Had a bite incident and it's my fault

[dixieriderxx]

Edit: Not seeking advice here on containing our dog, I know how costly this lapse in judgment was (and that it could have been worse for him or others), and what we need to do going forward. Came here to find folks with shared experience with bite incidents or other serious setbacks.

Our dog thankfully is only 13 lb (a Chihuahua mix). He's had some small bite incidents previously (up to Level 3), but this morning I f%^@ed up and we hit Level 4. I opened the back door a crack to shake some lint out of a shirt, and the dog slipped out. We have about an acre of property and are in the country, so I figured I'd let him do his morning pee and then we'd head in. Unfortunately, as we were going to the (front) door, the dog saw a man walking by on our road and took off, faster than I could keep up.

I got there quickly and pulled our pup off, but damage had been done: he'd sunk his teeth into the guy's calf. The guy came up to our house to get neosporin and a band-aid, and was definitely doing some real bleeding. He thankfully won't be reporting us to the sheriff.

I'm just so gutted that I let this happen, for my dog's sake, this poor passerby's, and mine, and so exhausted. This happened because that guard came down for just a minute. We've been working on his stranger danger for the entire time we've had this dog (nearly 2 years), with multiple trainers, and we have him on meds. The pup had been making significant improvements (e.g., being able to be in the same room as his vet as long as I held him). I've told our trainers about this and will see what they say, and we're obviously closing *any* gaps in our security protocols. We love the little bastard so much, but it's so hard.

 

[elizabeda777]

@dixieriderxx My dog had bite incidents with me at home. And one very unfortunate time at a very bad emergency vet (since shut down). The last one freaked me out because BE was recommended. He has since had this resolved with appropriate pain medication and medical intervention.

That said, barriers became my best friend. Every room had a barrier in it. In my neighborhood some people have those pet gates surrounding their porches. So you could do that as a precautionary measure, to start with some sort of action to help kickstart next steps.

 

[dixieriderxx]

@elizabeda777 Thank you! We have movable gates, just bought an additional one to put outside the room he stays in when people are over and have double barriers. I'm so glad you and your pup had success. We think ours has a pain issue but the vet hasn't been able to pinpoint anything yet.

 

[elizabeda777]

@dixieriderxx Have you tried a pain trial? When my dog had no “clinically significant” findings the pain meds helped. He just appears to be sensitive, especially to his back pain.

Pain trials are good because you’re treating the symptoms until you find the cause. Sometimes it takes multiple pain trials—we hit gold on pain trial #5 (with a med from his neurologist). Stuck with it since, with the help of a somewhat-related surgery have had zero issues.

 

[dixieriderxx]

@elizabeda777 We tried a course of pain meds - they make his stomach upset though. Current theory is some sort of GI distress. He has a muscle tic in his face though so there may be some sort of neurological component. Great to know the specialist was helpful for you!

 

[elizabeda777]

@dixieriderxx There are many varieties of pain meds, which is why I mentioned pain trial #5–it took A LOT of finessing to get something that works. No one talks about pain relief outside of gabapentin and carprofen, which is unfortunate because there are a lot of medications that potentially work.

Not to say that you aren’t doing enough! Not to say that your dog is in pain! But when we can’t find clinical indicators pain trials are our best bet, I have found. Even my dog’s neurologist was like “see zero evidence of pain causing issues” but then when the neurological pain killers worked he was surprised lol. Turns out my dog’s poop problems were related to pain, so that was also a factor that fell to “turns out that’s related!”

Edit: I just have a lot of feelings bc so many vets dismissed my concerns and I had to push for two years before we saw anyone who could do anything. I always hope my experience helps someone lol

 

[nicholehe]

@dixieriderxx

I figured I'd let him do his morning pee and then we'd head in. Unfortunately, as we were going to the (front) door, the dog saw a man

Is your property fenced? If not, you should only take him out on a leash to go potty. There should be full trust in him before he can be independent like that. Even if you have a lot of property, it sounds like people can be around so it's best to have the expectation that someone will always be there.

 

[dixieriderxx]

@nicholehe We get maybe 2-3 pedestrians a week this time of year, and are in weekender country so weekdays are generally dead. Made a bad misjudgment that I will not be making again.

 

[alexrcraig]

@dixieriderxx My worst nightmare, it was truly an accident. I saw in England they have these like accordion like gates that attach to the door and the jam so it accordions out when you open the door. I’m thinking of getting one

 

[meljmurray]

@dixieriderxx I had a 50lb pitbull and a 130lb anatolian that got along great in a calm, structured environment, but the pitbull would aggressively demand certain toys and treats, and the anatolian didn't see a reason not to hand the pittie her ass to make a point. Their fights were never beyond the level of minor injuries caused by nails.

Well, one day, the anatolian had surgery on her ear and was high as a kite laying next to me on one side with the pit on the other. I bumped her sore ear, and
I guess she thought the pit was attacking her, she came up snarling, the pit defended herself out of a sound sleep, and my arm was in the middle of way too many teeth.

I came out of it needing 11 stitches, two rounds of antibiotics, and to quarantine both dogs for 30 days.

 

[nicholehe]

@meljmurray Hopefully, the bitten man will seek medical attention. Animal or even human bites of any kind can turn gnarly so quick! Mouths are gross, lol. I don't have any experience with bites, was the quarantine to keep them away from each other? Or is there something there that OP should be considering?

 

[meljmurray]

@nicholehe Just to my home unless muzzled. Hospitals here are required to report bites to animal control. I have no idea what the quarantine was supposed to accomplish.

 

[nicholehe]

@meljmurray Ah, probably to work out if there are any rabies flags present, even if vaxxed. I think they (correctly) take the over precautious route. Thanks for replying!

 

[dixieriderxx]

@nicholehe I definitely told him to go to the doctor and send me any bills - hoping he follows through. I'm a bit dubious because he was an older guy and seemed to be taking a "bah just a flesh wound" approach. One upside of our having our pup on a leash aside from today is I know pretty certainly that he doesn't present a rabies risk.

 

[pixeloriousspriteson]

@dixieriderxx A friend of mine has a mini poodle mix and he bit a neighbor in the elevator.

I’ve definitely gotten lax a few times with our pit (!) and it’s really not ok bc I honestly don’t know what she’s fully capable of.

Just sharing to say you’re not alone

 

[dixieriderxx]

An epilogue here: our pup had been butt scooting a bit this week, I just discovered one of his anal glands is totally impacted. I'd bite someone too if I had a hemorrhoid that size. Poor baby is going to the vet ASAP. Also still going to leash him of course, and look into GI/pain aspects, but it's nice to know this huge backslide didn't come from nowhere. Thanks all for the support and advice!