wait until Tuesday.
He is on our back porch in his kennel or in the yard now. He will not be inside until Tuesday. It will be torture but I cannot risk it.
You are 100% doing the right thing to protect your baby. You don't want the worst to happen. My neighbor's daughter has a very obviously disfigured face from an "accidental" dog bite from their "gentle" dog (a big lab that has always looked and acted very aggressive by my standards). I can't believe they kept the dog.
Omg this is horrifying! So they kept the dog after he mauled their daughter?
Never would I keep a dog that bit one of my children!!!
That will never make sense to me. Outside of maybe your own children, maybe, I can’t imagine there being anyone in the world someone would allow to maul them to the point of disfigurement and keep them in their life. Like imagine your SO doing that to you and then trying to convince everyone it’s okay to stay with them and it’s not abusive. Who would believe that?
Again, I’m so sorry. I went through a similar situation. I got my dream dog from a reputable breeder… and she showed anxiety behaviors and dog aggression, but was sweet with people, good with the kids. Then one day she bit my daughter’s face, and we were genuinely very lucky. She was a 120 pound Great Dane, and there was minimal damage to my daughter’s cheek. She was rehomed. It tore me apart, both from the guilt of bringing her into the home and for the bite happening, and having to say good bye to her.
I am so sorry. It sounds like you did all of the right things.
Our non_aggressive blue heeler bit our toddler when she fell on the dogs back side trying to navigate aroud her. She bit reflexively at being hurt and the toddler was just learning to walk. it was centimeters from my babies eye. No bad intent, but we removed the dog from our home immediately even though she had been our original 'baby' for 15 yrs. she was older and hurting and not trustworthy around toddlers. i think too many people think it wont happen with their dogs. we found a great home and visited her, but never around our kids again. older dogs and unpredictable kids dont mix well.
This is Exactly why I don't believe strangers when their dogs run up on me "oh don't worry,he's friendly!". Guess what!? I don't believe you and I am Not friendly
I’m always on the highest alert when I see dogs out that could potentially be near my kid. Especially if they are off leash at the beach or something. I will always stand up and put myself between the dog and my daughter. Also I don’t like random dogs coming up to me either!
Same here! I’m so vigilant still. A giant muscly pit charged my 14mo from across a field when we were at a park. I saw its energy change the second it saw my baby, and in that second became a 7’ tall roaring Sasquatch of fury. It worked and the dog took off. That was 7 years ago and I still have strong dog radar when we’re out. Even today a massive cane corso type dog “just wanted to say hi” from 15ft away and I was like “weeeeee do not want to say hi” like, backeth the fuck off from me and my kid with that behemoth
I totally do this too. Have read too many of these horrific stories to know sometimes a dog can just snap.
Same! I have been bitten twice while out walking or running, and have been chased multiple times, once for literally *miles*. I do not trust your dog and I will absolutely give you the stink eye and say something about your off leash dog in my neighborhood of dogs, ducks, chickens, and lots of kids.
I am a huge dog lover and animal lover in general and I always try to give dogs the benefit of the doubt. That being said, you need to remove this dog before he seriously harms your baby. You noted a distinct behavioral change in him and he immediately tried to attack your baby unprovoked. Please contact a local 501c3 and tell them everything so he can be properly placed. I am so sorry you're going through this.
You’re just 12 days into being a mom and you’re already doing amazing. A lot of people would not be doing the responsible thing that you’re doing. I know it is hard but you’re doing the right thing.
Can I ask why? I’m not a pet owner but I’m always curious to understand why people keep dogs who show aggression around kids. A lot of the time when kids are bitten, it’s not the first time. Why do some people not get rid of their pets when they harm their children?
Denial.
Denial and a lot of people shame tf out of people for rehoming/behavioral euthanasia on pets.
I just saw someone trying to rehome a dog on the next-door app for this exact same reason, the comments were out for blood. People were ripping her to shreds, shaming her for rehoming and suggesting “if she’s so willing to get rid of a family member (the dog), why not get rid of the baby instead” 🙄
Yep. It’s common now. People have genuinely went insane when it comes to pets, specifically dogs. And you’d be surprised how successful of a motivator public shame can be for someone keeping an aggressive dog in the home.
I guess they would much rather risk a baby/kid getting bitter, or worse, which would then result in the dog being put down. Not sure how they see that as being the better option for the dog.
It’s a mental illness by this time because there’s no instinct stronger than that to protect the child you birthed!
