Chocolate Labs Not My Best Friend

My son his name is Brandon and he was bit on May 7, 2005 by a chocolate lab. He was playing with the owners little girl in their yard when the dog got out of the house and ran over to my son and started to bit him. He had to have plastic surgery on his nose and cheek. His left arm was bit and a bunch of scratches! Now the owner who called the ems is now got everyone believing it was just a scratch. The state police never came to speak to my son nor did the animal control officer. Good thing I have before and after pictures or my son would not get nothing. If something like this happened to their child they would want people to talk! But, no thats not the case the owners and their neighbors are keeping their doors shut and not talking about the whole thing. This is my 8yr old son who had the perfect face and played baseball and now all that is gone because of the scars! The laywer said , that the chocolate labs are very unheard of biting people and I can only find good things about this type of dog on the internet. I am hoping that if anyone else out their might have a story about chocolate labs to talk about it! Thank you for reading this![/b]

 

I'm surprised the hospital didn't report this...you should probably get whoever treated him involved.
I've heard many stories about labs and golden retrievers biting - people don't think they will and allow their children to lay all over them. No dog is going to put up with treatment like that very long.
I don't care what kind of dog bites, unprovoked like that should always always be checked out by law enforcement even if it's a 5 lbs. dog.

 

I'm very sorry to hear about your son. I hope the scars will get better with time, and I'm sure he will be able to play baseball again.

It's not a "chocolate lab" thing. Any breed can bite, especially if it is not properly socialized and trained by the owners. Please don't go on a vendetta against chocolate labs. It's the owners who are at fault for not properly training their dog. This sounds like the dog was being protective of the little girl or his yard or something. They REALLY need to work with that dog to address the issues so that it doesn't happen again.

 

I agree with all the above, I am very surprized that the hosptial themselves did not report this and the police are not interested, I thought they had a legal obligation (along with animal control) to investigate ANY report of dog bites.
I also agree that it sounds like the dog was possibly being protective...what kind of play was involved between the 2 kids, any 'rough and tumble' even a lot of shouting (playing, excited) can be enough for the dog to get the wrong signal that maybe the little girl was being hurt.
If that was the case while its the dog thats to blame for the bite (technically) but its the owner responsibility and they should have made sure that the kids were not accesible to the dog.
A dog I had years ago when my daughter was young almsot went through a second story window when he heard her screaming because the neighour kid had her cornered and went to hit her with a stick, the dog was great around kids, Id seen kids pile on top of him playing and he never so much as curled a lip, he would shake the kids off his back and walk away when hed had enough....BUT, on this occasion he knew my daughter was in trouble and his 'pack protection' instinct kicked in.
Ive worked with some chocolate labs that are aggressive, but no more than any other coloured lab and the majority are not agressive, each dog is different though whatever the breed, genetics/bad breeding, socialization and the way a dog is treated in general has everything to do with its personality.

I hope your son recovers well from his injuries.

 

Well their is two different storys. Their is Brandons and their is the owners. The owners say that the mother went outside to check on the kids and the dog got out of the house and took a ball to Brandon and Brandon picked up the ball to throw it and the dog lunged for the ball. Brandons story is him and the little girl was riding those power wheels she was on a jeep and Brandon was on a tractor and the dog came out running over to him dropped the ball and lunged at him knocking him off the tractor and started to bite him. The bites and their story does not match up. Brandon was bit in his upper left arm he throws with his right arm if the dog lunged for the ball. Plus if Brandon was holding onto this ball I think once the dog bit him Brandon would have let go of the ball and the dog would have just took the ball not bite his nose,cheek,over both eyes,left arm, and scratches behind his ears. I believe Brandon tried to cover his face with his arm and thats how he got bit their now for the rest I really wish I knew why. The police spoke to the owners but not Brandon they were called by the hospital. I was told by the state police that they don't do anything because they already have to much to handle and the dog officer wrote a report without seeing Brandon. This happened on May 7th and the dog officer came back to the county on May 13th quarantine the dog and released on the 18th. That right their is not a 10 day quarantine. So when this is all over I am going to write a letter to the editor and express my anger over how this whole thing was dealt with. Brandon is now afraid of dogs. He thinks that other kids are going to make fun of him and it really makes me sad cause sometimes kids can be cruel.

