Kids and Biting Puppies....SAD UPDATE

If I were in your situation, I'd tell your sister in law to find a new home for the dog.

An outside dog with no training thats already showing signs of dominance and perhaps some aggression should not be in a home with small kids. Its an invitation for disaster.

They obviously only have a passing interest in the dog if its shut outside all day, and the dogs is obviously bored to death. Rehoming sounds like their best option.

i would send them some articles about kids being maimed by untrained/ignored dogs.... that should shock them into DOING THE RIGHT THING!! [:'(][:@]

ORIGINAL: DumDog

i would send them some articles about kids being maimed by untrained/ignored dogs.... that should shock them into DOING THE RIGHT THING!! [:'(][:@]

 
ditto!!

I was recently in a similar situation. My SIL begged my brother for a dog for the kids. When he gave in the SIL didn't believe in training dogs. She felt that dogs just learn on their own. She said that the dog she had growing up didn't have any training and it stuck around the house and such. But when I questioned her more about it she told me that they had to put the dog to sleep because it was biting eople (well no kidding!). I was able to nag my brother enough to get their dog into puppy socialization class but after that they didn't go any further. Then the complaints started to come in. The dog is biting the kids. the dog is eating all of the kids toys. The dog doesn't listen. Well, yeah! It doesn't know because you never taught it!
 
So, I pretty much emailed my brother names of training places daily and emailed him dog training articles, etc. Every time I talked to him on the phone I asked about the dog then would nag him to take the dog to training. When we'd go camping together, the SIL saw how good my 2 dogs are and I'd say "Yeah, because I have been training them. They don't get this way on their own". She finally said "Maybe we should take our dog to training" DING DING DING DING!
 
It took months of nagging and showing them how a good dog behaves but they finally gave in. I still call every other day or so to check on the dog and see that they are working on their obediance.

UGH.

Doesn't it stink, Christine, to know that you're a dog lover and a responsible owner who does right by your dogs and then you have a family member who is like, the exact opposite??? Not to insult your SIL because I don't know her, but I can relate because I have a direct blood relative that is the EXACT same way.

This is how dogs end up in shelters.

Is what you're describing just a puppy being a puppy? Is the puppy just puppy biting? See, this where IF the parents don't step in and train the puppy, it's going to end up most likely being DISASTOROUS as the dog gets older. But the parents won't see it that way, they'll go around convincing themselves the dog is vicious and "OMG, it just attacked my kids one day out of the blue!!! Woers me, I thought I was simply being a good owner, feeding and caring for this dog and it turned on my kids!! I picked a psycho dog, you know, dogs can just turn psycho for no reason." and then the owners become the victims, instead of the dog being a victim of BAD OWNERSHIP.

People make me sick to my stomach.

I'm sorry, I have no real advice because as long as the owners aren't willing to do anything, I don't know how far you'll get working with children that young without support from the parents.

I'm sorry about this situation. It's sad.

Sounds like a bad situation all around. The whole dog-as-lawn-ornament thing really burns me up. I would keep nagging them to get the dog some training and bring it inside. Sometimes people are more inclined to read articles than books, so I'd email articles to them. Her kids are young, so she should be supervising them 100% of the time with the puppy and should step in any time the pup bites. My kids are older, 6 and 8, but I taught them "be a tree" if the dogs jump on them or bite at their clothes, They stand still, fold their arms and ignore the dogs by turning their back. Also mine are not allowed to use their hands to play with the dogs, they have to have a toy (unless they are just petting quietly) and since I have herding breeds, we don't do chasing games. Maybe your mom could talk to the kids directly and tell them some things they could do when the pup starts to bite and play roughly.

Often times what I've personally had to realize is that people you think are rational will go absolutely ballistic when they imagine that their kids are in danger. Its like they revert to a primitive form of humanoid. Sometimes you just got to accept that. Of course, this type of people can't understand why a puppy does what it does (puppies are complex!), and sometimes, what's the phrase...? Yes: shit happens.

In those cases the family just isn't ready for a dog. (my 2 cents)

This is exactly the situation with my next door neighbors.  They have two children, 6yo and 3yo.  They purchased a Border Collie puppy for the kids.  The dog stays outside.  There is no training.  The dog is not even allowed in the home.  Now my neighbors are the nicest people.  And I hear they used to live on a farm.  However we are in the suburbs. 
 
My neice plays with the kids and the dog in their back yard and tells me, "the puppy jumps on them all the time", "they puppy is mouthing them", etc.  My neice knows how to deal with dogs, but I am thinking, when this dog gets older, it's going to be a nightmare situation.  I can't say that I would let my neice play in their yard if the dog isn't going to be trained.
 
I just don't understand the reasoning of this.  They basically purchased the dog as a toy for the kids.  And the kids are nice, but let's just say they are not gentle, quiet kids.  It boggles my mind!
 
 

My mom told me today the puppy in question, Scooby, was hit by a car and killed....[&o]

My stepbro and SIL are planning on getting another dog right away though--it will still be an outside only dog but at least they are going to get an invisible fence this time....[&o]

Run free Scooby.....[]

Wait, wait, wait.... they had an outside dog *without* a fence?!?  How do you do that... tie it up?

The mind...it boggles.

people like that should not be allowed to have dogs,..or cats,...or anything it's very very disturbing to me that for one they would leave a dog outside all the time. and the dog to have the opportunity to get out of the yard. not only must it be traumatizing for the kids but think of the poor unexpected person that hit it...I would die I cry all the time when my husband hits even a squirl. or a frog for goodness sake I cannot immagine hitting a dog

Oh my God, I was not expecting this story...when I first read the post, I was ready to give advice, but then the poor guy was killed?  Wow.

Yeah, there should be laws against some people owning dogs.  Worry about the kids, but also worry about the dog.  Is that the life it deserves?  No love, no discipline, nothing...that is no way for a dog to live.  You should get someone to step in.  Maybe a humane society?

OMG   []  Poor Scooby!
 
This poor dog was left outside with no interaction/training and probably yelled at for not knowing what to do and then gets hit by a car?!?!?
 
It's hard for me to wrap my brain around how your SIL and stepbro could expect anything different in getting another dog, even with an invisible fence.
 
How are the kids reacting to loosing Scooby?