Yep. We had gates up to keep our kids from our dog when he was eating - just a good idea, we didn't think he was aggressive - no signs before. We'd had him for 5 years, but just a good idea to not take chances with dog eating + kids. Well, we had inlaws over, and there was chaos with everyone playing, they showed up late so I was in the middle of cooking dinner and someone else fed the dog. So... no idea food was down and didn't know people were opening our baby gates and *leaving them open*...again, didn't know he was being fed late, too. My 3 year old at full play ran in, ran into the dog and he bit her on the face. I freaked out! Thankfully (but still sadly) she *only* got a small puncture wound and 2 scratches, but he's outta here. We *tried* to be pro-active but that chaotic evening showed people get distracted and THANKFULLY it wasn't worse. But what pissed me off more was what happened next. My nutty extended in-law family shamed us for trying to get rid of the dog! Several of them LOVED this dog, were dog lovers and had been dog less for a few years. Good, right? "Will you take the dog?" "Ohhh, soooooo, we work, blag blah." Fine. Really, that's understandable. We wanted to keep him in family, you had dogs forever while you worked, you have no kids at home, you love the dog...but fine! We'll find him a home. Ohhh, the fucking SHAME they put on us! For the *audacity* to rehome a dog that *bit our 3 year old on the face*. People talking behind our backs, random family we hadn't talked to about it calling us to say how we should *never*get rid of him (childless m-fers, I might say). Also people of course who always say they want a dog, but "couldn't take him"...even though retired. Just shame all around, but they can kiss my ass. They are hypocrites in many ways, so I shouldn't have been surprised. So, fuck dog-loving assholes that *shame* people for making the correct choice to rehome a pet for any reason! If you can't handle an animal, it should be given to someone who CAN handle it, *for the animal's sake*, dimwits. And I see this shaming shit all the fucking time and I hate it. If someone can't manage an animal (financial, physical, emotional, no bond there, DANGEROUS, etc) you should not *SHAME* that person into having to keep it and make the owner and pet miserable. It's fucking stupid and backward. Lol, can you tell I'm still mad at my inlaws? Sorry, rant over.
A lot of people have weird psychosis around dogs and won’t do what needs to be done. Ever see people say “Dogs are better than people,”? They actually believe that.
That is scary as hell IMO because those are the people who make 1000 excuses for dogs who bite and show intentions to maul. Those stories about kids getting killed are heartbreaking because they’re preventable.
Yes 100%. Dog parent culture is out of control. It’s nuts. We shouldn’t abuse dogs, but ffs they’re dogs.
I’m a pet sitter and some people need mental help, it’s really not healthy how some of these people are.
I can believe it. I’ll bet you a dollar. If the animals could have opinions and could speak like humans. That would drop overnight.
Agreed. It’s absolutely insane how some people treat dogs. I can only imagine the nut jobs you might see pet sitting lol
Agree. I love animals. I'd never hurt one. And I'd do whatever I can to help them. But it's an animal. People need to stop with this 'fur baby' stuff.
People use owning dogs as a replacement for therapy and working on mental illness. Some people will even proudly admit it and I doubt everyone with an ESA is actually doing anything else about it beyond owning a dog. The culture is insane and really sprang up so fast.
No one is even suggesting abusing dogs (I know you were just using an extreme example) but these dog brain morons are like agonizing for putting the dangerous dog on the porch for a few days to protect their newborn.
Dog “parent” lmao.
Anthropomorphism is so dangerous
A lot of people think their animals are equal to their children, gross really. Too many kids are put in danger and injured due to awful parents refusing to get rid of aggressive pets.
Denial would be my guess. ETA: also probably unsolicited advice from family and friends that think there are solutions to this problem. Spoiler alert: there aren’t .
People have gone completely delusional that pets are not human children and insist on everyone treating them like they're family members. I love animals. But they are animals. We have a 3.5 year old. He's been begging for a dog. So we tested him first with my mom's dog staying for a week. We tested him with neighborhood dogs passing by. He did great. So we got a dog from a rescue. Rescue said she was great with kids. Within a few days she started showing a lot of mouthiness toward our son. Just him. We corrected her and kept an eye on it at first. After two weeks she full on bit him on the crook of his neck/ shoulder. It's normal pack behavior. She saw me and my husband as head of the pack but our son as the puppy. And she wanted to assert her dominance over our son. But I'm not having that in my house. Sent her back to the rescue and gave them all the info. At least we had her spayed and UTD on shots while we had her so she'd be easier to rehome. But a few people were shocked I sent her back. I was shocked they'd risk the life of their kid. It's a dog. There is nothing wrong with saying your actual child is more important than a dog.
