Am I crazy?

[RebelGSD]

I think it is sad that people who have never met this dog are recommending euthanasia over the internet. The dog deserves in-person evaluation before a death sentence is declared. Some of the "behaviorists" and "trainers" I met should never be allowed near a dog, without having full knowledge of the situation it is simply wrong to encourage killing the dog.

[BowWowMeow]

I agree with Rebel. it is irresponsible to recommend euthanizing this dog without ever having met him. I had a dog who was genetically fearful and fear aggressive. In the 5 months I had him (he unfortunately died very young in a tragic accident) he improved a lot. It can be done but it takes the right person and also the right home situation.

[RebelGSD]

There are many fearful dogs out there that do beautifully with their families and are loving companions to the people they know. They live within their limitations and do not necessarily miss group outings and social gatherings.

[wolfy dog]

Originally Posted by RebelGSD

I think it is sad that people who have never met this dog are recommending euthanasia over the internet. The dog deserves in-person evaluation before a death sentence is declared. Some of the "behaviorists" and "trainers" I met should never be allowed near a dog, without having full knowledge of the situation it is simply wrong to encourage killing the dog.

Originally Posted by BowWowMeow

I agree with Rebel. it is irresponsible to recommend euthanizing this dog without ever having met him. I had a dog who was genetically fearful and fear aggressive. In the 5 months I had him (he unfortunately died very young in a tragic accident) he improved a lot. It can be done but it takes the right person and also the right home situation.

Did you read my post completely? Here is the bottom line of that post, in bold: "So in your case, if you can legally(contract-wise) do it, I would do the same if, after giving it your all, you cannot guarantee a safe home for him."
Taking it out of context results in the problematic conversations that we sometimes see.

[onyx'girl]

I have a dog much like the one jenniecc describes(though she has never bitten, due to my diligent management)
With maturity & my learning how to deal with her she is ok...but I can never, ever have her around young children, she is really reactive around anyone younger than 10 or so.

This is the crux of the issue here....children should be able to have friends over without everyone worrying about where the dog is, can he get out.
If he somehow got out of his containment, he would probably act out, and that would mean he's been failed and rainbow bridge is the future.
Too bad the breeder isn't more helpful... As far as my dogs breeder, there is no way I'd let Onyx go back to her, it wouldn't be fair to Onyx.
Onyx is not what I'd call fearful now that she's matured, she just loves to be a bully and will get involved in anything where she can act up aggressively. I make her keep a ball in her mouth whenever there is outdoor play or excitement, 'get your ball' is my mantra with her.
10 month to about 18 months were Onyx's worst times of reactivity. If you are willing to deal with the next year, it may smooth out as your boy matures.
Muzzle would be my choice if you really think your dog is a danger to the kids.
I am interested in reading your behaviorists evaluation.

[RebelGSD]

In the thread there are numerous encouragements to kill the dog.
IMO reputable trainers will evaluate an animal in person before recommending euthanasia (as opposed to doing it based on a couple of paragraphs posted on line).

[cliffson1]

@ Wolfy Dog....your last sentence is a fairly common occurrence here!.....I understood what you meant and did not think you were promoting euthanasia, nor have a read in this thread a call for PTS....anyone that is not aware of all options is limiting themself.......of course I am just reading this from a non emotional POV, as I have found myself to make flawed decisions from emotions and I think emotional advice is often flawed also...hopefully this works out well for the owner and the dog.

[holland]

I think a lot of options were suggested -if it was me I would have the dog medically checked out as Jean suggested go to a behaviorist-if I felt the breeder would take proper care of the dog and I was unable to manage the dog I would return him/her...and if that all failed I would euthansize the dog-there are a lot of dogs in shelters that have wonderful temperments-

[Jax08]

I have a human aggressive Boxer. It is management. There are solutions for your dog to live a life of quality time with your family, though it's not the life you would want your dog to have. Luckily, Banshee loved kids so we had no issues with kids coming and going from the house. I wish you the best in this. I speak from experience when I say managing a human aggressive dog is not easy and it's not a choice everyone makes. Banshee was never aggressive to anyone in the family or children. Had she been, we would have made a different choice.

First, you must ALWAYS be on your guard. You don't ever just open the door to someone. You stop, put the dog on a leash or in a crate. Have a bag of treats close to the door so the person can treat the dog. It helped with Banshee and she would often accept the person after awhile, at least enough to lay next to us still leashed.

You should consider installing a kennel in your yard that he can't go over and can't dig under. This will allow a safe place for him when people are over. A crate in a quiet room may or may not work but is worth a try. Banshee always knew when someone was in the house and she would carry on from the other room.

It's ALL about management. Get the medical work up, talk to a behaviorist, have him evaluated, create a management plan. Maybe look into supplements such as springtimeinc's Stress Free chewable to help bring down his anxiety. Think about changing foods to something with lower sugars.

[Liesje]

I think the OP has already got a taste of the management involved and the question is whether that is even possible? I agree with Jane, the issue here is that the OP can manage her dog all day long but she cannot prevent "strangers" (kids' friends) from being in her house and cannot 100% control what they do. A locked kennel would work but then it becomes a quality of life issue for the dog....really only the OP can know and decide what is best but it looks like every possibility has been mentioned several times.

I have a similar issue at my house. It's not like we have people over constantly, but I have good friends with kids, my husband brings his friends over (sometimes they have kids), my sister and other family members come and go often without announcing themselves. I have zero tolerance for a dog that is unpredictable not because I think it's a bad dog or couldn't be managed but it just doesn't work in our household and the amount of diligence it takes to manage a dog like that causes way too much stress for me, the dog, the other dogs, and everyone else.