 

So sad, I really do hope your little boy is okay, kids can be very cruel, especially with scars on the face, my sister when she was about 9 years old had a sharp stone thrown at her, she was left with a large scar just under her eye, she was teased a lot initially but she then started 'bragging' about how 'cool' her scar was and saying things like she had the best scar in the school...before too long the kids were all sitting there comparing their own scars with each other and the teasing stopped.
Its totally understandable that he is scared of dogs now, do you have a dog yourself? Any close family members or friends have nice dogs that he is familiar with? Sometimes this helps, if they can spend some time around friendly dogs especially if they already know the dog....kind of helps get the point across that most dogs are not 'mean', but be aware that with any questionable dogs or dogs that he doesnt know, they will pick up on your sons fear/anxiety so any interaction right now should be done very carefully, you could try stressing to him somthing like...some kids are very mean or some adults are mean but it doesnt mean they are all like that, most of them are nice....while I wouldnt suggest rushing out to buy a puppy to help him get over it I do know of quite a few people who have done this and it works very well, I just worry sometimes that if this is strictly the only reason for getting a pup then commitment to that pup is not always 100%. A friend of mine, she was in her late 30's, she was attacked by her family dog when she was very young and had always been absolutely terrified of dogs, to the point where she would see one way down the street and would go hysterical, jumping over walls and into peoples gardens to get away from the dog, she actually jumped into someones car once when they stopped at a traffic signal....I think the guy thought he was being carjacked....but she really was that scared, her daughter brought home a Dobie pup that she found on the beach one day, Clair (my friend) went hysterical, screaming at her to get the 'monster' out of the house, the pup was only a few weeks old, her daughter, being about 15 and at that rebelious age refused, kept the pup in her room, while she was at school one day Clare heard the pup crying and just for a split second, felt bad for it so she went in (complete with a broom and towel to 'defend herself' against the 'monster') and the puppy just sat there looking at her, still crying, it took her about 2 hours to actually be able to touch the pup but once she did....well her daughter hardly got a look in with the pup after that, Clare took her everywhere with her....so, the fear can be overcome, The only regret Clare had then was that she didnt get a pup 20 years earlier.
As for the quarrantine time, I believe the 10 days is from the day of the bite, not the day the dog is taken (although in most cases the dog would taken the same day as the bite occured), its not a 'punishment' for the dog its for health purposes. So if your son was bitten on the 7th, the dog would be released 10 days after that date.

It must be frustrating for you getting a different story from the owner than you did from Brandon, to be honest, both stories sound believable, the dog, having possibly accidentally bitten Brandon while going after the ball, Brandon maybe responds by screaming, maybe goes down on the ground because hes been hurt which could trigger the dog to attack, both stories say the dog started off trying to play with the ball, Ive had my hands accidentally bitten by dogs trying to get a ball from me and had some pretty nasty/deep scratches on my head and face when Ive been playing with dogs on the floor, they werent intentional but the dogs had got over-excited....it doesnt sound as though it started as an intentional attack although Im sure thats no consolation now. From what you say about the cops, it does seem as though they are treating this as more of an accident and not an all out vicious attack.

One last thing, sometimes what helps younger kids deal with trauma is by letting them know they are not the only one that something like this has happened to, I tend to lean more towards trying to 'lighten up' a situation like when my daughter broke her arm (at 9 years old) she was miserable for a little while after, I told her at least she did it 'properly' when I was 7 I fell and 'only managed to BEND the bone in my arm'!!! (it was enough to make her smile for the first time in days)or when her mouse bit her and put a hole in her finger I told her about the puppy that had bitten me in the nose and gave me a 'free' nose piercing....I know that when things like this happen, its not funny at all when people, especially kids are hurt but I dont see the point in making a bad situation worse for them. Oh and of course kids are allowed to 'play on it'....at least for a little while. (just my opinion, I dont know if any of this helps at all).

 

Sorry to hear your story. There is some good advice here as to how to help your son heal both psycally and mentally.
I have had two Labs over the last twenty years and I would trust both of them around children. That said I have also witnessed a very strong protection instinct in them if they preceive that a member of their "pack" is being threatened, especially in their own teritory.
As also mentioned, whatever the breed, it's how they are raised and trained that determines their sociability. I have seen attack trained Labs and cuddly as a kitten Pit Bulls.
Do work to slowly alleviate your son's fear of dogs. Right now it is understandable but he should learn that all dogs are not dangerous and also he should learn how to properly approach a dog he does not know. Being terrified of dogs will only create more unpleasant experiences throughout his life. Dogs have a very strong ability to sense human emotions. They sense a human that is a confident leader and will follow that humans commands and direction. They also will sense a humans fear and weakness and will then assume the aggressive dominant pack leader role.
Hope everything works out OK for your family.

