Biting...

I adopted Moe from a shelter when he was approx. seven to nine months old. He was such a cutie that I fell in love with him and, though it took some fanagling I finally made him mine. Then we found out that my cutie-pie was a biter. One of his 'biting issues' was that he would snap and bite if we woke him or touched him while he was sleeping. We took him to a trainer when he was healthy enough to be among other dogs. After we dealt with his more serious domination biting issue we discussed his problem of biting us if we disturbed his sleep. Our trainer told us that there is a reason for the saying "Let sleeping dogs lie". Her advice was to NEVER touch him while he was sleeping. If we wanted to wake him up for any reason we were to call to him loudly to wake him up, making sure that he was fully awake before approaching him. If he fell asleep on the couch in the evening before I could get him into his crate, I'd call to him, then when he was awake I'd verbally (and sternly) order him off the couch. Only THEN would I pet him, praise him, and tell him to "go home" (our way of saying go into your crate). We told our kids the same thing... NEVER touch him while he was sleeping. We also supervised guests in the house, always instructing kids who were sleeping over not to touch him at all, and why. Eventually he got a whole lot better about it. Today I can kiss him, hug him, and even move him while he is sleeping and all I get is a complaining grumble. I don't know why some dogs get snappy. Perhaps it's instinctual? Or a trust issue? I don't know but I DO KNOW you can fix it, or at least control it.

Don't give up on Bogie. By all means discuss it with your obedience trainer... they may have other tips for you. In the meantime, your own quick fix of telling others not to touch him while sleeping WILL work. Be sure to tell ANYONE and EVERYONE who might tocuch him or be left alone with him . Tell them about waking him verbally if they need to. If there are very young children around who won't understand, he should be crated or somehow kept separated from them. It is a very disturbing problem with potentially serious consequesnces but it can be overcome. Good luck![/b]

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Whoa!
The problems are human, not the Basset!
I am 59 and have many of my families champion Black Labs up in your part of the country. I have a Basset as well and understand them too. If you are considering doing anything to the innocent Hound then you just post your intentions and I will fly to New York and pick him up and give him a super excellent home and life!
Shakerag[/b]

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The Hound is re-acting in fear from what he perceives as a threat.
I have seen that before from new moms and we always made sure they heard our voices before disturbing them, that worked for us.[/b]

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Anal retentive to a fault (and I mean that as a compliment in this context), Donaldson does an excellent job of breaking down forms of resource guarding behavior into detailed, progressive increments. In order to teach a dog to accept having its mouth opened, for example, she lists 60 separate steps - beginning with touching the dog's rump for a single second. It takes 27 steps before one even touches the dog's head.

Clearly, this is not a book for someone who wants a quick fix to their problem. It requires a food-motivated dog and an extremely dedicated and talented owner with the patience and perseverance to apply the technique. [/url]

THe problem here is clearly the dog has no bite inhibition. Unfortunately it is not something dogs can usually be taught later on in life. That means if the dog is put in situations in which it feels it is necessary to defend itself. It will Bite and it will bite in an injurious manner. That makes the dog dangerious. You must realize this in all situations with the dog, Personnally I would avoid any contact with childern even supervised because both the dog and kids are unpredictable. This goes the same stranger etc. When friends or guest are over you need a secure location like a crate for Him.

The first step in solving the problem is preventing in the first place, Because the behavior is self rewarding. In a word biting works.


Any one can speculate all they want on the cause of the problem but without actualing seeong the dog in is at best a shot in the dark. Consult with a professional that can observe the dog and its reaction to the suroundings, and can formulate a plan to reduce the risk. That said given the bite history of the dog, There will always be some risk and you need to manage that as well it it can be rather burdensome at time.

Not that you are plan this but euthanasia is not the worst alternative. With the litgious world we live in, trying to rehome a dog that is a known biter is a lawsuit waiting to happen even if you do make full disclosure. There are some dogs that just will not be able to over come their past. It does not make you a bad person, trainer, owner if in the end it is the best option.

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