I've had my male dalmatian, Charlie for 11 weeks (rescue dog, no history) now and thought we were really getting on well with him. I came in from work tonight and he had bit my 15 year old son. My son had gone to give him a bit of food, charlie was lying in the chair, he turned his head away so my son walked away from him and the next thing he knew he hurtled towards him and had him pinned down on the settee biting his arm. He hasn't broken the skin but its very bruised. I have no-one here to share this with, my son is obviously upset by this but says he doesn't want to get rid of Charlie. (I think he's only saying this because he knows how attached I have got to him)  If it had have been me he bit I know I'd be giving him another chance and getting him reffered by the vet to see a behaviourist. My instincts are telling me not to risk it happening again. He's been possesive over his food since we got him and I was working on that. I feel such a failure now after seeing how far I have got with him and now I'm faced with what to do. If it was me reading this from someone else I suppose I'd be thinking, don't give him another chance.

Give him another chance and involve your son in his training, especially where the food is concerned.

Oh no, that's a terrible thing to happen. I know how hard you've been working with Charlie, and you don't deserve this. All I can suggest is that you sleep on it. At the moment you're understandably distraught, and any decision may not be rational. I'm so sorry this has happened.
:(

Am so sorry :( What a nightmare.

I think you have to sleep on it as JG says.

Then I think you haveto weigh up your enjoyment of owning this dog versus what you are prepared to put up with. Only you can make that decision :(

Oh dear Spotty Dog, I know how hard you have been trying with him, you must be so disappointed.  To have a go like this at a 15 year old is not good news, I would not like to think what could have happened if it was a younger child. 

As he has been acting in the past in a dominant way, having him in a chair is not a good idea, it gives him a status he does not deserve and certainly not earned.  If I remember correctly you couldn't get your Dally through the club rescue.  If you got him from a general rescue kennel then I would certainly contact them. 

It does seem all your problems are food related and unfortunately Dalmatians seem to loose any sense of rational behaviour when food is around.  Of course this doesn't excuse this type of behaviour.

I am sorry I can't be more positive, it does sound like his 'status' needs to be reduced and a behaviourist should be able to help you with that. A young male Dalmatian needs a very firm but fair hand, I know I got to a point where I nearly gave up on mine, but to his saving grace he did not show any aggression towards us.  I love him to bits now, but it was a long haul.

At the end of the day you must do what you feel is right for your situation, I think you have answered that with your last sentence.

Good luck
Sandra

Begs the question, why was the dog in rescue in the first place??  Bad temperament and probable lies on the previous owners part I guess.  My advice, take the dog back, tell them the problems you have encountered, let them decide what to do with him, neither you nor your son deserve a dog that behaves this way, I don't blame the dog, but I also don't think he has a place in a family environment either.
Dawn.

Resource guarding has nothing to do with "dominance" or "status"!

If you are determined to keep this dog then I would strongly suggest you seek the help of a reputable qualified behaviourist who can plan a programme with you after first evaluating him.  It may be that this dog is not suited to your particular level of experience or environment.

I feel terrible for you. When I first got my rescue dog I was bitten a few times when he was having tantrums in the street at other dogs.  I really did consider more than once whether to keep him but I knew he'd been rehomed a few times and I didn't want to add to this.

I started him on a proper and intensive course of training with professional help, which is still ongoing 18 months later, and he's much improved and is a lovely but temperamental dog.

Had I been in your position where the dog had bitten my child, I may well have considered a lot more carefully whether to keep him.  Plus the fact the dog I rescued was a small dog and easier to control.  Please don't rush him back to the rescue, try him with training first (take your son too)and give him the best chance.  I really hope it works out for all of you.

CG :)

I've left a message with a behaviourist and will see what they say. He's been so affectionate today as if he knows. He hasn't eaten today either so it looks like he's not well either, another factor maybe.
I've got to go to work for a couple of hours, if he still refuses to eat when I come back I'll take him to the vets.
I haven't got round to insuring him yet, got my 1st quote yesterday, can anyone give me a rough estimate how much a behaviourist is going to cost, so I can be prepared for the shock if we decide thats what we are going to do?

Hi i have appointment at Royal Queen Elizabeth animal hospital in Potters-Bar Jan 28th and it's first appointment have been told 80.00 - 100.00 pnds it is a 90 min appointment going over the dog and all the forms i have filled in and then they do a report.

Hope this helps.

