I need some advice please my 4 year old Shar Pei who I have had since 8 weeks old and is a very placid by has bitten my 3 year old daugher's face very badly - enough they we have been referred to a plastic surgeon.  She is scared of him and my sister has taken him in (not for ever as she emigrates in 6 months) but I do not wish for him to be destroyed.  He has never bitten before and been 100% tolerant of the children before, I am devestated as I love him so much it's breaking my heart.  I do not feel I can have hi back after this but what do I do? I have already had one Shar Pei rehomed when he attacked the midwife after my daugher was born, I feel such a failure with my dogs.

Sorry have to get this off my chest really.

To be honest nic, you won't want to know what I have to say I'm afraid...notoriously difficult breed and should they be in a home with young children? I hope your 3 year old daughter recovers well, physically and psychologically...I would have been down the Vet and had him PTS by now...sorry, but that's the way I feel about dogs biting young children. I'm sure there will be plenty of advice from some more experienced than others...but to be honest if he's re-homed how can anyone guarantee that he'll be kept away from children ALL the time?

So sorry for you though, it must be very hard, but children rely on us to PROTECT them...really sorry...but I hope your child isn't scared for life...

Hi,

So sorry you are going through this.  Can you expalin the circumstances in which he bit your daughter, ie, was there food about, was she trying to hug him, was she just walking past him, were you near him, was he lying down etc.  How is his health, Sharpies are prone to lots of health problems, is it possible something is amiss with him?  I would think possibly getting in touch with Sharpei resuce would be your best way forward but it is important to work out why this has happened so that if he is rehomed he can be placed somewhere with a full understanding of what is going on.  I hope your little one is ok :-)

Hi Nicola,

your post makes distressing reading and I sincerely hope your darling daughter is not scarred for life either physically or mentally :(  That a family pet which has grown up with you from 8 weeks can do such a horrendous thing is beyond most of our comprehension but nevertheless a stark reminder that animals can be unpredictable and vigilance round the clock essential :(

I won't beat you up on this - I'm sure you've done enough of that to yourself already

As to what to do about your dog, I think you probably know the answers you are likely to get.  The buck stops with you - to pass this dog on is highly irresponsible, TBH bordering on criminal IMO.  What if he did the same thing again to another child?  Were this to happen you could, rightly, be liable for prosecution. 

Harsh though the reality is this is a seriously dangerous dog.   But you already know that.  I hope you have the courage to do the right thing

Blessings to your little girl.

Teri

Sorry Nic but I have to say I agree.
Much as we all love dogs a dog biting a child is not acceptable worrying it was on the face too which is different, I think, than a wee nip or warning on the fingers
I hope your daughter will not be badly scarred

I was bitten by a dog on my mouth when i was 3 or 4 years old and i am not frightened of dogs , so hopefully your daughter won't be . I truly hope she is not scarred for life now .
Please don't pass this problem on . You are responsible for this dog and so need to do the right thing .

sorry i have to disagree, they are not notoriously difficult. I have pei and so do the friends and a lot of people i know.
Mine are fantstic with children of all ages, the dogs range in age from 10 years to 7 months, all are fantastic with children.
why oh why do people tar them all with the same brush?

I ask why has this dog bitten now when has always been good with your daughter, has he got an underlying  health problem?
have all the avenues be looked into.
Yes i feel sorry for your daughter, as my son was bitten as a young child by a GSP, i don't say they are all bad.

yes children do rely on us for protection, but so dose the dog we take on as a puppy.

Hi Nic,

What a harrowing experience for all of you,I'm so very sorry to hear this. Your daughter is of course your first priority to protect.
   Can I suggest you get in touch with Jennie from sharpei breed club rescue (even if its just to pick brains) jenniejentiki@aol.com
Just in fairness to this breed I'd like to say breed standard states temperment: Calm,devoted to humans. (so shouldnt be a difficult breed, but as we know some badly bred dogs in all breeds out there, whilst also acknowledging naturev Nurture)

Nic please dont beat yourself up anymore than you have. If you feel you've failed your dogs I'm sure a chat with those that know this breed well will help you figure it all out. I hope the contact given can help you :)

Best wishes.