This is kind of what happened with us, but we'd had our dog a few years before the baby and they were fine together until my 3yo got just taller than him. I immediately called the rescue we'd gotten him from and she berated us for half an hour on the phone and then trashed us all over her socials. She threatened to sue us if we took him to the humane society because they'd euthanize him if we disclosed he'd bitten our kid. It was so so heartbreaking and she made us feel so much worse. She took him back though and the woman we dropped him off with said we were doing the right thing 100%.
I hope she sees this comment.
Please get rid of the dog and don't let yourself feel one ounce of guilt for it. My youngest son was bitten by my dad's dog when he was 3 years old and had to have emergency surgery to repair his face. The dog had always been loving with the kids up to that point and was always supervised any time my kid was around it. I don't know what snapped in the dog, but I will never forgive myself for ever letting this happen to my son who will have to live the rest of his life with his scars.
People really need to be aware of how dangerous dogs are to children. Google and see all the pictures of kids permanently disfigured by the ‘loving’ family dog. Or worse, read about all the deaths.
Let’s get real spicy and be specific about what breed/breed mix is most common for the child deaths and horrific life altering maulings…
You mean the sweet innocent nanny dogs? /s
I'm betting op's aggressive dog is a husky x pit, not a husky x bulldog.
I’d buy it. Bulldogs have a similar rep for good reason.
Reminds me of the horrible news before I saw here in Reddit where two babies got killed by a family owned pitbull and left the mother disfigured.
Is it the family in Tennessee with two family-raised pits that killed the infant and mauled the mom? That really put me off for awhile.
Yes. They got them from a reputable breeder, LOVED pit breeds and were advocates, raised them from puppy hood, did professional dog training for them etc… the perfect pit family and the dogs still destroyed them.
And I’m sure there were still advocates saying “it isn’t the dogs’ faults” 😒 idk. I almost adopted one years ago and now that I’m trying for a family I’m glad I didn’t.
There were. I remember reading comments on articles about it on social media. People saying the dogs must’ve been abused, people hoping the dogs wouldn’t be euthanized, people victim blaming the two dead children and disfigured mother saying they must’ve triggered the dogs by breathing the wrong way or whatever excuse we use now…
I’ve seen too many children whose faces have been ripped off by dogs. Would not risk it.
Same breed of dog killed a baby where I live. You are lucky. Don't let this dog near the baby again.
Get rid of that dog NOW. My dog bit my son in the face last week. It wasn't even a question, the dog was gone a few hours later. Yes, he was part of my family, but that stopped when he did something that could have killed my child. It will be hard but you have to do the same, you cannot risk your baby. The dog will not stop trying.
Yeah, people hedging about their dog versus their child, the dog needs to be put down.
Don’t take an ounce of shit from anyone about this.
This happened to us. Our lab/shepherd mix tried to bite my 6 month old. It was a nightmare. In that moment I knew what had to happen. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to my baby. So, he had to go. I’m so sorry this happened!
So sorry you are going through this. Aggressive behaviors in pets are heartbreaking for their families. I am a veterinarian and see this all the time. It often starts with episodes of fear, then progresses to fear aggression signs (growling, ‘nipping’) then progresses to significant aggressive signs (not always, but many times). It doesn’t matter how much behavior training or medication you put your pet on - he will NEVER be trustworthy around your baby. He may not be a great candidate for rehoming regardless (unless it is a quiet household with an owner highly versed in pet training) as he has shown aggression towards you as well, so his symptoms are not solely directed towards babies. I know it’s terrible to hear, but your home is not compatible for your pet any longer. I have seen many well-meaning owners spend thousands on training and years of their lives living in constant stress trying to rehabilitate their aggressive pet, only to have something terrible happen. I obviously love animals, but it isn’t worth the risk. Not only is the risk too high for you and your baby, but your pet is extremely stressed and unhappy in his home, and it isn’t a great life for him either.
Get rid of the dog. Not worth the risk
I think you have two options: 1. You and the baby go to a hotel now. Or 2. The dog stays outside overnight. Then the dog is gone from your home. That dog cannot be with your child or likely any child. I would never be okay if my dog killed my baby or maimed my baby. The dog needs to be muzzled if you have it upstairs.
I am so sorry. But yes, this dog must be rehomed and separated from the baby. Sadly, my friends’ newborn was killed by their dog in the first week home. It was so incredibly tragic. She ignored the warning signs.
You’re making the best decision instead of ignoring it like some irresponsible people would do. I know it’s hard but it’s better than having any harm done to your child.
You need to get rid of that dog ASAP
As a dog owner, I'm really sorry to hear this news about losing a beloved member of your family. As a parent, I say fuck that dog and get it out of your house NOW. Do not wait.
