pug attacked my 7 year old

Help! This is not normal behavior from my 2 1/2 year old pug. He was sitting on the chaisse next to my legs, my 7 year old came over to pull him off by his collar which she has done before and he went nuts and attacked her. He got a hold of her arm and thankfully didn't bite her but bruised her arm and scratched her good.

Right now I have him in his crate (which he never is in) because I need him to cool down and calm my daughter down. I don't know why he did this? Can anyone give me a clue. It's so not like him and he usually is pretty happy go lucky. He never showed aggression towards the kids at all since he came into the family after we had them.

Any info would be appreciated.

I'm just going to ask - why in the world would you allow a child to yank your pug by the collar? Repeatedly?? It's a very easy way to hurt a pug - their trachea are easily injured by collars and force applied to their necks. That's why many of us use harnesses and not collars for walking, etc.

Dogs react like that because they are protecting themselves, and feel provoked in some way. The way your son reached for the pug could have felt threatening, causing the pug to lash out. Dogs don't usually like someone reaching for their head, and if the hand was coming fast, it's even more of a reason to feel threatened.

It could be as simple as the pug decided it did not want to be yanked by the collar - again - and thus lashed out as a warning to not do it again.

More than likely - it happened so fast it's hard to tell what really happened.

I'd focus on preventing it from happening again. Work with your son and tell him not to yank the pug around by it's collar. Tell your son to approach the pug more slowly, and let the pug come to him. I would be sure your son is supervised with the pug 100% of the time.

I'm not an expert on dog behavior by any means. But what I have learned is that a dog reacts based on something they've learned, and to protect themselves. In general, they aren't malicious creatures (especially pugs!).

I'd also make sure the pug is healthy - not feeling sick (a dog that
doesn't feel well is more likely to react) and had no harm done by the
yank on the collar, etc. A vet visit is in order.

Allie -

For the record I DID NOT allow her to YANK on his collar AT ALL. She usually pulls his collar a little to get him off the chair, it is his signal to move off the place he is sitting since my kids can't just push him off. My kids are NOT mean to my dog nor would I let them. I do NOT appreciate you insinuating that she would YANK his collar to get him off.

After assessing the situation my husband and I think she scared him out of a sound sleep and he got scared and attacked. For those that KNOW me on here they KNOW I am VERY responsible pug owner! I don't appreciate you scolding ME when all I was doing was soliciting advice.

My moms Oscar did that one time to my friends son.Oscar was sleeping and Michael walked by him and and we dont know if he touch Oscar but Oscar bit him..We all know not to touch him when he is asleep we call his name to wake him up first...

Clyde's Mommy wrote:Allie -

For the record I DID NOT allow her to YANK on his collar AT ALL. She usually pulls his collar a little to get him off the chair, it is his signal to move off the place he is sitting since my kids can't just push him off. My kids are NOT mean to my dog nor would I let them. I do NOT appreciate you insinuating that she would YANK his collar to get him off.

After assessing the situation my husband and I think she scared him out of a sound sleep and he got scared and attacked. For those that KNOW me on here they KNOW I am VERY responsible pug owner! I don't appreciate you scolding ME when all I was doing was soliciting advice.

yanno, I was just trying to offer information based on what you said, and help get beyond the moment. My concern is for the pug, I wasn't try to scold you. Sorry if the way I expressed concern for your pug hurt your feelings.

thanks for clearing up that record.

I'm going to second not to ever let anyone pull a pug by their collar-no matter who is doing the pulling. Baby Girl had a Grade IV collapsed trachea so unless you want to invest in a Titanium stent in their trachea, that is a bad idea.

It is my experience that pugs or any dog can react in an aggressive manner if they are scared (sudden movements, etc), their food is threatened, their space is threatened, or they are protecting someone/something.

Specifically for your situation it sounds like your daughter may have scared your pug and that possibly your pug was protecting you since he was sitting with you.

I would not put your pug in a crate because the pug is just acting on instincts. I don't crate train, but others can speak to a crate needs to a positive place for your pug, not for punishment.

Don't take any comments as criticism, you came here for advise, and we all just want to help you identify a situation and prevent it in the future. Sometimes, it is hard to identify a situaiton and helps when others can see a different perspective. I would talk to your family and make sure they know the proper way to approach a sleeping dog (any dog). I would also, discuss with them not pulling or yanking at your pug's collar.

I dont think Allies intentions were to scold you, she was just trying to figure out why your pug would be pulled from his collar. Especially a pug. I know in my house the simple "off" command works very well. This is something easy to not only teach your pug but to teach your child. My 2.5 year old son is very good at tell our 6 pugs "off" if they are on something he wants. You can start by using the command and then follow with a treat or verbal reward. This will prevent this from occuring again.