A lot of the temperament guides say they like to be top dog and need firm handling. To be honest whether it was a Shar Pei, Dobe, Labrador or a Newfoundland, in my book there is no room for a dog that would bite a child enough to need Plastic Surgery! So, as an experienced dog owner, of different breeds, used to be Dobes, and as an ex A&E Nurse, my thoughts would be the same I'm afraid.

Also, this lady has aready had to re-home one...for attacking the Midwife...what would you suggest?

> there is no room for a dog that would bite a child

thats a big jump to make, the op doesn't give full details of the circumstance- if the child was hitting the dog is the answer the same? (to the op, no in anyway suggesting this is the case, just illustrating the point)

if this was unprevoked and no underlying health reason can be found then i agree the decison is already made, the dogs a liability, but its not so cut and dried in all cases.

in my book there is no room for a dog that would bite a child enough to need Plastic Surgery!

I would agree in certain situations but we don't have any idea what happened here or why, not saying anything like this happened but what if the toddler was sticking a pencil in the dogs ear, or the dog was in pain from something or the dog has a problem with it's eyes and was scared.  Sometimes terrible accidents happen maybe this is a temprement problem and then shouldn't be passed on but maybe there is an other reason why this happened and it can be prevented from happening again.  This is a four year old dog that has up until now had a good trusting temprement?

I fostered a Dobe for a resuce who another Dobe rescue turned away because she had bitten a child without even asking why it had happened, they advised putting to sleep.  When I found out what situation the dog had been put in to bite, it was human error and why should she have suffered because of that?  She stayed with me for 6 months and was a sweet and wonderful dog that had been put in a situation that she felt she didn't have much choice she has been in her new home for a couple of years and is a much loved and trusted member of thier family.  I just think it's important to find out what's happened before coming to any conclusions.

The op should seek advise and maybe professional advise from someone qualified and experienced and make a decision that she feels is right.

Ok, I have said..it is what I would do!!! I don't care if it's a fluffy Poodle or a Rottweiler! Either the dog needs supervising(or the child!) constantly, no if's no but's no anything! If a dog causes such a serious injury to a child that may or may not have been hitting it with a plastic hammer or a chair THE DOG GOES!

I can't understand how any of you, in light of the recent press reports about dog attacks, can even think about having a dog that is unsafe, or needs constant supervision, to stop it biting a child? Which is most precious? A child or a dog?

Don't you understand that there is no compromise with such a situation? Don't you understand that a child could be scared for life? Have you ever seen or dealt with a child that has suffered appalling injuries? Are you prepared to be held responsible for that?

The Poster should seek expert help, but I doubt any rescue would be willing to hand over a dog that has bitten a child to someone else? Or maybe I'm wrong and they will??

Don't you think then the parent of the child should have/would have known that and would not be so desperate to know what to do? I don't understand why people with dogs allow such unrestricted/unsupervised 'play' or socialisation?

Have any of your had children bitten by dogs? At all....enough to need plastic surgery?

It's a dreadful situation, and I really do feel for Nic, her daughter and her dog.   Poor Nic must be feeling so guilty, to have let her guard drop enough for the dog she has had since it was six weeks old to attack her toddler daughter - its horrendous.

But the dog - for whatever reason - has bitten a child, and cannot be allowed to be put in a situation where it could happen again.   This means that wherever the dog goes, it must never be allowed near a child.   How can Nic know that this can come about?   She can't.

If I were Nic, there would be only one way that I could know that the dog was safe - and sad as it will be - I would have to be the one to take the dog which I loved so much, to the vet's.   Whilst with me, it would have an injection which would be the last hurt it could feel on earth.   I would feel the hurt for a very, very long time - when I (being Nic) looked at the little girl as well as losing the dog of my heart.

But at least I would know that my daughter was safe - and that the dog couldn't be hurt/or hurt any more.

