My Yorkie bit my brother on his upper lip. Why did he do this? My little Yorkie Max is 11 years old, 12 in May. This evening my brother went in for a goodnight kiss and Max pretty much attacked him, biting him on his upper lip and punctured the skin pretty badly. Of course it bled and swelled up. As of right now he has ice on it to keep the swelling from getting worse and hopefully to get it down. Max has never bit anyone where it actually punctured the skin. (He once bit my Dad's finger, only because my dad put it near him to test him to see if he would actually bite. My Dad doesn't like dogs so his stupidity cost him a bite on his finger:thumbdown) I've done a lot of researching of what could have caused Maxi to do this. I know he is an animal and they have animal instincts so I can't blame him too much. I found that dogs are easily disturbed and get upset in the evening or when they are going to sleep. Maybe this can be the cause? I also read that people should stay away from their dogs faces but of course this is especially hard when you love your dog so much. I'm afraid this is because of old age and there may be something else, something worse wrong with my poor dog. He also has a cataract in his left eye and it looks like it's starting to come in on his right. Just earlier today I saw he was walking around like he was losing his balance, like he was drunk. I held him and almost started crying of the thought of him being in pain and suffering from something I don't know of. The last thing I would do is put him to sleep because of this as some people suggested :eek: My brother will be okay, he's sleeping with a gunk full of Neosporin and a piece of frozen chicken breast on his lip. I just wonder what is happening with my dog and what I can do. |
It sounds as if his eyesight could be failing and he got spooked when your brother got up close to him, the fact that he is not normally a biter makes this seem the likely cause. He may ned a checkup at the vet just to see if anything could be done for his eyes. Hope that your brother is OK. |
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If it was not usual for your brother to do this, it would doubly take a dog off guard when his eyesight is already failing. They get startled like we do -- their natural reaction is to defend with a bite. Remember he could have done a lot worse damage. I know it is probably painful because of being on the lip. But it sounds more like a warning nip than a full fledge attack. |
Sometimes Ringo gets growly when Matthew puts his face in Ringo's face. I hate it when Matthew does this and tell him over and over - do NOT put your face in Ringo's face! He doesn't like it and has given him several warning growls. Perhaps as Debra said - this was just a warning and another bedtime routine might have to take it's place. If he can no longer see well; he might feel threatened by it. |
I agree with all of the comments above. Keep in mind also that a lot of what we do with our Yorkies -- kissing cheeks, hugging, nuzzling and locking eyes -- these human gestures of affection are mostly considered aggressive body language in the dog world. We acclimate our dogs to accept and enjoy these things, but under certain circumstances (being spooked or infirmity, for example) the dog will react negatively. Explain to your brother than Max is growing older and may prefer something like a gentle touch to the chest, rather than a kiss. Also approach Max slowly so as not spook him. |
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So well put. |
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So well put. |
Maybe your dog got scared and that's why he bit. If he's having eyesight problems maybe he got startled. |
Nikki is about 16 and has failing eyesight. Several times I have gone to kiss him and he bit me. I now know to talk to him first before going in close to his face. Fortunately, he doesn't have any teeth so he can't hurt anyone. So my guess is he was startled because of failing eyesight and being startled. |
Well & if he's 11, prob a little grouchy & wasnt in the mood. They have moods like we do. I hope he got corrected though cause that is not a good way to say dont kiss me. My friends dog did this to her because she got in his face & he wasnt in the mood, he gave a couple warning growls though, then broke the skin on her nose. ouch! I dont like dog breath so i try to stay away but sometimes mine insist on licking my face & visitors face,lol. |
Thank you everyone for your insight on Max's behavior. Unfortunately, we will no longer get near his face, at least for a long while. Thank you for asking, my brother is okay, just bummed since his Winter Ball is on Saturday! |
I agree that a vet check up would be in order too, especially since you say he was "walking around loosing his balance". They can bite/ get aggressive when in pain. |
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