Ooof, dog attacked (our fault)

[gbb]

A split seconds loss if concentration. Taking grandkids to the car after sunday lunch, my wife stood at the open door....Digby (11 month Lab) ran out,past us and round the corner, excitedly greeted another dog on a lead...but this dog, a Patterdale grabbed him by the jowels and woukdnt let go.
Lots of yelping from Digby, raw concentration and anger in the Patterdale eyes, three of us struggled for maybe a minute to pry the dogs clenched teeth off.
Poor fella was beside himself, I tried to calm it all as we fought to get it released, 'its not your fault mate, don't worry, we'll get there
Its a rescue Patterdale he sald, , I've only had it two weeks, they warned me, do NOT let it near other dogs, I knew this would happen.

Not his fault, a seconds loss of concentration, ironically we can't find a mark on Digby although he is a bit quiet.

Digby is such fun but its a real big struggle when we are near other dogs, almost his entire being is concentrated on getting to it, not for aggression but fun, he so badly wants to play and greet, to the point where I struggle to hold him back.
I need to think about training or help perhaps.

Concentration, mustn't let it slip, it can go wrong in seconds

 

[cougie uk]

Don't delay - get help with the dog training now or you'll both develop bad habits.

My rescue dog is reactive but he's got so much better thanks to the help of our dog trainer.

Poor Digby. Hope he feels better soon.

 

[vickster]

Has he been ‘fixed’? If not, worth discussing with vet and/or trainer

 

[DRM]

The patterdale should never have been put out as a rescue, it can’t be trusted near other dogs, they knew it couldn’t be trusted near other dogs, could be a child next time, it should have been put to sleep, harsh but I wouldn’t give a dog like that house room, adopters have to jump through hoops to get a rescue dog, some dogs are, like this one, incapable, and wholly unsuitable of being rehomed, dogs are like magnets to each other, it’s impossible to never let such a dog go near another. Begs the question why wasn’t it muzzled?
Doesn’t bear thinking about if it had been your grandchild that had run round the corner.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

One of our dogs lost an eye in similar circumstances. Crowded towpath at an event, and I didn't even see the dog until it grabbed mine.

 

[raleighnut]

Several Terriers have this 'lock on' mentality but there is a technique to get them to release, I was told this when I worked at an animal sanctuary (Red Gate Farm) that had a very aggressive Bedlington (ex champion stud dog, rescued from a puppy farm and not up for rehoming ever)
Basically if it ever 'locked on' to another dog to get it (and any other Terrier but Staffies in particular) to release you stick a finger up its bum* Thankfully I never had to use this bit of advice when I took it for exercise.

* google it if you don't believe me

 

[gbb]

The patterdale should never have been put out as a rescue, it can’t be trusted near other dogs, they knew it couldn’t be trusted near other dogs, could be a child next time, it should have been put to sleep, harsh but I wouldn’t give a dog like that house room, adopters have to jump through hoops to get a rescue dog, some dogs are, like this one, incapable, and wholly unsuitable of being rehomed, dogs are like magnets to each other, it’s impossible to never let such a dog go near another. Begs the question why wasn’t it muzzled?
Doesn’t bear thinking about if it had been your grandchild that had run round the corner.

Discussing after, we agreed, were it ours and were told the situation with other dogs, we'd muzzle it without question. Id hope the fella may well consider it, i'd equally hate to think he'd give up on it.
The situation was well used to explain to the grandkids why you should never, ever approach a strange dog.

Several Terriers have this 'lock on' mentality but there is a technique to get them to release, I was told this when I worked at an animal sanctuary (Red Gate Farm) that had a very aggressive Bedlington (ex champion stud dog, rescued from a puppy farm and not up for rehoming ever)
Basically if it ever 'locked on' to another dog to get it (and any other Terrier but Staffies in particular) to release you stick a finger up its bum* Thankfully I never had to use this bit of advice when I took it for exercise.

* google it if you don't believe me

My son was there, he remembered some dogs have this locking trait and grabbed a stick to pry in and lever the jaws open. There is a 'tool' made for this purpose .

 

[cheys03]

Recall training will help you to break through your lab's instinct to meet the other dog and return to you. There's a book called "Total Recall" by Pippa Mattinson which is excellent and helps you train your dog to know that when they respond to your call they're rewarded 1000x more than whatever motivated them to run off. A very loud whistle works well, it'll cut through whatever is on their mind to focus on you - perhaps with fingers/thumb on your lips if you're able (so it's distinct and you always have it with you) or buy a whistle or two if not and/or more than one person needs to do the recall. Make the whistle 'tune' identifiable - 3 shorts blasts is used a lot so maybe avoid that for example.
Age really helps too, by 2 your lab will probably not be nearly as interested and by 3 reasonably disinterested in other dogs - or at least approaching them in a much more controlled manner.
Good luck! Confidence in recall is such a powerful tool to get them out of all sorts of tricky situations. Well worth spending the time and money on treats to get right and continue to reinforce it throughout your lives together.

edit: Ah, another point - also spend time training the door as a threshold that they can only pass with your permission. This will stop the running out at any opportunity.

 

[Brandane]

* google it if you don't believe me

I believe you!

 

[gavroche]

For all it is worth, I believe the way to get the attacker dog to release is to put your hand through his collar and twist it. The dog is then strangled and cannot breathe so releases its victim.
I hope Digby has recovered and is well.

 

[SydZ]

Whilst you may be blaming yourself I believe, as others have said, that the other dog,and owner, carry greater blame.

Said owner had been warned of the dogs nature and failed to take appropriate action to protect others.

Hope Digby recovers quickly.

 

[alicat]

Said owner had been warned of the dogs nature and failed to take appropriate action to protect others.

To me that seems a bit hard on the other owner. They had it on a lead and went round a corner so presumably didn't have good sight lines. Short of muzzling it, there wasn't much more they could have done.

 

[SydZ]

To me that seems a bit hard on the other owner. They had it on a lead and went round a corner so presumably didn't have good sight lines. Short of muzzling it, there wasn't much more they could have done.

With what the owner was told about the dog that it the absolute least he should have done.

A dog with such a temperament should not have been rehomed and the rescue centre shares some blame in my opinion.

A German Shepherd bitch I used to own, from a pup, was extremely protective of my son when he was a baby. If I was out with my son and the dog then the latter was muzzled. I must add that she was an extremely well trained dog and would return on command without question but that was one part of her nature that seemed to be hard wired.

 

[alicat]

A dog with such a temperament should not have been rehomed and the rescue centre shares some blame in my opinion.

I agree with that.

 

[oldwheels]

I see quite a lot of dogs, particularly greyhounds are muzzled when out on a lead.
When I was about 5 years old I was out with our Jack Russell which we inherited. Ok with us but tolerated nobody else. Met a local surgeon with his Bull Terrier and the two fought and our dog tore an ear off the other dog. The owner fished out a needle and gut from behind his lapel and calmly stitched his dog's ear back on remarking that it was the first time he had ever to treat his own dog but kept the needle and gut handy for other dogs.
I should add this was deep in the countryside in 1939 miles away from most people.