My thoughts are with you, Nic {{hugs}}

I can't understand how any of you, in light of the recent press reports about dog attacks, can even think about having a dog that is unsafe, or needs constant supervision, to stop it biting a child? Which is most precious? A child or a dog?

I don't see where anyone has suggested that she should keep the dog or that she should have to constantly supervise the dog to stop it biting.  Although in my opinion a dog and child should awalys be supervised no matter how much you trust them.

Fortunately many rescues deal with the individual situation as in the case I mentioned above, and assess why this has happened and will take in dogs that have bitten.  Although resuces would always take the precaution of homing a dog who has bitten a child to a to a home without children or visiting children regardless of the reason.

> Don't you understand that there is no compromise with such a situation? Don't you understand that a child could be scared for life? Have you ever seen or dealt with a child that has suffered appalling injuries? Are you prepared to be held responsible for that?
>

> Ok, I have said..it is what I would do!!!

fair enough thats what you would do, i was simply replying with my opinion, thats surely the whiole point of the discussion? there is no need to get so upset.

without wanting to undermine the OP's distress or the level of injury to her daughter we dont know how serious the injury is- the op's post was brief and potentially did not cover the full circumstance of the bite. and i disagree, if a child was hitting a dog with a chair as you mention thats fairly mitigating circumstance for the dog in my view. though i (and i am sure in this case the op) would not allow that or anything of that nature to happen.

no, i understand and respect that you feel there is not compromise in that situation. yes i do understand that the child could be scarred for life. yes i've seen children who have suffered dog attacks though not being a medical proffesional i have not treated them if thats what your asking. i am not prepared to be responsible for that becasue in no way am i responsible for that- my dog is not left alone with children nor has he ever attacked a child. i am not sure how you can suggest that i would be in some way responsible for simply suggesting that more information might be benefitial before taking a life.

> The Poster should seek expert help

for what if you feel the dog should be immediately pts?

i'm not saying shrug it off and pretend everything is shiney, i'm saying perhaps consider what happened before putting a dog down.

>I can't understand how any of you..... can even think about having a dog that is unsafe, or needs constant supervision, to stop it biting a child?
>I don't understand why people with dogs allow such unrestricted/unsupervised 'play' or socialisation?

So which is it? We should be able to trust our dogs with our children, or we should supervise them 100% of the time?

I have had my toddler bitten by my dog (my previous dog). Judging on that alone my dog should have been PTS. But with the full story - my toddler put his hands in the dogs bowl & recieved a warning snap, it's a bit different - it was my fault, not the dog's.
I have had my finger bitten right the way through by my own dog (many years ago) - sounds awful untill it's heards that I was breaking up a dog-fight and got my hand in the wrong place.
The whole story needs telling before the dogs death sentence is given.

OP, I hope your little girl makes a fully & speedy recovery. I think HuskyGirl has given some really good advice about getting in touch with the breed club. Speaking to people who know the breed and have experience of problems should help make you feel like you are making an informed decision to you dogs future.

> But the dog - for whatever reason - has bitten a child, and cannot be allowed to be put in a situation where it could happen again.   This means that wherever the dog goes, it must never be allowed near a child.   How can Nic know that this can come about?   She can't.
>
> If I were Nic, there would be only one way that I could know that the dog was safe - and sad as it will be - I would have to be the one to take the dog which I loved so much, to the vet's.   Whilst with me, it would have an injection which would be the last hurt it could feel on earth.   I would feel the hurt for a very, very long time - when I (being Nic) looked at the little girl as well as losing the dog of my heart.
>

which to be honest would be my decision, but nic knows this is an obvious option and was looking for other suggestions, just because its not what we might do doesn't mean we can't offer advice.

