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livingdustmops · 12-30-2005, 05:34 PM

Folks this can be a very serious problem and not because of the groomer but what her vet said. He/she see’s a lot of animals so if he/she feels that this dog needs a trainer than I would listen to him/her not knowing what is going on for sure here. Dog bites are taken very seriously in most states and there are plenty of lawsuits to prove it (by the way I don’t think a groomer can sue because it is in their line of work). You need to remember this country is lawsuit happy and just because he is small & cute doesn't mean he is protected from these laws. You could lose a lot of $$$ and the dog could lose its life. Go walk the pounds and see how many little dogs are on death row for biting children or other people, even Yorkies. In Arizona it is 1 (warning) 2 (ticket) & 3 (death row). The judge doesn't care if he is cute or small. The law is the law.

http://www.dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/civil.htm

I will also tell you that I have been around dogs my entire life but the worst bite I ever received was from a Yorkie. He bit down to the bone and it hurt like hell. I should have had stitches but I knew the hospital would have to report the dog bite and I will forever have a scar because of this bite.

I have had 3 Yorkies come into rescue because of their biting and if I did not take them they would die. The Humane Society called me on 2 and the pound vet called me on 1 (even though she was breaking the law). I have been bitten more than my fair share from these neutered little Yorkies because of their high fear biting and their lack of early training or socialization. Some of the dogs I rescued were turned into rescue by their original owner and for the most part none of the dogs ever had any kind of training. If you also look at National Rescue’s for Yorkies you will see that they for the most part will not adopt out to families with small children because of the liability. The rescue organization does not want to be sued if a child was bit. Also small dogs can be snippy as it is their only form of protection and they can be very aggressive.

Now having said all of this there are a couple of things I would be aware of. First, if this trainer comes in and wants to do anything that will inflict pain on your dog (choke collar, shock collar) slam the door in their face. This will only cause your dog to be more violent. I am in big favor of behaviorists along with clicker training. The second note is finding a groomer who is very gentle with dogs and I agree stay away from Petsmart type of place. I would explain to the groomer what happened as best you know. I do not think grooming has to be a scary thing but it takes time and is a slow process for the dog to feel comfortable. I still have to muzzle 3 of mine because they can’t stand having me touch their toes but mine are older and your guy is still young. Many groomers inflict pain on these little ones and some even dope the dogs up. They make $$$ with how many dogs they can see in a day and they don’t have time to mess around with a difficult dog.

I don’t mean to scare you with this and I am thrilled that you have already called a trainer in. You can change this around because he is still young but it will take an effort on your part but I can see you are up for the challenge.

We have a couple of great members on YT who are very knowledgeable about clicker training and you might search for their threads.

Good Luck and Let us know how it is going.

12-30-2005, 05:34 PM	#16
livingdustmops Princess Poop A Lot Donating Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Colorado Posts: 6,728	Folks this can be a very serious problem and not because of the groomer but what her vet said. He/she see’s a lot of animals so if he/she feels that this dog needs a trainer than I would listen to him/her not knowing what is going on for sure here. Dog bites are taken very seriously in most states and there are plenty of lawsuits to prove it (by the way I don’t think a groomer can sue because it is in their line of work). You need to remember this country is lawsuit happy and just because he is small & cute doesn't mean he is protected from these laws. You could lose a lot of $$$ and the dog could lose its life. Go walk the pounds and see how many little dogs are on death row for biting children or other people, even Yorkies. In Arizona it is 1 (warning) 2 (ticket) & 3 (death row). The judge doesn't care if he is cute or small. The law is the law. http://www.dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/civil.htm I will also tell you that I have been around dogs my entire life but the worst bite I ever received was from a Yorkie. He bit down to the bone and it hurt like hell. I should have had stitches but I knew the hospital would have to report the dog bite and I will forever have a scar because of this bite. I have had 3 Yorkies come into rescue because of their biting and if I did not take them they would die. The Humane Society called me on 2 and the pound vet called me on 1 (even though she was breaking the law). I have been bitten more than my fair share from these neutered little Yorkies because of their high fear biting and their lack of early training or socialization. Some of the dogs I rescued were turned into rescue by their original owner and for the most part none of the dogs ever had any kind of training. If you also look at National Rescue’s for Yorkies you will see that they for the most part will not adopt out to families with small children because of the liability. The rescue organization does not want to be sued if a child was bit. Also small dogs can be snippy as it is their only form of protection and they can be very aggressive. Now having said all of this there are a couple of things I would be aware of. First, if this trainer comes in and wants to do anything that will inflict pain on your dog (choke collar, shock collar) slam the door in their face. This will only cause your dog to be more violent. I am in big favor of behaviorists along with clicker training. The second note is finding a groomer who is very gentle with dogs and I agree stay away from Petsmart type of place. I would explain to the groomer what happened as best you know. I do not think grooming has to be a scary thing but it takes time and is a slow process for the dog to feel comfortable. I still have to muzzle 3 of mine because they can’t stand having me touch their toes but mine are older and your guy is still young. Many groomers inflict pain on these little ones and some even dope the dogs up. They make $$$ with how many dogs they can see in a day and they don’t have time to mess around with a difficult dog. I don’t mean to scare you with this and I am thrilled that you have already called a trainer in. You can change this around because he is still young but it will take an effort on your part but I can see you are up for the challenge. We have a couple of great members on YT who are very knowledgeable about clicker training and you might search for their threads. Good Luck and Let us know how it is going. __________________ Cindy & The Rescued Gang Puppies Are Not Products!