The dog is going on the list.

[JambaBamba]

This sighting comes from my father, who's a veterinarian in a very nice small town near me. The majority of the people who live there are very rich and many of them are sucky and EWs. This is a sucky one.

A man and his 8 year old (ish) daughter bring in a dog that they just got. The dog is about three or four years old and is part pit bull. The man is the third or fourth owner (usually a red flag) and got the dog specifically for his daughter. please note I have nothing against any breed of dog in general, but some specific dogs are not good

The dog needed an update on her shots. There is a front vaccination room at the clinic as well as a bigger back room where more intensive examinations happen. Dad and a vet tech come into the room and the dog does a little growl and head toss. Dad takes one look at the dog and sensed that it would probably be best to take the dog in the back away from the little girl for the shots. (he's been a vet for over 25 years...he knows a mean dog when he sees one). He had one of the vet assistants put a clinic leash on the dog and take her into the back. They get the dog up on the table, no problem. He has N (a vet tech with about 5 years of experience in the clinic) hold the dogs head and grip the mouth (the dog doesn't have a muzzle on because the man said the dog never bit or snapped, was a good dog, there were no records of the dog at the clinic before so....

The dog is watching dad all the while. Dad goes up to put a shot in the dog (scruff of the neck) and the dog jerks her head. Dad isn't sure if the dog just tried to snap at him or if N was adjusting her grip and caused the movement. Dad goes in again and the dog breaks away from N (who is strong) and snaps at dad. Dad and N get the dog under control and then Dad looks at his hand. A knuckle bite that's bleeding. So dog immediately goes off the table. Dad quickly puts a bandaid on his knuckle and goes out to talk to the man and explain what happened.

What does the man say? "Oh, it can't be her, she's a sweetheart, she just likes to play, you must have put your hand in her mouth. She's very gentle" Umm..how about no? So Dad tells the man that the dog is now flagged with a red marker (aggressive, known biter) and that the dog will be reported to the county as such and that if the dog bites someone that it will be the owner's fault and that he is open to lawsuit (yes, Dad also cautioned him about having the dog around the girl). The only way the dog will be allowed back into the clinic is if he goes and sees the local animal behaviorist and the behaviorist says the dog is okay. The man of course tries to argue but my Dad actually does have the final say at his clinic. Man isn't happy and threatens to go someplace else. Dad informs him that the county will be letting all the local veterinarians know about the dog's status so he'll have the same problem everywhere. (almost all the local vet staff talk and gossip so it's not like the info wouldn't get shared anyways)

So as N is then taking the clinic's leash off the dog the dog lunges and snaps at her (N has to backpedal almost into a wall). "Aww that's just how she plays" the man repeats (scares me to no end for the little girl). Surprisingly his argument fell on deaf ears. And no, the dog didn't get any of the shots.

[malmalthekiller]

I feel terrible for the dog, probably had a lousy upbringing, and now it's getting bounced around to different homes that can't seem to handle it.

I hope, but highly doubt, that the guy took it to the behavioral specialist.

I hope your dad's hand is better as well.

[One-Fang]

I hope for different things. I can't see a behavioural therapist fixing this dog ... in this ownership.

So I hope for (best outcome) he realises the dog is beyond his abilities to control and gives her up and she ends up with someone who actually CAN own and train a dog into good behaviour.

[Amethyst Hunter]

So as N is then taking the clinic's leash off the dog the dog lunges and snaps at her (N has to backpedal almost into a wall). "Aww that's just how she plays" the man repeats (scares me to no end for the little girl).

NO. Just NO.

That dog sounds like a good candidate for one of those "...mauled a child in local news today..." stories, whether it's that poor kid or someone else's. Either way, someone gets hurt who shouldn't, and dog will likely wind up being put down in the not-too-distant future.

[Misanthropical]

Is Daddy Dearest going to blame his daughter when the dog mauls her? There is no way that dog should be around any child.

[draftermatt]

The dog obviously has a behavior problem, but I can see where the owner's coming from.