> I have had my toddler bitten by my dog (my previous dog). Judging on that alone my dog should have been PTS. But with the full story - my toddler put his hands in the dogs bowl & recieved a warning snap, it's a bit different - it was my fault, not the dog's.
> I have had my finger bitten right the way through by my own dog (many years ago) - sounds awful untill it's heards that I was breaking up a dog-fight and got my hand in the wrong place.
> The whole story needs telling before the dogs death sentence is given

speaking my mind mastifflover :)

> but nic knows this is an obvious option and was looking for other suggestions, just because its not what we might do doesn't mean we can't offer advice

Sometimes the only suggestion we can give is the one that is abhorrent to all of us - I hope that Nic knows that 99% of us here would support her.    Sadly, we can't always have what we want.

> The op should seek advise and maybe professional advise from someone qualified and experienced and make a decision that she feels is right

I agree with Karen here, which is why I suggested contacting the breed club.. not so much from the point of view of blindly re-homing of course not! and no breed club worth its salt would even consider this as well we all know (although.. granted there are,in the minority thankfully, some breed clubs with questionable practice I grant you) But on the whole I would expect A breed specialist to be able to give sound advice and also perhaps to suggest accredited behaviourists with Breed specific knowledge, and *if* pertinent arrange an assessment of the dog.
      In all honesty my person reaction were it me and a dog of mine, would be to PTS. But the OP has stated she does not want to do this. It matters not then if 1 person, 100 people or a 1000 people tell her that what she should do....(especially if people are arguing amonst themselves) So my personal reaction to that was to suggest breed club as may be an assessment from a breed specialist/behaviourist may well help the OP to reach the right decision which may well be to PTS (there could still remain, without possession of all the facts, the chance that this may not be the only course of action)
        If the OP has not doen so already I would say an assessment professionally not over the internet of this dog and the situstion should be made asap.

Hope this helps :)

Fortunately many rescues deal with the individual situation as in the case I mentioned above, and assess why this has happened and will take in dogs that have bitten.  Although resuces would always take the precaution of homing a dog who has bitten a child to a to a home without children or visiting children regardless of the reason

But who would be able to guarantee that a dog would never come into contact with children for the rest of it's life?

Very intrigued by you mentioning the warning snap to your toddler when near the food bowl. My dog a tervuren did the same to my toddler when he climbed on her- a tiny nick to his forehead. But what about the case a few years ago when a child went to the food bowl of grandads German Shepard and he took his arm off ?
Surely the degree of savageness should be an issue in dogs in a family home?

its not the only suggestion thats been offered though. though i'm sure that she does realise that of course she'd have support here if she did.

> Surely the degree of savageness should be an issue in dogs in a family home?

Very true, but the OP hasn't said it was a savage attack. If a dog gives a waning snap to a child and the child falls at the time of contact for example it's possible for a tooth to scag the face enough to leave a scar (if the wound is attentded to by a plastic surgeon they can limit the scars visability), this is a different scenario to a dog launcing an attack that is savage enough for facial wounds to require reconstructive surgery (via a plastic surgeon).
I'm not trying to justify a dog hurting a child, I'm just trying to point out that we haven't been told all the facts.

But who would be able to guarantee that a dog would never come into contact with children for the rest of it's life?

If the dog did this because it was hit, trodden on or hurt in some way or because of a health problem then it doesn't need to never come into any contact with children again, not living with them or coming into close contact would be a precaution, as said before we don't know what has happened in this situation.  I could not say with any certainty that if either of my girls were really hurt or something was wrong that they are not capable of biting, they are lovely dogs but they are dogs and act as such when scared or hurt.  All I'm saying is that I personally don't think it's right to be suggesting anything without knowing the full story if that is possible.

> In all honesty my person reaction were it me and a dog of mine, would be to PTS. But the OP has stated she does not want to do this. It matters not then if 1 person, 100 people or a 1000 people tell her that what she should do....(especially if people are arguing amonst themselves) So my personal reaction to that was to suggest breed club as may be an assessment from a breed specialist/behaviourist may well help the OP to reach the right decision which may well be to PTS (there could still remain, without possession of all the facts, the chance that this may not be the only course of action)
>

couldn't agree more. we're not in posession of all the information needed to make definate statements on such a serious decision nor i'm sure we'd all admit are we all experts on dog behaviour.

poor kid though, i really hope the damage isn't as severe as it sounds and that the plastics team can mend it well :(

(pssst karen! you replied to me there! i'm with you though! ;))

> there is no room for a dog that would bite a child enough to need Plastic Surgery!