Lorna

If you are insured, you may find the bill is paid for you; it depends on which organisation the behaviourist is with partly :)

Lindsay
X

He could not be eating because he is ashamed of how he acted yesterday over food and now feels that he shouldnt have any.  But still it is possible theres something wrong somewhere so try the vet.  When with the behaviourist involve your son (and any other family members if there are any)  In any training with any dog it is good to encourage the whole family to work.  Keep him off of all funiture and don't give him random treats.  It may be hard but really show him who is boss and put him at the bottom of the pack NOW!  Good luck with whatever you decide.

Dogs do not feel "shame" and they live in the "now"......................

It is important that people understand that resource guarding has nothing to do with pack or pecking order.................. otherwise it will be tackled in completely the wrong way................

I agree with Tohme - even the lowest ranking dog will gaurd a resource if he values it enough to feel it's worth risking the penalties for....  I think it's significant that the dog appears to have lost his appetite, and I wouldn;t be surprised if there is a health issue underlying this problem.......  I hope he's getting a thourgh vet check before seeing a behaviourist?

I had him at the vets at t-time as he hasn't eaten all day, they have reccomended chicken/rice diet for a a few days after trying to shove the values of hills down my throat, and gave him an injection to stop his stomach churning. She also mentioned Gardia (sp) which will be looked into if he doesn't improve. I mentioned Charlie biting my son and that I had made contact with a behaviourist and that he was still on serene-um which we tried for the fireworks and he calmed down dramatically so we kept him on it. After a brief history we have been prescribed selgian for him. Anyway my bf spoke to the behaviourist when I was at work, who is a member of the apbc and I still haven't managed to speak to her but she seemed to think it was dominance towards my son which is the problem. I will hopefully speak to her tomorrow and get something booked, they are fully booked until mid january. Thankyou everyone for your kind words they have helped me get through a really rotten day.

Costs for professionals - I paid 75 pounds for 2 hours with a dog trainer who came to my house then I took Copper to the training class which was 55 pounds for 8 weeks.

The vet referred me to a behaviourist at the Dick Vet College which was 85 pounds a session.  None of it is cheap and I didn't think any of it was working at the start but you have to be prepared to keep going. Half the battle is knowing the correct signals to give to the dog so he'll do what you want.

A word of warning - my insurance company said I could claim all this back on the policy, however, because I had previously been to the vet when I got the dog and told them he was a bit aggressive, the insurance company then declined to pay because they said it was a pre-existing condition.

CG

He's not insured, was in the process of doing this when it happened. The lady from the apbc quoted my bf £85, very reasonable I thought. I enquired at the vets yesterday morning about getting him referred to a behaviourist and the nurse said it would be approx £300.
I feel a bit happier now I have made a decision to keep him and know it will be a long road which we still mighn't get to the end of but I'm willing to try. 

I'm so glad you've decided to keep the dog. I couldn't bear to hand mine back and pass the problem on to someone else who might not have been prepared to put the time and effort in.

I'm sure yours will turn into a great pet.  I never regretted paying the money or doing the training and I couldn't do without my dog now.

Good luck :)

CG

Hi

I have been where you are now, i had a GSD from a pup and he was getting on great with my kids, until one night when my dog was 15 months old he turned on my 4 year old daughter, and punctured her hand, my eldest daughter said it was not simbas fault and that my 4 year old was teasing him with his chews, although it made me scared i did wonder if my eldest was just saying that as she loves him so much, but i never got rid of him, i just threw out his bones and would not buy him any and since then there has been no other bites, i would say keep on with the training, i spoke with my vet over my dog biteing my child, and he said that i should not give up on him as it was a one off, instead i put his bowl down and let him start too eat his food then i would take away his food, if he made no fuss he got loads of praise and attention, and then i started getting my children to do the same , and in no time at all, he just sat and waited for us to take it..lol

Just dont give up, if a dog wants to go they will, but the fact that he never broke the skin, could indicate rough play from your dog, but he needs to know that soft play is ok and rough play is not, ask your vet for advice, hopefully you have got this problem sorted out now :)

Hugs

Just to let anyone who replied to this know that lastnight I booked the Counseller (Carrie Evans) for Charlie for the end of January,  A stool sample has also went to the vets for testing for Giardia.
We are all going away today for a week in the country so hopefully the fresh air and country walks will help Charlie relax.
Thanks for all your replies on this.