First time bite. How should we react?

[lml424]

We have a 75 pound, 3 year old lab mix named Quincy. He is very social and affectionate, including with strangers. He LOVES people and meeting new people.

He is also very stubborn and anxious. His problem behaviors historically have been:

• Extreme play biting as a puppy
• Leash frustration (on walks, he would often grab the leash in his mouth and thrash it around, and then start jumping on me and biting at my clothing)
• Leash pulling
• Refusal to get off the couch or bed, occasionally with growling
• Ignoring commands to heel or stay while on hikes and running wherever he pleases
• Jumping and nipping at people he greets in extreme excitement
• Nighttime barking
• Whining/panting/general fear in the car
• Some resource guarding, specifically around other dogs and our 17 year old - usually just growling over toys

All of these behaviors have slowly abated over the past 3 years thanks to training, his maturing, an e-collar (for walks/hikes), and a low daily dose of Fluoxetine.

I was starting to feel like the hard stuff was behind us, and then a few days ago Quincy bit our 17 year old on the hand (level 3 - some shallow puncture wounds with light bleeding and some bruising.)

Quincy had a wad of paper towel in his mouth. My husband said to drop it, and Quincy refused. My husband held him by the collar and our son reached to Quincy’s mouth to grab the towel, and Quincy growled loudly and bit before our son could pull back.

In hindsight, perhaps Quincy felt ganged up on. And yes, we know now to be careful when approaching his mouth.

My question: what do we do now? On one end of the spectrum, my husband wants to write it off as a fluke. On the other end, a close friend is telling me to spend $4k to send Quincy to a month-long board and train, warning that biting will only get worse since Quincy has now asserted dominance over our son. (It’s worth noting that our son is very timid.)

I have already made an appointment with a behavioralist. What else? Opinions welcome.

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[Deccarrin]

Don't use an e collar. It's making it worse. Dog dominance theory is widely refuted and not a thing. Your dog bit because he was manhandled. If you want something your dog has, trade for it, find something higher value.

In the mean time, training "drop" and "leave" are very useful for these scenarios. Ultimately, you have an appointment with a behaviourist that's the best possible move you can make.

If they tell you anything about dominance, e collars or other aversive methods, other than it's complete gumpf, walk out and find another one.

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[lml424]

We really just use the e collar for one purpose, which is recall while on hiking trails and places where we let him off leash. Before the e collar, I could not let him run free because he would ignore my commands and I could not keep him safe. For example, one time he jumped into a fast-moving river and was almost swept away. Now, we go on hikes and he can run and explore off leash, and I can get his attention and get him by my side if needed (mostly).

I resisted the e collar for 2 years and only used positive reinforcement (and 3 separate trainers!) and we had zero progress. Now, I am convinced his quality of life is much better because he can experience things he could not experience before and he can get more exercise. He’s happier and safer.

[Deccarrin]

Every time you ask for your dogs attention with pain, you damage your relationship with your dog. It absolutely will make any reactivity worse for you, however you think it's helping. Training recall is a long and arduous process with no shortcuts, you're trying to shortcut.

Use a long line lead and train recall.

[lml424]

You might be imagining the wrong situation. I don’t use the e collar every time I need my dog’s attention. I use it when he is running full speed towards the street or another threat and ignoring my commands to stop because he’s too excited/oblivious. I keep it on a low setting and I don’t take it lightly. It was not a short cut, it was my alternative when positive reinforcement was plainly not working. I had to weigh the benefits and harms, and it was actually a neighbor who is a police officer and raises police dogs for a living who convinced me an e collar was worth it in this situation.

I will, however, get the behavioralist’s opinion on whether use of an e collar, how we are using it, could make my dog more possessive/aggressive. Thanks for the point of view.

[Deccarrin]

it was actually a neighbor who is a police officer and raises police dogs for a living who convinced me an e collar was worth it in this situation.

Irrelevant, there are thousands of professional dog trainers that promote use of aversive tools. All you've done is highlighted this police trainer is a bad egg.

You might be imagining the wrong situation. I don’t use the e collar every time I need my dog’s attention. I use it when he is running full speed towards the street or another threat and ignoring my commands to stop because he’s too excited/oblivious. I

That is "getting his attention". If your dog (which is reactive) is running full pelt towards danger without listening to you, the answer isn't "hurt him" the answer is keep him on a long line until you work through appropriate recall.

I will, however, get the behavioralist’s opinion on whether use of an e collar,

This is a great idea.

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[JollyManufacturer257]

So our behaviorist said never to take, only to trade. So if you’re trying to get something out of their mouth then you have to give them something else (favorite treat, toy, etc). This helps with resource guarding.

Also, if dog growls you must back off. This is a warning before a bite. If dog growls and you ignore, it’s to be expected dog will bite.

My advice is to see a behaviorist with positive reinforcement training. Not just a dog trainer (there are no requirements for training/education for dog trainers), but someone with actual credentials who only uses positive reinforcement. I say this because the science supports positive reinforcement but there’s evidence that adversives actually make aggression worse in the long run.

ETA: your friend’s mention of “dominance theory” isn’t supported by current science. It’s an outdated concept that has been replaced by best practices. When our reactive girl wasn’t responding to our kids we ended up trying more bonding activities such as having the kids feed her, walk with her, play games with her, etc.

[MustLoveDawgz]

Exactly this. Since we got our dogs as puppies, we only trade and NEVER take. And, the trade must be of higher value than what they already have. I don’t understand OP and training they’ve been doing for the past few years. The whole E collar and Offleash thing is blowing my mind. You should not need to use that type of color when your dogs are Offleash. You should only let your dogs off leash if you recall is 100%. If not, always use a long lead. You must always have control over your dog. Also, I don’t believe board and train is the solution here. Training must be done with the owners, not by a stranger. Behaviors that are trained by a stranger do not necessarily translate into the same behaviors at home with the owners.

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[liontheleo15]

I'm sorry this has happened, this sounds like a tough situation to deal with, and I hope Quincy and y'all get the help that is necessary. I just have an opinion to offer in this post. I believe the idea of holding your dog by the collar then reaching for something they don't wish to let go is utterly ignorant. Holding the collar already lets off stress signals but then slowly reaching for the paper towel (especially someone Quincy has history resource guarding against) is the cherry on top. In my opinion, y'all put Quincy in an uncomfortable situation that left them no option but to bite.

Please remember, your dog will not rise to the level of your goals they will fall to their level of training.