Any facial cuts these days, especially to a child, that may scar, will be referred to plastic surgery - that doesnt particularly denote the severity of the bite.

And someone else said bites to the face are different... why? Childrens faces are pretty much at dogs face height, if children were 6ft tall they would more often get bitten in the legs or hands.

That said I wouldnt keep the dog myself, because the childs safety does have to come first - but equally i wouldnt have it destroyed on this alone. I would seek to find the cause of the bite, and rehome the dog to a child free environment if at all possible.

Hopefully the OPs little one will be ok and not be scared of dogs in future.

I'm afraid I could not rehome the dog as I could not live with the possibility that it would bite again.  This was a three year old child and a decently sized dog, it surely could have just escaped the situation rather than bite.  Regardless of the ins and outs though I don't think a rescue organisation would consider it personally.  I know my breed rescue would not.

To be honest whether it was a Shar Pei, Dobe, Labrador or a Newfoundland, in my book there is no room for a dog that would bite a child enough to need Plastic Surgery!

I couldn't agree more. People come before dogs, and it doesn't matter what the circumstances were -if the wounds are as serious as this, there is only ONE responsible solution and that is to have the dog put to sleep.

> And someone else said bites to the face are different... why? Childrens faces are pretty much at dogs face height, if children were 6ft tall they would more often get bitten in the legs or hands.
>
>

Hi I said I think face is different to hands- I agree with the height thing but in my view it is different.
Growing up with dogs when I overstepped the mark I had an old bitch who would touch my fingers with her teeth (never closing them) or show teeth to say enough. I learned a healthy respect and understanding.
Others have mentioned fingers being bitten in a similar way.
Face sounds retaliatory and I agree none of us know why it happened.
Seems concensus is regardless of breed a dog has attacked a child and should not be trusted in case it does similar or worse
What a sad situation for all involved as there is the isuue and the love and bonds to deal with.
I agree for the dog PTS ends it all but not for the people who will live with regret and loss for a long time

I would surguest looking into the back ground of the puppy, its breeding ect, even a well breed dog can bite.
I also would never keep a dog i cannot trust, I feel for the mother and her daughter,we all know children can be nasty to animals, maybe something happend we are not aware off.
I am also an experienced owner of diffrent breed's some toy, some giant and some working.
I also agree that a dog that bites is not to be trusted, i just think all the issues should be out in the open before a breed is condemmed then its not the breed its a dog of that breed.

Like you say she had 1 before that attacked, none of mine ever have, maybe something in that breed line if they are from the same breeder.

I have to say Jennie has had many years of experance with rescue, and is the best person to talk to about this for our breed.
I have helped for a number of year's and have never had to deal with a nasty pei. The sad thing is a little girl has been bitten, by a dog that should by their nature should not have been (used in china as nursery dogs), these dogs should be very protective towards children.

The whole thing is upsetting for all concerend, i wish the little girl a speedy recovery, and maybe there will be a good out come for the dog.
I do know that as a rule the spcgb rescue will not take o a dog that has bitten, others who use rescue as a money making venture may.

Thank you to all that have posted.  My daughter has been having surgery today and they think she will be scared but they shouldn't be for life except one on her nose. She is cut on under her eye, across her nose, her lips and her chin.  I am still so shocked.  My OH wants Dutch PTS but I can't bear the thought of it yet even after seeing my daughter go through this.  I  have told her a million times to leave him alone when he is sleeping but of course she doesn't listen and (iwas at work) my mum nipped to the loo, my daughter went to pull a toy out from under the dog and he snapped.  It could have been worse.  I am afraid as much as I love Shar Pei, Dutch is my 3rd I have had no luck with them - my first Bailey as I said attacked the midwife and was rehome through Shar Pei rescue, my 2nd Harley had a lovely temperment but died aged 2 of kidney failure and Dutch - well you know that story.  All come from different breed lines, Harley and Bailey the same breeder and Dutch a totally different breeder.  They have all been such loving dogs and Dutch probably the best - this is absolutelty the first sign of any aggression. He is staying at my sisters at the moment and she called today to say he won't eat.  Finding that hard as he's normally a piggy and now doesn't understand what has happened to him.  Tears are rolling as you can all imagine.  No more Shar Pei for me I am afraid.  Thank you for all your advice however hard it is to hear.

