Lab declared "not vicious" despite attacking a 3-yr-old

Ack. No question in my mind that the dog should be destroyed. A dog mauling a little girl for poking him in the eye. Thats no excuse in my opinion. Do that to Reggin and he would yip and get away from the girl. I think dogs have the ability to know the difference between a toddler and a real threat that they would need to defend themselves from. Come on, the girl got 17 stitches! That is not a warning bite, folks.

I wouldn't deal with training or a muzzle, because I would NEVER be able to live with myself if another accident happened and a childs life was lost. Just the thought of that makes me ill.

I know some might disagree with me but thats ok.

VERY true. AND for all those saying that the dog should have removed itself. ITS A DOG!!! So it had a lapse of judgment... its a DOG. I know some of my dogs if felt a threat wouldn't walk away.. its just not in their nature (ok so this was a lab and not a terrier-but still its a DOG)

Why are you expecting a dog to make a more rational decision that many people make? How many times have you told someone (or had someone told you) to just walk away.......?

Yes it may be a crazy psycho dog.. it may just be an under-socialized dog. Strict rules and rehab could make this dog as safe as any other out there.

So what does constitute as provocation? Kicking dirt? Screaming? Poking an eye? Pulling a tail? When is it excusable that a dog bites? A dog being a dog. With that said, in the article, it was stated that there was no evidence the child provoked the dog. So do we give the dog the benefit of the doubt?

Yes, poor socialization can make a dog dangerous, and that might be the case here. But what if the dog had killed that child? Would he still be able to be ruled safe with training and rehabilitation? Why not?

Personally I wouldn't trust any dog after they nearly bit a childs face off. Even with training. Thats just me.

Like someone already said, there are dogs in shelters facing death. Dogs who have excellent temperaments. Dogs who dont even get a chance.

There is no indication that the child did not harrass the dog either.

There was a child killed in my area a few years back. It was a mastiff (of course the media called it a pit bull) It was horrible. One of my friends used to baby sit the child. Everyone was so upset. The owners euthed the dog and opted for an autopsy. Turns out there was a short pencil stub shoved up the dog's nose.

Why save that dog? Perhaps the owners love the dog... Perhaps not. IF they DO love their dog then why NOT muzzle/confine/train the dog? Why assume they want to throw it away and get a new one (maybe they do.. but just saying) We weren't there, NO ONE was there who can talk about what happened.

Well to me- the attack is serious, the dog was loose and hardly not to be deemed vicious.. should be put down. I know if I was the owner of the dog.

THe attack is serious. No one disputes that. But to kill someones pet is also serious.

I agree- but the dog was running at large.. and the attack as stated was serious. If this were my dog, I would make the decission... Its not worth the liability..

The death of a human child is serious too.

Like has been said before, there are hundreds of dogs sitting on death row, going to be killed this weekend who would never have responded to provocation in this way...if the dog was even provoked. And a dog that runs at large attacking children, even if it's just because it sees them a "prey" because it's a dog and dogs hunt things, is a dangerous dog and has no place in human society.

If killing this dog now after it has proven itself to be capable of injuring a child so severely saves the life of another child down the line, and maybe saves the life of a totally innocent dog on death row somewhere, that would be the right thing to do. The life of a biting dog is nowhere near the value of the lives and safety of human beings, no matter how much a few human beings may love that animal.

There were two dogs.. how do you know how it happened.. maybe it was redirected issue? Was this the first time the dog was at large.

I don't think I would KILL my dog over this-unless there were other signs. I would possibly EUTH at the next sign. I would muzzle and make sure my dog was secured at all times.

I always wonder at the knee jerk reaction of KILL the DOG even from dog lovers. If the dog is not a risk of reoffending what is the point? If the owner still wants and loves the dog and is willing to do what ever is nessessary. Does killing the dog make the event unhappen? Does it ease the childs pain? Does killing the dog make the parents feel better? Is Vengance a reason to kill someones pet? What if they kill the wrong dog. (there are cases where the wrong family dog has been euthed. The people are in such a rush to KILL the DOG they euth the wrong one!!)

If the dog is unstable, or the owners not responsible then yes KILL the dog. But it always surprises me how many people just instantly think to kill the dog. I know if it was my child and the dog was not previously an issue I would not be screaming KILL the DOG.

the dog was running at large.. Putting the dog back into the same home makes no sense to me.. And as a parent I would have somebodys butt in a sling legally if their dog, running at large attacked my child...

So if it was the first time the dog got loose its an suitable home? The parent wasn't watching their child .... We are ok with that, why do we assume the home is bad (it could be but why is that a 'automatic' assumption.

I have heard stories on chaz about dogs getting loose. Does that mean those chaz members are unsuitable dog homes? What if (cause there is nothing on the dog) that the dog has always been great with children? Why is it the dog MUST DIE. There must be reasons the council of people decided against it. More than just its a lab. Yes if it was a pittie it would likely be dead. But as no one knows what happened we just assume the dog is horrid the owners are heinous and the DOG MUST DIE?

Its a 3 year old in their own yard.. This was not a causal bite.. and running at large is a fine in almost any place.. I fail to see why this is not serious. And I agree with Renee- if this was a pit breed they would have put it down- so why not if a lab?