 

Education is a great tool for overcoming fears. One of our local shelters does programs at schools where they teach kids about safety around dogs. In the inner city schools, many of the kids are scared of dogs because they only dogs they know are trained to be "attack dogs." This program does seem to help them.

They learn when a dog can safely be approached and when they cannot - for instance, you NEVER mess with a dog that is eating or sleeping, you never try to take a toy from its mouth, etc.

They teach the child that if they see a dog, first they must check to be sure the dog is on a leash. If not, do not approach it. If it is, they have to ask their parent for permission to touch the dog and then they have to ask the dog owner's permission. If they get permission from both, they stand sideways to the dog and squat down and reach to scratch under the chest - bending over a dog and reaching over its head can trigger a fear reaction in some dogs.

You always leave room for the dog to "escape" if it feels uncomfortable. Never back it into a corner. Never tease a dog.

They teach the warning signs to look for - curled lip, tail up, stiff legs, ears forward, direct stares, etc - that you can use to assess if a dog is feeling friendly or not.

And they also teach what to do if you are threatened by a dog. They recommend that you stand absolutely still, like a tree, with your fingers twined together and placed under your chin. You are not to make a sound or move. It's very hard to do when you are scared! If you are on the ground or the dog is attacking you, you are supposed to curl up in a ball (like a rock) and cover your face with your arms with your hands linked behind your neck.

Many kids who go through the program learn to not be afraid of dogs.

As for the two versions of the story - it's very common for people to have different opinions of what happened. Each one can think they are telling the truth. Emotion can influence your memories, and everyone brings their own interpretations to events.

I hope your son is feeling better. Hopefully his youth will help the scars to heal better. Sometimes they can even do surgery later on to "revise" them and help him to look better. It's very tragic that he has to go through this.

 

Thats very sad, I hope your son recovers well. But I think it might be that maybe your son had the ball in his hand, and the Lab tried to get the ball, and managed to bite your son. In my opinion, Labs are never good for little kids because of their energy and sometimes rough play. My parents got a black Lab for me when I was little, but had to give it away because whenever we tried to play, he would run over me and hurt me.

Both my neice and nephew are scared Sassy, my Rottie, but its because she's been raised around grown up people that play grown up games with her. She's such a good dog and so nice with kids. But its the things they do with the dog that freaks them out. My neice had a cookie in her hand and was waving it infront of the dog. She tried to get it, but my neice ran away from her. Naturally, Sassy ran after her. She tripped on the stairs, fell, and swore she was going to be attacked and Sassy tried to bite her. But when she fell, the the dog stopped in her tracks. Another time my nephew was thrashing Sassy's ball around(sometimes I use it to play fetch with her), and Sassy started jumping around waiting for him to throw it. That freaked him out as well. When they get old enough, I'm going to have to teach them about dogs...I'm afraid they are going to get hurt.
When I was young, I was poking my dog in the face(yeah, real smart move there), and accidently poked him in the eye. Next thing I knew, I couldn't see anything but huge jaws. Luckily I got away with a gash across the forehead, but from then on, I learned never to mess with a dog like that. He also had Parvo(we didnt find out until he actually died from it, tests showed neg for it), which didn't help his temperment.

But I guess your problem is, what really happened? Both involve a ball that the lad was very interested in. Maybe the lab was just trying to play, and it got too rowdy. But I hope you figure everything out and thing go well.

 

:shock:

I am sorry to hear about your family ordeal.

I work at a hospital and as far as I know, they are suppost to report the incident. I would get a copy of my son's hospital records and bring them to the Animal Control Officer along with the pics of the bite. Make sure they have it on record. As far as I am aware, you have the right to ask for a vicious dog hearing with a panel. I would check into it. If not for one reason, what if the dog does this to another person?


By the way, if you want dog stats, start calling local ACO's they probably have bite reports.

(My vet told me just yesterday (we were talking about my lab) that labs have a high bite report incident across the country) (Because they are known to be great family dogs and lots and lots of people with children have this dog) They can have dominance issues like many other breeds.

I did some research last year after I had gotten bit and I know for a fact (just by making calls to Animal Control Officers in my area) that in one local City and two towns (mine being on of them that labs/golden retrievers mix as well as pedigree were the number one biting dog. (I do not know the level of the bites).

But also remember that a lot of people own them so the more higher the numbers on that particular breed, obviously the higher the bite incidents on that breed shall be.

