Help Needed: Something Terrible has happened...

[Paul Coover]

This morning in bed Willy bit my wife on the face. She was sleeping and he just attacked her. She got bit really hard and it was really bloody. I have no idea what happened, as DRNA didn't have any history of violence from him. Has anyone had any similar experience with their dachshund before? If so, what did you do? This really came out of nowhere and we are a little shocked. We are not going to give him up or have him put down, but she is really scared of him right now and we need to do something immediately to keep it from repeating. Over the years we have never been bit by our little guys and this is really awful. Thanks for any help that anyone has.

[critters]

I think it's perfectly normal for her to be scared of him, probably for a good while. Could something have happened that he misinterpreted, like a nudge or kick? Doxies don't have a rep for that, but maybe try some Doxie groups? VetPet?

Dunno, but good luck...

[Paul Coover]

Since we were both sleeping, there is no way to tell if she hit him in some way. We will be crating him at night from now on, so that will be the best solution for now.

[Dianne]

Paul,

I'm so very sorry that your wife was bitten. It is a good idea for her to be cautious for a while. Perhpas Willy can whine in a playpen all night for your wife's safety.

My first guess is that Willy has a health issue and he is unable to tell you about it. Can you think of anything different in his eating or bowel habits? Do his feces look any different? Are they mucous covered as with pancreatitis?

My second guess is jealousy. Has your wife spent less time petting him? Think about what could be different.

Could the move have changed a regular routine?

So sorry to hear of this biting episode. Best wishes for healing to your dear wife.

Dianne

[Paul Coover]

We did just move, and my wife was away for a week as well. He seems healthy enough, all of his "stuff" looks normal. I think it's a change of routine thing. Crating him will keep him from doing it again, so that is the easiest solution. Thank you for the help.

[GabrielDeafBlindPupFamily]

Happens in my house. Allicksblindpup will be sleeping soundly, then let out a very low growl and then try to kill, yes, kill the others. She will be sleeping right next to me, just fine, and BAM. Out of the blue. I let her have it. I DO NOT TOLERATE VIOLENCE. Then I yell at her NONONONONO BAD BAD BAD (and other swear words that just pop out, that she doesn't understand, but she does know mama's furious) and into the bathroom she goes and none too gently. Now I wake up when I hear the low growl, just the before the attack. I get her behind into the bathroom. I have no idea what causes it. She is out of her mind for that time, don't know if it is triggered by a dream or what. But I do not trust her alone, so I keep a baby gate up while I'm gone, which is always always knocked over by the time I get home... But the attack is ALWAYS preceded by the low growl. On the odd occasion, there may be two low growls, but usually one and then ATTACK. After a few hours she is as contrite, puppylike and silly as ever. Funny thing is if I can catch her on the first low growl and grab her collar before she goes into a shark like frenzy, she goes right into the bathroom, she knows. It's like she feels the spell coming on. Like the werewolf. She's truly cujo when it happens. I have no clue. But do not let your doxie on the bed while you are sleeping. Crate him and be sure if he shows aggression again, that it is a NONO. I don't tolerate any aggression toward any critter (sorry critters) in my house. I do tolerate pee & poop and enough dog hair to knit a cat, but no no growling no fighting no nuthin.
I was once attacked on my face in my sleep by an evil cat who I was babysitting. That cat flat scared me. He too slept in the bathroom for the duratoin of his stay.

[Paul Coover]

Thanks Karen. Our dogs have never shown any problems before and Willy since the incident this morning has been his normal self. We did just move and my wife was away for a week, so I think this has contributed to his unusual bite. He will be crated at night now, so hopefully no further incidents will happen.

[CarolC]

Hi Paul,

I'm not that good at dog behavior, the only time I've had a serious bite it wasn't from my dog, but I'll give my reaction anyway. After reading what Karen said, I don't feel so bad about what I was going to say. Crack down hard. Jerk the slack out now. Any hint of it again, clamp your hand over the top of the muzzle, stare him in the eye and really chew him out big time. Hopefully later, eye contact, a raised finger, and "No Bite" will be enough. (Obviously you had no hint the first time, she was sleeping.)

It will probably take some time for your wife to work through this. With rape they have something called "Take back the night." It is emotional work at regaining confidence to be out at night and not afraid. Your wife may have to work through this trauma in a similar way. However, it is *work* and if your wife is currently scared of the dog, then she has her work cut out for her.

My neighbor is the gentlest man you could ever meet. He is about 6'4" and 109 lbs, as relaxed and soft-spoken as a Buddhist monk. He had a Rhodesian Ridgeback that was the most secure dog you could imagine. This is the the breed of huge dog that was bred for hunting lions in Africa. Several times, I have seen my neighbor put his mouth over the top of the dog's muzzle and bite gently. He did this not when the dog was misbehaving, but just any old time in a friendly way, as part of their relationship. It may be that your wife can practice some gentle dominance moves with this dog when he's in a good mood, to reinforce who's boss so he'll be less likely to do it again. I'm thinking (again I'm not good at this) that probably his security is rattled with the move.

I know they say you have to correct misbehavior right when it happens, but something like this I would not hesitate to be mad at the dog for weeks, it's not like he doesn't know what he did. He knows. Now he needs to know it wasn't for free. Totally agree with confinement at night, that's a no-brainer.