The vast, vast, majority of dogs that kill people, have a bite history. If dogs with bite histories were euthed or those insanely strict measures for dangerous dogs put on the owners to control them (like muzzled in public, taking out an insurance policy for the dog, 4 ft leash, etc) there would be a lot fewer human deaths...and the ridiculous BSL would disappear. Communities that have a one bite policy regardless of breed just have fewer bites, and deaths, period. The potential for saving human lives, and the lives of innocent dogs who are victims via BSL as scapegoats is so huge.

BUT many many dogs who do have bite histories never kill people. There are stats that show dogs who bite but not badly (and this didn't sound like a horrible bite... horrible experience a child should never have to deal with.. but not a horrible bite) are less likely to kill. That many dogs who do kill children its their FIRST offence.

One of my mom's best friends child needed reconstructive sugery to fix her face after being bitten. The dog had always played with children. BUT attacked Katie when the she crawled in the dog house with it. SHOULD the dog have bitten that badly? No. Should the children have been playing in such a way that they could crawl in the dog house after the dog? HELL NO. BUT everyone yelled KILL THE DOG. The dog had a 6 year history of being great with children. But that didnt' help it.

How many acutal deaths by dog do you think there are per year? (not extrapolated stats.. actual reported cases?) Did you know that many of the dogs had NEVER bitten before? So that refutes your statement that the VAST VAST majority of the less than 10 deaths (on average) per year kill people had bite histories.

I can understand a snap or a nip, but if a dog's reaction is to attempt to bite off a child's face, that dog is not right. Its especially scary that the dog is ONE AND A HALF YEARS OLD. I don't understand why its such a debate when someone wants to PTS a dog for being HA. You PTS the dog to protect other children and people (at least, that would be my reasoning). Children are more important than a dog.

ETA: Not a bad bite? 17 stitches may not seem like a lot for an adult, but stop and think how small a three year old's face is.

This is not a dog that had years of being good with children under its belt. This is a young dog here.

Oh yeah, and I read a pit bull forum often, and in many of the bite stories they post in the press section talk about the dogs having prior bite histories.

But the owners don't WANT to pts the dog. And sorry but this is how BSL hysteria starts. 17 stitches and a 2 inch scar is not "an attempt to bite off a childs face"! My son has 15 stitches caused by our mail box (and its a tad longer than 2 inches) If the dog had wanted to do serious damage it would be done.

My dog has a bite history, I have posted about it here before. She has not hurt anyone seriously because I manage her properly (which can be a challenge sometimes because my dad is stupid). I know how HARD it is to manage such a thing. Many, many people find it too difficult to manage, because you always have to, you can't EVER let down your guard. You can't EVER trust your dog. People forget this, get complacent, and another bite happens "out of the blue". I really, truly hope these people grasp this and this lab doesn't hurt someone again.

However I will not hold my breath.

Am I missing something? As someone who does attend bite cases, and a mother ( so I certainly do care when a child is bitten) 17 stitches can look many different ways and can absolutely occur with a bite/release scenario.

I just find it strange that with the facts that I read, again unless I missed something, that anyone would jump to the conclusion that this is a vicious dog (not matter what the breed). It's a stretch without all of the facts.

This bite was not witnessed, how in the world would a 3 year old child get bitten by a dog and it NOT be witnessed....especially if it was not the family dog??

Who's yard did the bite happen in? Are they sure that it wasn't their own dog that bit the child? Was their dog on leash at the time? I'm sorry but I see yet another slanted story like the ones that we are all too familiar with.....

I don't know...... maybe it is wrong of me, but I sure would have a hard time allowing a dog that bit a child and inflicted 17 stitches to live unless I was darn sure the dog had a VERY good reason. I personally have a hard time with a 3 year old being able to give a dog a good enough reason.....

We had a rescue Dobe when my kids were younger, and one day my son tripped (He was 5 at the time ) and landed full weight on him as he was laying sound asleep on the floor... He went ""oooffffff" as Jonah knocked the wind out of him and got up and moved to a different spot without even an evil eye towards Jonah.

**Shrugs** without knowing the whole story it is so hard to judge but.... I honestly could not live with myself if the dog ever bit again.

Here is a pic of Wolf (He came with the name.. LOL) and Jen :

I do wonder how the panel rules with other breeds?

It doesn't sound like anyone saw this. I have a hard time putting an animal down over something no one witnessed.

Yes the child ended up hurt but byron whacked my mom in the head once and she had to get stitches And kids are fragile sometimes. A puppy jumping up to a kids face can require stitches. Depending on the type it could be a small or large wound. A plastic surgeons 17 stitches are not that long.

If the dog brutally attacked its one thing but kids and dogs don't mix as well as some people would like to believe and this stuff happens.

I am not someone who is big on re homing dogs with bite histories or one who would have a dog that bites in the house. But I also would not blindly put my dog down. I got bit once while my corgi was tying to go after my husky and while its not an acceptable training method my first reaction worked just fine I know she didn't mean to bite me-but I also know she shouldn't have been blindly focused on my other dog. After that they were never in the same room together and there has not been an issue since.

there seems like there has been a lot of these types of threads lately. I just don't think its a clear cut black and white decision.