Just remember this:

As far as dogs in general: My behaviorist once told me this: "All dogs are considered PREDITORS They all have teeth and are animals".


Honestly, I was bitten very badly last summer by my own lab/golden dog. He put me in the hospital X2 days. I had to go to a general surgeon, a plastic surgeon and was out of work for one month. I had a cast, then a soft splint and then needed occupational therapy X 2 months.
I still do not have full use out of my hand and probably never will. If I were a child, I honestly probably would have been dead. The bite was that bad.
The reason I got bit? Dominance aggression.
I took him by the collar to lead him into another room because we were having a birthday party for my husband and I did not want the dogs getting out of the gate and running lose.
I never expected this type of behavior out of "Dakota" in my entire life. Neither did not family.
I still have him! I really do love him and decided to see if the behaviorist (with her masters degree) that works at the humane society could help our family deal with Dakota safely.
I had to re-obedience train him and believe me its been an ongoing mission. He is 8 1/2 years old now. I never will trust him again and honestly, don't feel the same about him at all.





I temperament test shelter dogs and I also find that many labs do have food aggression as well.
I tested a black lab the other day. He was a great dog until you went near his food or pig ear.
So, obviously, this dog should not be placed with children. See what I am getting at her???


Judge each dog as an individual and NEVER generalize breeds.
Everyone would be so much safer that way.

This article has some helpful hints about children and dogs.
http://www.leerburg.com/kidbites.htm


Also a great book that I highly recommend is:

Fatal Dog Attacks ~ the stories behind the statistics. By Karen Delise.


Keep in mind:

"Many of the factors that affect a dog's propensity to bite are no more specific to a pit bull than they are to a poodle. According to previous research cited in the study, male dogs are 6.2 times more likely to bite than female dogs, sexually intact dogs are 2.6 times more likely to bite than sterilized dogs, and chained dogs are 2.8 times more likely to bite than unchained dogs. "Indeed, since 1975, dogs belonging to more than 30 breeds have been responsible for fatal attacks on people, including Dachshunds, a Yorkshire Terrier, and a Labrador Retriever," Biting may result from factors such as heredity, gender, early experience, socialization, extent of training, health, reproductive status, quality of ownership and supervision, and the bite victim's behavior toward the dog."


Good luck to you and your son.

Sincerely,

Sue

 

I'm so sorry this happened to your son. It's a scary experience for an adult, much less a child, to be bitten like that.

At this point, though, I'd encourage you to focus less on the bite and why or how it occured, and focus on how to help your son deal with the emotional issues he's facing. A good therapist would help a great deal, but remember that he's going to take a lot of his cues from you.

How you react and how you respond to him are a major focus for how he's going to react and respond. The more you talk about this in a negative manner, the more negative he's going to be. And it doesn't necessarily mean just the things you say to him. If he overhears you discussing this with a friend or relative, and the things you say are negative, it's going to have an effect on him.

For his sake, it's imparative that your attitude towards dogs remains good. And even more imparative that your comments about the scars must be matter of fact, rather than bemoaning the fact that his perfect face has been ruined. It hasn't.

The chances are good to excellent that his scars will fade over time. Especially with the products now available to treat scars. If necessary, a plastic surgeon will most likely be able to improve their appearance at a latter time.

And of course, children can be cruel and tease other kids about anything and everything. And that's something all children have to learn to deal with. If it's not the scars, it would be something else. If your son had never been bitten, he'd still have to face being teased about something at some time during his life. At least you have the opportunity to help him prepare some coping stratagies for when he's teased about the scars.

You can help him a great deal by reminding yourself that his worth as a human being hasn't been deminished one bit by this. Focus on staying positive, and above all, be sure he knows that you love him no matter what.

 

Shine has a good point :

Focus on the future, and if needed, a counselor sounds like a great idea for all of you. It must be traumatic to you as a parent to watch your child endur this.

Keep a positive attitute.

But I still would really would get this dog bite on record if anything to prevent this from happening to another child.


Sue

 

Its so easy to fall into the trap that certain breeds are "always" good with kids, adults, other dogs, cats, etc. But as someone else posted, genetics can play a huge part. One of the most aggressive dogs I've ever been around was a lab, who came into the clinic for vaccines. That was it - just vaccines. The dog was extremely aggressive and could not be approached by any of our staff. Another particularly aggressive one was a Golden Retriever. In GENERAL certain breeds do have certain temperament characteristics, but never make the mistake of becoming complacent because of it. Never let down your guard with ANY dog of ANY breed.