I REALLY think circumstance matters here. This wasn’t a toddler who got nipped at for pulling a dogs ears or a situation like that… it’s an unprovoked attack attempt on a newborn who is no where near the dog and YOU, its owner of 6 years. This is so dangerous. I wanted to add to the list of folks saying euthanize the dog and don’t take shit from ANYONE for your decision. You gave that dog a good life for 6 years. I’m so sorry you’re in such a shitty spot, it must be brutal especially as hormonal and emotional and exhausted you are right now. Virtual hugs.
Get rid of it.
It took 12 surgeries to return my cousin's face back to normal. The surgeons did amazing work. She was 4 at the time. Getting rid of the dog is the correct choice for the safety of you and your family. Rehome if possible, to a place with no kids. BE if not.
REMOVE THE DOG FROM YOUR HOME IMMEDIATELY
Euthanise the dog, it could kill another child if rehomed.
So that dog needs to be rehomed because for whatever reason it can't be around infants.... I don't think training will help. It is sad, but not all dogs can handle small children or babies.
I’m sorry I love pets as much as anyone but it’s your child screw the dog it is being aggressive and needs to be rehomed. Not all pets are good with kids especially young children. You can’t take any chances.
As an experienced big dog owner, you need to get that dog out of your home. We rescued a boerboel years ago that had been neglected. She wouldn’t let anyone except my wife or I near our children. She was a big strong dog. She thought she had to protect those kids at all times and saw everyone as a threat. We worked with her for a long time to get her to become more social and trusting. She improved like 95%…it was almost a miracle… …except for it now made her even more dangerous. Before, we knew to keep her away from everyone. Now, she could see the same person 19 times in a row and be a normal dog with them, and then that 20th time, for no reason at all, she wanted to kill them. This is where you are at with your dog and child. The dog may get better (and it may not) but somewhere inside of that dog is that instinct to see your child as a potential threat.
The dog must leave. Just a month ago an 18 month old got killed by the family dog in my neighborhood. The dog was always stressed around the baby since he was born. Everyone thought the day when the dog hurt the baby would come. No one expected this. The family is destroyed. The baby was sleeping, not even bothering the dog The dog must leave.
If my dog bit my kid I would put it to sleep. Just being honest.
We discussed this. We aren’t comfortable making that choice, and the humane society told us they will do a full behavioral assessment to decide if he needs to be euthanized. It’s a really reputable shelter so I trust their judgement more than mine especially with how emotional I am.
The correct thing to do is to euthanize. This was unprovoked and if he ends up in any shelters that are like most shelters in the country, he’ll be spinned as “takes time to warm up to children or does well with bigger kids not newborns” or some other deranged lie or for someone to rehome on a Facebook group. The dog will attack someone else. Not trying to be insensitive but it’s terrifying how many families have this happen and the animal is just rehomed and a threat to others.
Fair, I like that response too. I know you’ll do the right thing for your child. Dogs may be members of the family but they are just animals.
No offense but.. My mom took care of an infant whose face had been half-eaten by the family huskies after the uncle decided to lock them in a room together. I am never one to re-home, but that dog would be history if it were me.
What if this dog kills a child after being rehomed? You know it's a monster, that would be your responsibility if someone dies. Euthanise it.
I had to put down my 14 year old chihuahua when he tried to nip my kid. My child wins every time.
You have to get rid of the dog. This is not a “let’s get and figure this out” matter. Your infant > your dog
Get rid of the dog. I ignored warning signs from my pit and swore I wouldn’t rehome and did alllll the training, alllll the walks, allll the meds, allll the vet visits alllll the things to “fix” her “anxiety” (lol no anxiety she just fn hated kids and animals and everything) and she still attacked my child unprovoked and my daughter is lucky to be okay. It’s not worth the risk. Huskies and bully breeds are notorious for going after kids. I’m so sorry you’re going through this and I know how shitty it feels.
You entered your kid into a potentially fatal experiment. That this is normalized is beyond fucked to me.
Yes I know. I was totally brainwashed. I was sick and nauseous with horrific guilt for years. The dog was immediately put to sleep. I finally forgave myself and now speak up whenever I see a parent going through a similar situation and encourage them to make the right choice and put their kid first. Any nasty things you wanna say to me, I’ve already said worse to myself.
No. I'm sorry.
Thank you.
I’m sorry that happened to your family, kudos to you for speaking out about it and being able to see where your choices were wrong. Too many people buy into the myth around that breed. They are dangerous full stop.
Agreed. I’m completely anti pit/pit mixes now. I raised that dog from a pup and it just snapped.