Nicky

Best of luck whatever you decide .

> I have told her a million times to leave him alone when he is sleeping

She is three years old.  You could never expect a child of that age to fully appreciate these things.  I know you are finding this upsetting but you cannot responsibly pass this dog on to someone else as there could never be any guarantee that it would forever be kept away from small children.

Hi Nicky

I have every sympathy for you in the position you're in :(

Please God your little girl will get over this trauma psychologically and thankfully surgery nowadays is so much more advanced that I'm sure the greatest skill will be given to ensure minimal physical signs of her injuries.

Be brave for her for now,
blessings Teri

It's a shame 4 years is a long time to have raised a much loved dog, who I'm sure is a valued member of your family, but the dog would be gone! I appreciate that even in the worse case hyperthetical scenario if a child was dragging a dog around by the tail and it snapped a warning then went for the childs face when not left alone, would I blame the dog No! But once a child is bitten it is afraid :-( so the dog would be gone for my childs mental health and also I would never trust the dog again, even if it wasn't the dogs fault, I would blame myself for not supervising properly, my mistake would have cost the dogs position in our home, end of. A child is far more important.

I've never left any dog with any child and I trust my girl 100% but a dog is an animal and no-one can ever predict how they will react as much as we like to think we can.

I can understand where Newfiedreams is coming from with her comments on Shar Pei's, well bred ones have great temperaments, but, they are a dominant breed and there are a lot of BYB's rearing dodgy temperaments, it happens to all breeds and the Shar Pei is certainly not exempt from bad breeders.

As with any breed it is often only as good as the breeder.

I'm so sorry for your daughter nic29, I really hope that she will recover well, you must be absolutely devastated, I'm sorry but I couldn't keep the dog. Depending on the circumstances of why the dog bit that would clarify my decision of either ringing a Shar Pei rescue or having it PTS.

Nicky, I know how upsetting it is, believe me, but the most important thing in the World is your daughter...she needs you now and you have to be strong for her...God willing she will recover with minimal scarring.

  I  have told her a million times to leave him alone when he is sleeping but of course she doesn't listen and (iwas at work) my mum nipped to the loo, my daughter went to pull a toy out from under the dog and he snapped. 

I would not put a dog to sleep under these circumstances, I'm afraid, although I can understand why people are feeling that way. I'd try to rehome it in a very aware place without children if the general temperament was OK. Whether that's possible is another question.

If a person continually disturbs a dog, which seems to be the case here, over time they may well get bitten (and i'd be very surprised if this would not happen with some of our dogs,  regardless of how gentle we think they are and how much we love them). In such circumstances, dogs usuallly do give warning signals but they are often not understood or even noticed by humans. As parents, we have to control our children around dogs all the time, and if they continue to disturb the dog when sleeping, then there may well be an incident. What actually  happens depends on how much bite inhibition the dog has. (And if a dog has ever been told off strongly for puppy biting then it may not have developed inhibition (which would leave more of a graze)).

For anyone reading, a good book on this subject is  The Canine Commandments by Kendal Shepherd, vet and behaviourist, it explains the "ladder of aggression" and gives help on how to understand dogs with children in mind:

http://www.parentingwithouttears.com/articles/20070502_1
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Canine-Commandments-Kendal-Shepherd/dp/1874092559

Ultimately this  a horrible accident that could have been prevented (although it's so easy to say and I send sympathy to the original poster). I'd suggest the dog is not dangerous - it bit in certain circumstances that will probably never be repeated. However I do think it would be very worrying to have this dog and child together so I'd agree there is a need for professional assessment and discussion with a reputable behaviourist. APBC member would be best. It may be they advise put to sleep because there is no practical solution as few rescues are thrilled about taking dogs in with a bite history....however it may be they give other recommendations and it would certainly be up to the original poster, but she'd have a reputable assessment which can only help.