That said, you'll have to go very slow with your boy. It may take him a very long time to lose his fear, and he may never completely lose it. Start out with dogs that are completely trustworthy with children (and have proved it) Maybe a therapy dog or something similar. Let the boy see the dog from a distance only. Never push your boy - it'll only traumatize him more. Over a period of weeks or even months, have the dog in closer proximity to the boy until one day he can actually touch the dog without tremendous fear. You'll have to be incredibly patient, but he should be able to overcome at least SOME of his fear in time.

And don't have a prejudice against certain breeds. I've known a couple of really sweet, completely reliable Chows, which are well known for their aggressive temperaments.

Pits, as I've stated in prior posts, are in my opinion, one of the most stable breeds and the only ones I've seen problems with are Pits that are BRED for aggression specifically in mind, or ones that are part of a pack, and as everyone knows, what one pack member does, the others tend to copy. This could be true with just about any breed. Most Pits I've had experience with (and this has been MANY over 12 yrs) were happy-go-lucky, cheerful, and adored people in general. But like people, each dog must be treated as a unique individal, regardless of breed.

 

Interesting. If your son was playing with the owner's daughter, I guess you are acquainted with the owner, right? Is the owner the type of person who would step up and take responsibility for an unprovoked...and I emphasize the word, "unprovoked"...attack by his/her dog? Did you actually witness the attack, start to finish? Are you absolutely certain that your son did nothing to provoke the attack? Remember, what may seem like nothing to you can be interpreted by a dog as a threat. Was your son in any physical contact with his playmate? If he was, it's probable that the dog interpreted it as his tryng to do harm to his mistress.

I bring these points up only because, when a person is a victim (or close to a victim) of a dog attack, his or her natural reaction is to side with the victim. However, instances of a properly socialized dog, particularly a Lab (color notwithstanding), attacking a person with absolutely no provocation, is about as common as a blue moon. Labs are, by nature, arguably the most anxious-to-please of any breed. They love to roughhouse and wrestle, but it's all in fun.

Before you go off half cocked and, possibly, be the cause of a perfectly fine dog and a beloved pet being euthanized, I suggest you sit back, take a deep breath, and try and answer the questions posed in the first paragraph as honestly as possible. I know we would all like to think our children went around with halos over their heads, but that's just not the case.

I am not trying to minimize what happened to your son. It is, unquestionably, tragic. And, if the dog in question has a history of aggressiveness, then it should probably be put down. All I am suggesting is, difficult as it may be, try and look at the possibility that this story has two sides.

 

To Seaecho:

WONDERFUL POST!!!

 

Conean,
This is to answer your questions. No I am not acquainted with the owners. They are my mothers neighbors who live a block apart. No-one actually witness the attack from start to finish. Well, for the two storys no I am not absolutely certain who is at fault but, I do know the dog bit Brandon over and over untill the owner pulled the dog off of Brandon. The girl was riding her barbie jeep and Brandon was on the power wheels tractor. That would not be physical contact with the little girl. When you say properly socialized dog, the dog is always in a crate when they play in the house. That day the kids were outside playing and the dog got out. We did get a statement from the neighbor across the street saying that the dog is brought out of the house by a Leash. It is not left out to PLAY! What does not match up is Brandon saying he was on the power wheels and owners saying he was going to throw a ball. Anyway why would he have to lie about a BALL! Their is dominant/aggressive if Brandon showed any fear to the dog and that made the dog attack. All that said who is at fault? The owners for not having total control of their Dog at all times? OR Brandon for throwing a ball or as he says riding a power wheels!

 

I have to say this b/c situations similar to this have happened a lot in my state. First, the owners are responsible for their dog. But you are responsible for your child. Dogs are dogs, some are great around kids, some aren't, but they are animals. They cannot be expected to think like humans. You or someone you put in charge, should have been watching your child. Then you would know what happened. And maybe it wouldn't have happened at all. The dog is not at fault. If the owners knew that the dog had problems, they should have maintained complete control of him. But I do think you have some responsibility here too.

 

Speaking as a parent, it is virtually impossible to watch children constantly. The phone rings, you have to visit the bathroom, you get a speck in your eye and have to wash it out; life happens. To place responsibility on the victim, or in this case the mother of the victim, is absolutely not fair, especially if she was not present when the incident happened.

If the owner failed to exercise reasonable caution and the dog ran out of the house, resulting in some form of attack, be it a true aggressive action or overly rough play, how is the mother of the victim responsible?