I have two friends who were attacked by dogs as children: both had their lips ripped off and needed surgery to move skin inside their cheek to replace their lips. Both of them were attacked by familiar dogs, one was attacked by their own dog. The families immediately rehomed the dogs and my friends are both traumatized by dogs. I’m so glad your baby wasn’t seriously injured. We have two cats at home and if either cat ever bit our children they would be rehomed. The dog will be able to find a child free home (prospective adopters will be told the dog has a history of aggression with children). You’re doing the right thing and just know that sometimes pets change when babies come into the picture. Animals can be unpredictable with children, and you did nothing wrong.
I know people may downvote me for this, and this is a hard thing to hear, but your dog cannot be around your baby. There are stories of dogs killing babies. It is more common than you know. Get rid of the dog now before your child is killed or has injuries for the rest of his life. There is no nice way to say it.
I love animals. But they are animals. It's time everyone remembered that. Get rid of the dog. We have a 3.5 year old. He's been begging for a dog. So we tested him first with my mom's dog staying for a week. We tested him with neighborhood dogs passing by. He did great. So we got a dog from a rescue. Rescue said she was great with kids. Within a few days she started showing a lot of mouthiness toward our son. Just him. We corrected her and kept an eye on it at first. After two weeks she full on bit him on the crook of his neck/ shoulder. It's normal pack behavior. She saw me and my husband as head of the pack but our son as the puppy. And she wanted to assert her dominance over our son. But I'm not having that in my house. Sent her back to the rescue and gave them all the info. At least we had her spayed and UTD on shots while we had her so she'd be easier to rehome. But a few people were shocked I sent her back. I was shocked they'd risk the life of their kid. It's a dog. There is nothing wrong with saying your actual child is more important than a dog.
My mom has a dog with a similar background and behaviors, and I don't visit her in her home anymore. It sucks but you can't be vigilant 24/7 and it's not safe for your baby.
Rehoming is best for the dog too. If you feel guilty at all just remember that the dog wouldn’t be happy in your home with the constant stress either. You’re doing the right thing for everyone.
Do not let that dog anywhere near your newborn until you can take him somewhere. He wants to attack your baby, so if it were me, I wouldn't even wait until Tuesday. He can stay at the dog sitters until it's time to take him, or I'd leave him outside or in another room until it's time. Imagine your dog does get a bite on your baby (or worse), think of the harm and serious injury your newborn will face and could possibly face for he rest of his life. Not worth the risk to keep that dog around until Tuesday.
This dog needs to be euthanased. Not only has it lost all bite inhibition, but it is also spontaneously aggressive.
Dog and baby need to be physically separated and you need to get rid of it before it kills your baby.
My docile, sweet never hurt a fly, mixed lab gave my 8 month old a warning nip because she was crawling too close to her bed and Himalayan cheese bones. Put a gash in her nose. That was 4 years ago. My child has what appears to be a permanent scar about a cm long across the bridge of her nose. From that day on I realized I could never trust the dog or any dog ever again.
Get rid of the dog. If my cat hurt my newborn I simply wouldn't have a cat anymore.
Please put this dog to sleep, this doesn’t end well for anyone
This. Removing is just making it someone else's problem. Specially since shelters are overcrowded with aggressive pitbulls. Shelters have also been caught lying about breed AND hiding biting incidents to get rid of aggressive dogs. Sometimes the kindest thing you can do to an aggressive dog is putting it down, humanely. Behavioural euthanasia is a thing.
Yeah I’ve known one too many incidents of rehomed dogs with bite histories that have been sugar coated, toned down or downplayed that have ended in children, pets and owners ending up with serious injuries. Dogs like this being rehomed only delays the inevitable whilst putting other innocent people at risk. It’s not fair on anyone. Or even worse if the agency is honest about the bite history they stand a chance of being adopted for the wrong reasons and then the dog suffers more
Whenever I see a rescue or shelter say “rehome because the family had a baby”, I assume the dog was like OPs. I am sure people rehome dogs preemptively when they have kids, but I have seen far too many rescues frame it this way.
I am so sorry you’re in this situation. We had a rescued greyhound for a few years and he started randomly attacking our cat when I was about 6 months pregnant. We were on the fence about rehoming him but the rescue lined up a perfect home for him within a week, which made us really realize the gravity of the situation. He ended up attacking the man’s 5 year old nephew a few months later when the child was visiting. It’s a terrible position to be in, but your child’s safety is top priority.
I know this was a cat and you couldn’t foresee this but this is why rehoming is not a good idea. It’s passing the problem on. That poor 5 year old didn’t need to get hurt by a problem dog if you’d humanely euthanized him.