I know I came here for advice - what I don't appreciate is someone telling me how they think I treat my pug when I treat him better than the kids most of the time. And my kids are very very good to my dog. They would never hurt him and they are 7 and 5 years old. So when the first paragraph sounds more like an attack on my ability as a responsible dog owner than helping a situation - I will get defensive. I guess it was my mistake to think advice would be given before judgement is passed.

Clyde's Mommy wrote:I know I came here for advice - what I don't appreciate is someone telling me how they think I treat my pug when I treat him better than the kids most of the time. And my kids are very very good to my dog. They would never hurt him and they are 7 and 5 years old. So when the first paragraph sounds more like an attack on my ability as a responsible dog owner than helping a situation - I will get defensive. I guess it was my mistake to think advice would be given before judgement is passed.

Kristin, take a breath. I wasn't judging you. You said

Clyde's Mommy wrote:
my 7 year old came over to pull him off by his collar which she has done before

I don't know you. I don't know your kids. I don't know what you do or don't allow to happen with your pugs. I was responding to the words you wrote - and you went on to say that you allow them to pull him off by his collar previously.

I was concerned about the pug. And I would hate to see the kid get bit again, because that just starts a nasty cycle, especially with kids of that age. What I offered was advice to make every attempt to avoid the situation.

Again - I'm sorry you mistook my concern for criticism - as I've now explained to you twice. If you'd like to bury the caps lock and underlined emphasis, life can go on without further ado.

I know of a pug that would be aggressive towards other pugs coming out of a sleep. It turned out to be a seizure disorder. Also, please consider switching to a harness instead of a collar. I do think Allie was trying to help because I also read it the same way she did.

My husband woke Tilly up one night to take her out one last time before we turned it. He started her and she bit him! She also bit him one other occasion when she was on steroids and "starving". It was time for her to eat and he was laying on the sofa. She lunged at him and nipped his arm. I think we need to remember that even though we think of them as our babies, they are still animals. Animals should never be trusted 100%. I almost got my head kicked off by my very trusted horse because I startled him. His hoof went right past my head. I learned a valuable lesson that day. He would never, ever have hurt me on purpose.

First, I'm sorry that this happened to you, to the child and to the dog. Here's what I know about dog behaviour and this kind of a response. This is GENERAL information and not aimed at scolding you or in any way criticising you, but is aimed at maybe changing the way you do some things so that this won't happen again.

I do a fair bit of dog assessment in the shelter and in rescue and one of the things we do test is a dog's reaction to collar grabs. Not because we want people to collar grab, but because it is one of the MOST common pieces of dog bite histories. Lots and lots of dogs will react to a collar grab at some point even if it has been done to them lots of times. In my opinion, a collar grab is a risky approach--no matter how gently done. (1) Dogs are often reactive to it or can develop reactivity to it and (2) it puts the arm of the person grabbing the collar within bite range.

Most dogs can develop a startle response when sleeping. One of the most common reasons for dogs to bite children (we see it alot in the rescue) is when they (the dog) are awoken (awakened?) abruptly and lash out.

This could be a form of resource guarding, but your description of it makes this explanation unlikely. I suspect the dog got startled while asleep, the collar was being pulled on putting pressure on the neck (a spot where dogs will often instinctively feel protective since in dog fights necks get grabbed) and the dog reacted in defense.

I would immediately stop all use of collar grabs for any reason. And I would reinforce with your children to not bother the dogs while they are asleep or if they must disturb the dogs then teach them a safe way of doing that--either by getting you to wake the dog or by calling the dog several times and not touching the dog anywhere that could result in a bite.

If you continue to believe that there is something wrong with the dog, then you should have a full medical work up done with a focus on neurological issues and immune mediated/auto immune thyroid disorders. The next step, if the medical work up is clear, is to hire a GOOD canine behaviourist to assess the dog and provide you with recommendations on re-training.

But I would be most surprised if this wasn't a result of being grabbed by the collar while sleeping and doesn't happen again if you stop the collar grabbing and the sudden waking up. Think of it like this--what would your response be if you were suddenly woken up by someone grabbing your neck? It's essentially the same thing and most people and dogs will react defensively.

I'll just third or fourth what has already been said about collar grabs. Back in the days when I was a dog trainer, we did a "gotcha" exercise in puppy classes just to get the dogs used to having their collar grabbed because it is such a big deal.

And I've also observed throughout the years that kids sometimes aren't really good judges of how hard they grab a dog. I think it's because their motor skills are still developing.