He has never bitten before and been 100% tolerant of the children before

It may be that after reading the book you might rephrase that as I'd suspect there have been signs :) if the children did disturb him when sleeping, etc. The other thing is that the dog may have some problem health wise that makes him irritable/stressed or even one that you don't know of such as a hip, eye, endocrine problem etc so I'd also suggest a vet check including blood tests, (but remember vets are not, usually, beahviourists!).

JMO and I know many will disagree.

Lindsay
x

nic, have you contacted the breeder?  I think in these circumstances, although what has happened is deverstating, I don't think you should have the dog back with you for your daughters safety however this incident is not 100% the dogs fault and maybe if his temprement is fine in every other way he needs to be rehomed to a family with no young children.

Unfortantly this is one of the problems with dogs (any breed0 and young children, niether understand eachother.  Young children don't understand not to touch the dog or to go into the dogs peronal space, nor does the dog understand that the child is young and doesn't understand, if you get what I mean?

Of course if you feel his temprement is no longer trustworthy with anyone, even adults, he should be PTS asap.

i would also suggest you don't get another dog untill your daughter is older.

Hope that your daughter makes a speedy recovery and is not scared for dogs for life.

Thank you, he is not an aggressive dog at all and I wouldn't say particulary dominant.  I really can't bear the thought of him being destroyed as he does have a lovely personality but of course young children and dogs are a delicate mix and yes we have probably trusted him too much but after so many years without one incident, you do relax a bit.  Our mistake. No I haven't contacted the breeder who wasn't a particularly friendly lady and as I understand is no longer breeding. I think I will have to contact Shar Pei Rescue who we went through with Bailey and see if they can help. I will of course be totally honest as we were with them about Bailey.  My daughter has been good today and eating well - she even requested a kitkat at 3am, ate it and went back to sleep.  I went to see Dutch this morning and take him for a walk with my sisters dogs and she wanted to come (we didn't let her) but I took that as a good sign that she wasn't scared of him and she does keep asking for him.  I am dog mad and have had dogs for years and years and the thought of having no dogs in the house is awful but I know that is what I have to do for now for the sake of my children until they can understand.  Devestated on many fronts.

I wish you all the luck with Shar pei Rescue.  I hope that can quickly find a suitable home.

If your daughter is happy to see dogs maybe there is another you can take her to see, hiding her away from dogs could be a problem possibly.

Very promising to hear thats your daughter is ok and by the sounds of it, feeling well in herself.

Wishes to you all and hugs for yourself.  I cannot begin to understand what you are having to go though at the moment but it is so easy to forget a dog is an animal.

Try looking for a child-friendly breed. This incident doesnt mean you cant have dogs in the house any more. Just choose the breed and individual dog carefully.

Good luck with the situation.

it doesn't mean that you can't have dogs but why not take a good stretch of time to find a really good breeder (sounds like this one might not have been) of perhaps a different breed and also spend that time socialising your daughter into the appropriate way to deal with dogs. by the time you got a pup she'd be a bit older, hopefully over her fright and know what to do and not do with dogs.

if you find a good breeder maybe near you i am sure that they would be happy to have you and your daughter visit a lot so she is really familiar with the dogs, then you and your family will get a top notch pup and fantastic support.

Thank you that's good advice, it's ironic really that in January 2010 I was planning on adding a new dog to the house - either a Labrador or Golden Retriever and had already contacted a lady who lives locally and breeds Golden Retrievers about a week before all of this happend.  I might ask her if we can go and visit the pups when they are born.

On our Shar Pei - my sister has followed up with a couple of local people but we have had no luck so I will contact the breed rescue this weekend.  He's really settled now at my sisters which is going to be hard now to move him.

thanks again.