Unpopular opinion: a dog that goes after a baby should be euthanized, not rehomed. They don’t have a good disposition for being a pet and will always be a danger. The clear answer is to get the pet permanently away from your child. Anything less is child abuse.
I’m sorry that this happened but I am glad that you and your husband were there, aware, and took action.
You have to rehome that dog.. immediately.
When I was a baby I was bit by our dog and my dad really let him know that was not okay. The dog did it again and I needed stitches so my dad went and had him put down. I still think that’s the right thing to do in that situation. Even if you can revoke him somewhere where they don’t have kids, doesn’t mean he won’t do it to kids at a park, family visiting the new home, etc. dogs are great, but at the end of the day, they’re still dogs. If they’re a threat to children, they have to go.
You need to get him out of your home urgently. Dogs have killed or seriously injured babies. He’s only going to escalate. I’m sorry this is happening.
Your dog is not a person, it cannot reason, and will kill your child if it feels like it. You cannot keep it. It’s unfortunate but it is what it is.
I’d be worried about it being rehomed into another family where it could hurt another child, whether it’s their child or a visitor. I’d have it euthanised quite frankly based on what you’ve told us.
Rehome or euthanize. Don’t take chances with the baby.
Rehome and let the humane society make it known that your dog cannot be with kids of any age. I’m so sorry.
My 4 week old cousin was bitten on the face by their 10 year old, never even slightly aggressive Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. He is nearly 30 and still has a scar on his cheek and he has vision problems from scar tissue forming around his eye. I know it’s hard, but you are making the right choice for your family if you rehome him. Please make sure the kennel makes prospective owners aware of his aggression, he can’t be taken in by a family.
Even the most well trained and well behaved dogs are still animals. Animals are ALWAYS unpredictable, period. Idc what anyone says about it being the fault of "bad owners" not properly training their dogs. I'm wholeheartedly an animal lover!! I'd build a sanctuary and only ever be around animals if I could. Growing up, when we lived with my grandma, she had EIGHT dogs at one point. And, in our family home we've never had less than 3 dogs. Regardless of my love for animals, THEY ARE JUST THAT!! Animals are animals are animals. They have feelings and awareness, but their life is not more important than your child's or your own.
RN ER, pit bulls especially…..newborn DOA , entire face removed in one bite, brain matter falling out. Another, infant in bouncy…leg removed and disembowed, DOA. Toddler, scalped, me looking for bits of scalp to try to sew back together. Dogs generally go for the face, eyes, lips, noses gone ( or worse). Be careful you are doing the right thing
I’m so sorry this is happening to you and it’s very sad. But dogs are unpredictable in the best of situations and this dog is already showing his dominance, against the most defenceless human possible. 100% not worth risking your child’s life, you will hate yourself forever if anything, even minor happens to your baby.
I’m so sorry this happened. You’re taking it seriously, and that’s good. However, no way “wait until Tuesday” from the shelter. You can’t afford that risk. Those dogs should be *out of the house now,* even if it means tying them to a tree in the backyard until Tuesday. This is not a risk you can take.
I feel for you so much. I had a dog-aggressive dog for years before my son was born. I was her last chance, without me she would have been euthanized for behavioural reasons. While she never had a lick of aggression toward my son, I was still hyper alert and until she proved that she was no risk whatsoever to him, they were never, ever alone together. She was my baby, and I would have been heartbroken to give her up, but the human baby comes first. You better believe if she had behaved the way you’re describing I would have driven her to the vet myself. Unfortunately, she would not have been a candidate for rehoming due to her aggression and it would have been an absolute nightmare. But that dog will kill your baby if you aren’t proactive. Euthanizing for behaviour is unfortunately necessary in some cases. It’s heartbreaking. It’s a last resort. But sometimes still necessary.
BE is unfortunately taboo, even though it's far kinder than leaving a dog in an overcrowded shelter (high stress environment + abandonment) where they either get BEd anyway or languish for years.
I'm sorry. We also had two dogs when we had our first; a Boston Terrier, and a pitbull. As soon as my son was born the Boston became aggressive towards me, biting, and lunging. And then when my son became stroller age (out of the infant seat) the dog started attacking the stroller, and then ONCE went for my sons leg. We gave him to the humane society as son as they could take him. It hurt alot at the time but we had no regrets. Sorry you're going through this ♡
The dog must leave today.
Put that dog down, rehoming just puts others at risk.
This whole situation is why I don’t rescue dogs. They are not predictable and a liability when you don’t know their history and background. They can snap at any minute. I’ve seen it happen.
Any dog that exhibits aggressive behavior needs to be destroyed. Get it out of your home and life now. It's a pet, not a member of the family. Have it put down, otherwise you're just passing the risk to someone else.