My Shar Pei likes to put my hand in his mouth, he's never bitten down, just licks and puts some pressure on my fingers while wagging his tail at me.

He did the same thing to my FIL once who got quite mad about the dog "biting" him. We scolded the dog, but really, there was no "bite". Everyone else loves the dog but my FIL now.

Granted, this dog obviously has a problem and the owner is in denial. (At first I was thinking the dog doesn't like strangers, but when he said "that's how she plays" yeah...) but some people have a tendency to jump to conclusions when it comes to dogs.

[Yurimaru]

That is so sad... All three of my dogs open their mouths to play, but NONE of them bite down. They lick and try to catch my hands with their paws. My three are small dogs, but my friend has a full blood Pit Bull. His Pit is the sweetest dog... You can put your face right up next to his, and the only pain you'll ever get is getting whacked in the leg with his happy tail. He's such a good, gentle dog.
This man's poor dog really needs to be put into Pit Rescue, where a behavior therapist and qualified, experienced home will deal with her issues. There is no way that this man should have the dog when he's inexperienced and dense. It's not fair to his daughter, who is in danger, and not fair to the Pit Bull, who needs a better chance at being a good dog.

[Seshat]

I totally agree. We have a cat who's a sweetheart at home, but goes into fight-or-flight at the vet's. And our vet knows it, and also knows that we don't want her, her staff, or our kitty at risk. It's a case of 'do what you can unsedated, and sedate her for everything else'.

(The one time she DID behave well at the vet's, we and the vet were all scared for her. That was a major sign that she was really sick! )

I think everyone should (ha!) know that the vet can be a stressful place for animals, and animals who are well behaved at home might behave very differently for the vet! Plus, of course, sometimes you just have an animal with a behaviour problem.



(* Note: our other two animals are total sweethearts for the vet. Our boy-cat purrs for every exam but the thermometer, and our dog just wants to lick the vet's face.)

[wagegoth]

Is Daddy Dearest going to blame his daughter when the dog mauls her? There is no way that dog should be around any child.

It worked for Latrell Sprewell.

[tigger222]

My cat can be a little terror at the vets. The vets office knows this and we do remind them when he is there so they are prepared. He was very badly abused as a kittten so I think it is more of him being afraid of people that he doesn't know than him trying to hurt someone. And they do try to make him as confortable as possible by having us hold him and help as much as we can so he has yet to successfully hurt someone.

[JambaBamba]

At my dad's clinic usually if a pet has been bounced around that much there are behavior issues. When Dad told it I was more pissed that he thought my dad would be dumb enough to stick his fingers in the mouth. Dad sometimes gets nabbed by cats or dogs (I mean come on, how many animals actually like going to the vet's? It's like people going to the dentist), and he doesn't get mad or really annoyed.

As far as I've heard the dog hasn't come back. I'll let you know if he does.

[PepperElf]

and... i hate to sound mean but... that owner doesn't realize the dog can get put down for that behavior too

[jedimaster91]

I mean come on, how many animals actually like going to the vet's?

*raises hand* My Beagle does. She thinks it's time to play with all her new friends.

I don't think I'd subject any vet to my cockatiel, though. At least not without some sort of birdie sedation, because Oscar's a vicious attack beast.

[Record Store Tough Guy]

Pits are a touchy subject. Traditionally they were bred to be human docile, but recently the breed (and a lot of people disagree just which dogs the breed encompasses) has been crossed with Mastiffs and other human aggressive breeds.

All that aside, what makes them "dangerous" isn't their temperament, but their physiology. If they do bite ( and ANY dog can attack without warning), they are likely to do much more damage. It's like shooting your foot with a .22 or 00 buckshot.

A more appropriate analogy in this case would be SuckY Father hiding a bear trap in his daughter's room. Even if that's how the dog plays, it's still an extraordinary bite force that the child is potentially "playing" with.

[laundryhater]

WHEN are people going to realize that pit bulls are not good pets for families with children? This annoys me to no end!!