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Originally Posted by HisNameIsHarley .... And it's always such a shame when little children want to pet him bc he's just so darn cute but I can't let them bc as soon as they put their hands near him he trys to nip and growls and sometimes barks @ them. I want Harley to be approachable and I don't want to fear the worst. You guys have any tips? Or atleast know where I'm coming from?
Another problem happened 2 days ago. ... But one lady in particular decided that she wanted a closer look and walked over to one of his toys and stepped on it and was reaching down to pick it up when Harley attacked. He basically jumped up her leg and tried to bite her all over until she finally got away from his toy. He was growling/barking/snarling the entire time... |
Well, the first behavior doesn't sound out of the ordinary for a dog who hasn't been well-socialized to young children. If I were you, I'd work on this by first taking him some place where there are young children in the distance. Like a park. Stay away from the kids while interacting with Harley and giving treats for appropriate behavior. When he's comfortable with this, take it a little closer to the kids. When you feel like you can trust him enough, let the kids toss some treats to him so that he learns "good things come from small people". If he is comfortable, let them advance to feeding him the treat. This will all take some time. Don't try to do it in one day.
In the meantime, when little kids approach you can 1) position yourself in between them while holding up your hand in a "stop sign" fashion. This should buy you enough time to say "Don't touch. He bites". 2) Alternately, scoop him up before they can touch him. You are right. You can't risk his biting a child.
The second behavior was quite extreme. I would consult a trainer ASAP. I also wouldn't take him back to that facility.