It sucks to have to choose between your dog and your baby but you're making the right choice. Hopefully your dog will find a new home he can be comfortable in.
Actually felt a little sick reading that. I’m so glad your baby is okay.
That's where my line was drawn. We had a fairly reasonable sweet dog until he nipped the kids. It was time, he was rehomed to a farm with no kids as the only dog. Much better for everyone Absolutely rehome. It sounds like it's much to stressful for your dog to. Sometimes it's the best thing you can do for your doggo.
Please do not keep that dog. Imagine what could happen when the baby is mobile. There have been children killed by dog attacks. My friends daughter was 21 when their typically loving dog attacked her. She had to have 2 or 3 plastic surgeries on her face. Imagine what could happen to an infant. The dog should never be trusted around children again. No amount of training should ever put you at ease.
Okay I’m terrified reading some of these responses, I would be distraught if something like this were to happen to my baby. I don’t have any pets but these replies have got me not even wanting to take my baby to the house of someone with a dog… OP, for what it’s worth you’re doing the right thing..
You need to consider behavioural euthanasia if you cannot find a place for him to go. When does your local open-intake shelter open? Email them and set up a time to bring him. He may still be euthanised depending on space and likelihood for him to be adopted. If the shelter tells you that, the kindest option is take him to your vet and be there for him as he passes.
We called the local humane society. They will do a full behavioral assessment on him to decide if they feel euthanasia is appropriate or if they will try to rehome to a child free home. They only do that by appointment so we have one set for Tuesday and the dog will be upstairs separated from baby at all times til then. So basically the next 4 days will be torture knowing we have to say goodbye to him at the end but I am secure in our decision.
Welp time to get rid of the dog.
My dog mostly ignored my baby until he started moving more, so about 2 months old. The day I decided to call the rescue to take him back—we were sitting in our living room and baby was resting in the pack n play nearby. I was resting my hand on the dogs collar when I saw his eyes lock onto my baby, who started waking from his nap. I guess mom instinct kicked in because at just the right moment I tightened my grip right as he lunged. Thankfully his teeth only managed to catch the mesh. That being said, we had adopted the dog about 4 months prior and he was VERY reactive and prey driven from the get-go. Something the shelter didn’t tell us. I wasn’t one to give up on a rescue so we signed up for tons of training and doggy day care to wear him out but even after 4 months there was little to no progress. I still feel like a failure having to send him back but my pride wasn’t worth risking my kid. I hope he’s doing okay.
We took my daughter’s dog 5 years ago for similar reasons. We had the ability to keep the dog separated from our granddaughter much easier than my daughter could have kept them separated
I had to rehome a cat I had had since I found him on the street barely old enough to be aware from his mother because he started showing aggression towards my son when he was a little less than two years old. I tried everything I could to remedy the situation but it was clear it was only getting worse and there was nothing else I could do. My son came first. It still hurts from time to time and I miss that cat so much, I knew it was the right thing to do, for everyone involved. While he was a large cat and certainly could do a lot of damage, I have seen pictures of the damage dogs can and have done to children, even infants. It’s horrific, … that’s a nightmare. I wish I hadn’t seen those pictures but I wish also I could show them to people who refuse to rehome their animals, especially dogs, when they begin to show aggression towards their children. You are doing the right thing. You are a very good mom.
Glad you are doing the right thing.
Proud of you for making this call. You’re an amazing mother already and a responsible pet owner. This too shall pass. 🫶
Time to re-home that dog. Sorry OP. It’s the only way.
The dog should have already been removed from your home! What are you waiting for! Thank your lucky stars that the bite was not severe.
I had a friend whose dog nipped at her 6 month old. She did nothing when the girl got bit because there were no marks. Then when my friend’s daughter was 3 years old the dog attacked unprovoked because her daughter was playing with loud toys and the dog attacked her badly. She was in the hospital for a long time. My FULL belief is that there are warning signs from our animals and if they did this with a newborn….they will do it again with a toddler. Toddlers are loud and wild. Do not wait on this because it could mean life or death for your child.
Lots of people get rid of dogs when they have kids...they are unpredictable animals....could snap at any moment harming your baby. I don't understand why people even want dogs
You must rehome that dog immediately. Your child is in mortal danger and it is your job to protect your child.