I did want to say something about the bite. Two years ago a 13-year old I know came home and was standing on her front porch bending over to get her keys out of her backpack when she was bitten in the face by a neighbor's lab. I just want you, and especially your wife, to know that it did scar. When it healed, it was a pretty obvious scar. I kept thinking they were going to have to take that child to see if something could be done about it, it was going to hurt her chances when dating. I realize finances are probably very tight right now since you've just moved, but if you can I would recommend getting your wife in to see a dermatologist for advice on minimizing the scarring. They have silicone strips that I've heard help a lot. If you can't afford the appointment or are too far from a dermatologist, I believe the correct thing is to be sure the wound is not allowed to dry out and not allowed to form a scab. Whenever I have skin biopsies, the dermatologist sends me home with instructions to not allow it dry out and to use Polysporin instead of another antibiotic ointment. Not sure what the difference is, but I do it. If she still has scarring later, you can buy boxes of silicon strips at places like Walgreens, they may help but they're not cheap.

I'm assuming your set of sheets and pillowcases was ruined from this, and possibly some of your washcloths, too. Perhaps you can replace them with a set of really nice ones, or let her shop on line and order some she likes from Penny's or something, so at least that aspect of the trauma can be healed.

I'm sorry this happened to spoil your move. I hope your wife will feel better soon.

[Paul Coover]

Thank you Carol. Amazingly, after cleaning her up she has only 2 small puncture wounds around her nose. Other than being sore, she will not scar. The bedding was not ruined, but the shirt she was wearing probably is. As for Willy, I disciplined him immediately after I woke up to the screaming. he cowered in the corner in another room for an hour and I know that he realizes that he made a big mistake. I agree with the idea of having her "take charge" more with him. She tends to play more with the dogs, while I tend to be more stern with them when I need to be. She also displays fear with the dogs, where I do not. She and Willy were even playing together just an hour ago, so I hope that they can repair their strained relationship. But until Willy can be trusted, he will be crated at night. Thank you for the advice.

[GabrielDeafBlindPupFamily]

Oh, absolutely, and like Carol says, she MUST REMAIN ALPHA. You lose your alpha you will never ever get it back. With a big dog, that is the death knoll. with a small one, just a miserable roommate who runs the house. Your wife can have all the fun in the world with Willie, but like Carol says, she must remind willie constantly that she is the top dog. At least every 20 minutes in the first week, but any means. Like getting up, leaving the area, eating and not looking at him, anything that lets him know he is not king.

[Terri]

How old is Willy? Does he tend to take up more with you or your wife?

[Paul Coover]

Willy is 5. He is more attached to me I would say, but he has never had any true disposition before this.

[Terri]

Just curious. My family always had daschunds and I've converted my husband as well! They all had their own distinct personalities. We've never had one that was aggressive until now (Tyson is 6). Let's just say he's a "special" dog genetically, so that has contributed to his behavioral issues.

He has never bitten either one of us as you have described with your wife, but he does occassionally snap if he is startled. I don't think he has very good vision b/c he is most often startled at night. He has growled in bed with us before if he is under the covers and one of us just moves.

I know that doesn't give you the answer, but hope this helps. Our Vet has him on meds that help control his behavior since it is more genetic with him. You might talk with your vet or a behavioral specialist to see what they think.

[Tinker's Mom]

Paul,

I'm so sorry to hear that your wife was injured- I'm sure the whole incident was very upsetting.

I wanted to mention another possibility. There is something called REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (or RBD) that has been recognized in humans for quite some time (and how it can result in violent behavior), but has only recently been recognized to exist in some animals. They are just beginning to study it in veterinary research- it is actually difficult to find much information on it on the web.

The reason I know about it is that I have a friend who adopted a rescued dog who has been diagnosed with it. Her dog is a sweetheart, but when he wakes up or is awakened he can be snappish and could be a danger to other animals or people- he did bite someone in a prior home upon awakening, before anyone realized what his problem was. He exhibits no aggression under any other circumstances. Since she now knows what the problem is and its limitations, she crates him at night, just as you suggested. I'm not saying that this is what your dog has and I don't know if it is something that can just pop up without prior incidences, I'm just that it's a possibility. And it's something most general vets have never heard of; only veterinary neurologists would probably be aware of it.

Here are a couple of links:
http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-ang ... sorder.htm
http://news.ufl.edu/2001/02/13/dog-sleep/

[CarolC]

I imagine she'll have swelling and bruising, too. I'm glad to know the actual damage is not too much. That's pretty impressive if she's playing with him already.

After I logged off this morning I suddenly remembered I've actually had 2 serious bites, one from an English sheepdog and one from a feral cat. When I went to the clinic to try to get a tetanus shot after the cat bit me, they said they were required to report it and quarantine the cat, so I left without the shot. I was afraid if you took your wife to the doctor your dog would wind up under quarantine with a bite on his record, and that would have been terrible, but so would permanent scarring.

Hope you aren't too close to your brand new neighbors. Imagine what they're thinking if last night they heard all the yelling and today your wife stepped outside with a black and blue face...