It sounds like a one-off kind of thing, but if the dog bites again, I'd start with a vet visit to rule out any physical problems and if the dog is ok, I second what Blanche says, find a good behaviorist who uses positive training methods.

i think you've already got some really good advice. there can be certain triggers for individual dogs. sounds like your pug felt threatened and that is why he bit your daughter. my yorkie is very sensitive to being woken up from sleeping or being picked up around other dogs and that can cause him to bite. we just avoid these behaviours around him and warn people that he does it. i think if it's a change, you should definitely see your vet. i had a yorkie before this one that suddenly had a change in behaviour and bit his dog walker - turns out he did have a medical condition. of course, he had other signs, too, so in your case it could be totally behavioural.

Great advice given and I know people speak from the heart. Passions flare up, but don't take it personally. We're here for the Pugs.

The only thing I would add is that you mentioned Clyde was sitting next to your legs. Some dogs DO get possessive/aggressive around "their" human, this might need to be taken into consideration. So often this sort of behaviour ends up with the dog being dispatched to the pound as a "biter" and we all know how that ends. Thanks for working on it and not taking that route. If people DID try to find out why and fix it or ensure the situation was not repeated, so many otherwise blameless dogs would be saved. I hope you get this sorted.

Several people have given you great advice. My only addition to that advice is if it was a reaction to the collar grab, the simplest way to solve it is to remove the collar when he is indoors. Then you can teach him, and your children, 'off'.

My gang is nekkid indoors, and wear harnesses when we go out in public.

I used to keep harnesses on mine when they were in the house but with my current two, they are now "nekkid" too. Bubba's fur is so thin from his mange that the harness rubs. Peachy's harness hits her spine and causes her back to lock up. She can't wear a collar because of her breathing problems. They only wear harnesses now when we are going somewhere.

Mine wear collars around the house, but the collars are very loose. I mostly keep them on them out of habit. That's it. No one pulls them by the collar. When we go for a walk, they wear harnesses.

I find that for most dog aggression issues, it is the people (kids) that need the training, not the dog. My girl pug Tobey, will bite my kids if they are bothering her, especially my daughter who tries to hug her a lot. I just tell them they get what they deserve and to leave her alone.

I also want to add that getting defensive when asking for advice sort of defeats the purpose of getting outside opinions. I know for a fact Allie was not judging you. The people around here just aren't like that. First and foremost, we care about the pugs.

Dont' have anything useful to add, except to say that I personally have learned a lot reading everyone's suggestions and advice here. Boy am I thankful now that the boys are always nekkid when they are home. I had no idea there were so many potential issues with collar grabs.

smoochieface wrote:Dont' have anything useful to add, except to say that I personally have learned a lot reading everyone's suggestions and advice here. Boy am I thankful now that the boys are always nekkid when they are home. I had no idea there were so many potential issues with collar grabs.

Ditto THAT!

I am shocked still that a pug would break skin in a bite... I guess - since I have been bitten MANY times by my last non pug dog) when Aine play bites... I am like MEH. lol Sorry... not to make light of a serious situation.... my wanted to share...

Nan and BAGS wrote:

smoochieface wrote:Dont' have anything useful to add, except to say that I personally have learned a lot reading everyone's suggestions and advice here. Boy am I thankful now that the boys are always nekkid when they are home. I had no idea there were so many potential issues with collar grabs.

Ditto THAT!

I am shocked still that a pug would break skin in a bite... I guess - since I have been bitten MANY times by my last non pug dog) when Aine play bites... I am like MEH. lol Sorry... not to make light of a serious situation.... my wanted to share...

Remember, he was biting while being startled awake. Most dogs when they startle just Bite. they aren't fully conscious of who or what they are biting--it's a reaction.

And I've had pugs break the skin many times when they've bitten me.

Remember, he was biting while being startled awake. Most dogs when they startle just Bite. they aren't fully conscious of who or what they are biting--it's a reaction.

And I've had pugs break the skin many times when they've bitten me.

Sorry -yes -you are right. That was a huge detail I missed.
I guess Aine is so drastically different from my previous baby non pug doggy . Buddy was really sick so I cannot blame him even tho I got multiple bites& stitches on my face .

I so defer to you guys- Aine is my only Pug right now....

As a rule, they are a pretty non-aggressive breed, but they can bite with the best of them if they put their minds to it.

My Otto is usually very laid-back and gentle, but one time I went to clean his ear, thinking he was just resting and he'd been sleeping. He wasn't happy and would have snapped, except he realized it was I and settled down. Had it been someone else, he might well have bitten them. I'm sure it was because he'd been startled while sleeping. Now I'm very careful to speak to him when it seems as if he's sleeping.

Actually, I don't respond very well to being startled awake, either.