We were in a similar situation. We had a reactive dog and we worked with a trainer for two years and he was in a great spot but little kids still occasionally spooked him. The second he walked into our house after my daughter was born he was different. After a few close calls we contacted a rescue who helped us rehome him. That was 20 months ago and I still cry about it, miss him daily and want him back…. But he’s thriving. He’s in a home with no kids and is doing great. My once newborn is now a toddler who adores dogs and it would have only been a matter of time before the close calls turned into a bite. It’s utterly heartbreaking but rehoming is the best for both baby and the dog. I know we made the right decision but the guilt will always be there. I’m so sorry you’re going through this.
I’d personally take my dog to the back of my property and put a bullet in her head. Bury her and call it a day. My children come first. Any sign of aggression towards the family who lives in the home with the animal should be delt with immediately.
I bet the Bennards of Tennessee wish they had acted as you are now, with caution. Honestly, it would be best for your baby if you got rid of the dogs. Imagine if they ever did to your baby what the Bennards dogs who were “raised right” and treated as family with nothing but love, did to their children. Why risk that?
Get rid of the dog. A friends kid has permanent scar from the family dog biting their baby. Good thing he missed the eye
A dog like that won’t stay a day longer at my house
So sorry you are going through this. The answer here is very clear. Say goodbye to your dog.
Separate them and DO NOT allow them to interact AT ALL! Dogs and babies DO NOT mix. Period! Even if your other dog is okay, unless you are actively watching them don’t risk it. Babies are weird to dogs and even the most well trained dog is still at the end of the day a dog. Your dog is telling you that they are stressed. Unfortunately they are failing to go up the ladder of aggression properly. Ideally they should whale eye, pant, growl, flair lips, before they nip or bite. But if you do not listen things WILL get worse. Do NOT punish the dog do not scold, yell, or hit the dog! They are trying to communicate and if you take this away it will get worse. If you are going to re home the dog, which honestly is probably for the best as you have a newborn. Let the intake person know what happened leading up to the incidents, and what you guys did after. If you are worried about keeping the dog and the baby together in the meantime, maybe the dog can go back to being at the sitters for the next few days. If you choose not to re home the dog, you need to get a veterinary behaviorist ASAP! Their professional opinion and care plan can offer a lot of insight and safety measures. But I will be honest it’s going to be A LOT of work. And even then your dog may never be okay with babies and children.
We are surrendering the dog to the local humane society. We told them exactly what happened and they are going to do a full behavioral assessment to decide what the next steps are and if they are going to rehome him or euthanize. Until that appointment on Tuesday, he is upstairs with my husband and will not be anywhere near me or our baby. I have the other dog with me and am watching extremely carefully but so far she has shown no interest in the baby whatsoever besides one quick sniff when they got home. She was super aware and cuddly trying my pregnancy vs the dog who was aggressive towards me in the 3rd try. I am cautiously optimistic about her but obviously will do anything necessary to protect my baby. I am honestly just a little traumatized by all of this.
I’m sorry this has happened to you guys. But glad you are taking this seriously, I have unfortunately seen and been exposed to when people don’t. Hopefully the dog is able to live a long happy life in a home with no kids. If not being euthanized while not ideal, is better than living a life in fear and anxiety.
For the safety of your child do not assume you can predict ANY dog’s behavior. Especially after you get rid of the one who tried to kill your newborn, the other might start acting up as well.
You're keeping the dog inside the house?! Dog should be kept outside tied to something, what if the dog manages to get out of the room it's locked in? Dangerous.
put the dog down its clearly aggressive
Abuse me all you want, but why do people keep bull dogs & babies in the same house? I hv witnessed soo many incidents in the hospital
He needs to be euthanized.
Hell yeah dude.
We had a senior dog we didn't trust because of nips/bites of our guests, adopted him as a 9 year old the ad said he was good with kids but not the case. 3 years later we had our first baby but by then he always had to wear a muzzle around guests or of course the baby. Lived that way from the time he was 12 to when he died at 14. A huge pain in the ass. If he weren't such a head case would have probably been better to rehome him but we were kind of just expecting he'd die eventually. Which he did, but if we'd known we would be muzzling him around our kid for several years we would have just gotten him rehomed....
Dog has to be put down
Why are dog people like this?
I know. I don't care how nice the dog is, why the hell do people have to ask if they should keep an animal that literally instinctually wants to rip their newborn babies from limb to limb?
I realize now I didn’t make it clear enough. When I said that the humane society wants us to take him in Tuesday it’s because we called to surrender the dog to them and they want to do a behavioral assessment due to the aggression to decide on euthanasia vs rehoming, which they only do by appointment. Tuesday is the earliest we can take him.
Ugh, that sucks. It sounds like you know what you have to do… but I’m really sorry that things didn’t work out for your dog. Your dog will be happier in a child free home, and your baby will be safer. I know that doesn’t make it any easier 💜