From a purely legal point of view, in most localities the dog owner is responsible for the action of the dog, unless it can be shown that there were mitigating circumstances, such as a dog who bites to defend himself from an attack. A child who pokes a stick in the dog's eye or kicks him in the face would be concidered an attacker. A child who is throwing a ball or riding a toy would not, even if it's possible the dog may view it that way.

If a child is playing on the owners property, with the owners permission to be there, the dog owner is responsible not only for the dog's actions, but is responsible to exercise reasonable caution to protect the wellbeing of the child. They assume that responsibility when they invite or accept the childs presence on their property, especially if the childs parent or guardian is not going to be there.

It's no different than owning a swimming pool and letting the child come over for a swim while Mom goes shopping. It's your pool, it's your responsibility.

 

So sorry to hear about your son unfortunatly the only experiences with labs I have ever had were negative.


Four years back I was walking down the road near my old house (getting ready to move into my third). And an older man I knew owned two labs a yellow and Chocolate. Well his home wasent all that stable and I saw the two dogs barking at me through the screen door the next thing i know they bump the door open and lay out after me! I started running as ast as my legs could take me when the yellow got me on the back of my left thigh I ended up falling to the ground and the other dog layed into me as well. I still have nightmares about this experience. It got to the point while they were attacking that become almost numb to hte pain i mean I knew it hurt but it did'nt...... They were for sure purebred labs as the man used to sell his AKC pups :roll: . I am still dealing with the aftermath of this attack and am still visiting the doctor dealing with scars and my own cosmetic surgery. My left leg is the worse and is for the most part just scar tissue I have a scar across my nose and above my eye and my right hand had some nerve damage.
Both dogs were euthenized the owner had no problem and actually felt bad it all happened to me. We moved not long after that.


My bestfriend was recently attacked by a black lab who belonged to her brother. She went to visit him and when she walked in the door the dog who she actually helped pick out attacked her. Her got a few good bites in before they could pull him off but she wasent hurt too bad.

I think it all goes to alot of them are results of horribly unresponsible breeding. I still love dogs but im to this day very cautiouse of Labs.

 

Again, I have to agree with Shine's post.
One can never ever be too careful with kids and dogs.
You just never know. The best advice, always watch both!!! Like hawks!

Years ago, my new deceased dog was a puppy, (he was a red doberman/german shepherd) there were neighborhood kids that would always poke him in the face with tree branches. One day, one of the kids was climbing the chain link fence teasing my dog., he was barefoot as it was the summer time. Well, the dog bit the kid in the toe. Not bad but did draw blood. You know what? The kids mom told the kid it was his own fault and maybe next time the kid would remember to leave my dog alone.
The kid NEVER EVER went near my dog again. Was it the dogs fault or the kids? In this case, the kid antonogized my dog till he nipped the kid and told him just what he thought of him.

Kids will be kids and dogs will be dogs.
Sometimes the two together depending on a whole bunch of different issues i.e. genetics, socialization, temperament, the kids actions, etc. is not a good combination.

I think labs in general are extremily over rated and that is half the problem. Bad breeding, too many breeders and everyone just assumes they are wonderful family pets.
From a shelter stand point, I have seen many wonderful labs as well as many mean labs that are not considered adoptable.
I also have seen many with food posession.
Again, I have also seen wonderful labs. My daughter just got one from rescue a few months ago. He has been in obedience training since she obtained him. He is 8 months old. A real charmer. He is ready to take his CGC. I also am working on adopting a 10 year old lab that I adore.
It all depends on EACH INDIVIDUAL DOG!


Too many people generalize about breeds and I can't stress enough that people need to judge each dog as individuals not breeds.

I know I don't trust my lab around kids AT ALL.
When people come over, he is either put outside or gated off. Just because of what he did to me last summer. If I were a child, things would not have been looking too good for the kid. My lab never ever spent even one day of his life in a shelter. He came from a wonderful back yard breeder. Even so, one would think that the breed he is is considered the perfect family dog Yellow lab/golden retriever (neutered male never abused and always loved)
When he bit my hand last summer, I went to the hospital I work at for treatment, the first thing EVERONE said to me was "Susan, its your own fault, How many times have we told you not to own that horrible breed of dog"?? Meaning my pit bulls. I replied back "Oh, I did not know that labs were known to be horrible" Everyone was shocked that it was my lab/golden retreiver dog that bit me up like minced meat pie!!!
Needless to say, NO ONE AT THE HOSPITAL CALLS MY PIT BULLS HORRIBLE! After seeing my hand, they don't judge breeds around my face any longer anyway.


Sue