sudden aggression :(

[shorthorsesmt]

Hi it has been a while since i have posted, just watching what has been going on. Now i have a problem, my old aussie bit me. I was patting him and asked him to move away from my daughter while she was eatting and he balled up and swung around and bit 3/4 of my hand, luckly it didn't break skin but it did leave marks that took almost an hour to go away. He gave no warning and i was barely patting him. Now i don't know what to do i don't want to risk my kids getting hurt. I know the decision has to be mine but i would appreciate imput as to what others would do in my situation.

 

[Lizzie]

Could be he's just becoming grumpy in his old age. Could be a thyroid problem. Where were you touching him? Maybe he already has a hurt in that area. Lots of things could have triggered this. However, I would keep a very close eye on him now and not let children around him if possible. His next bite, might be a lot worse. And there again, he might never do it again.

If anyone in the family has fed him from the table before, I'd stop that immediately and make him stay out of the room while humans are eating. That or at least on a down/stay, far away from food. He might just be becoming a bit food aggressive in his old age.

Lizzie

 

[minisch]

I'd bring him to the vets. With age comes aches and pains, maybe you hurt him unknowingly ?? Hope you find the answer

 

[Fantasia]

I agree - I have an 11yr old Border Collie who has become grumpier in the last year. She has a sore shoulder so we now tell people to be aware when patting her.

They do tend to become less tolerant in their "golden years" so I wouldn't rush to do anything drastic just yet. Trip the vet for a through once over

 

[Mona]

With age comes deafness...perhaps you startled him, as it sounds like you did it from behind. Maybe he felt your daughter was in danger from behind him and acted swiftly, thinking he was fending off a predator. Or if I am not understanding, how did you ask him to move off??

 

[shorthorsesmt]

Thank for all the replies, we too have talked about going to the vet for a physical. We don't give him people food at all. His stomach has gotten very sensitve so he is on wet dog food only. Even my kids know that Bentley can't even have a little of their snacks. His hearing is fine and he was looking at me when i patted his bottom and asked him to move. He has always been very tolerant and i know he has gotten grumpier in his old age, but even when he shattered his paw last year playing he never once growled or tried to bite me when i checked it, so him biting me like this is so out of character. I have had him so many years this is so upsetting.

 

[2minis4us]

I would definitely take him to the vet. We had an old bulldog and a person that was at our house leaned over to pet him, our dog was sleeping, he bit the hand of the man very deep. Thankfully the person was cool about it and did not make any claim. It was not very long after that our bulldog had to be out down because he had really bad cancer. We had no idea he was that sick.

 

[Mona]

Thanks for explaing better. So no, it definitely wasn't that he was startled, but sure makes you wonder what was going on in his head. Yes, sounds like a vet trip is definitely in order. Best of luck, and hope it is not somethig seroious.

 

[shorthorsesmt]

We are taking my old boy into the vet this morning so he can do an exam on him . I will let you all know how things go

 

[Mona]

Good luck! I hope you will be able to find out what caused that abnormal reaction from him.

 

[mini horse mania]

My friend has an older aussie that is showing,the same behavior..checkup was fine.they finally ruled it to pain from arthritis,old age and grumpiness.hope the checkup goes well.

 

[shorthorsesmt]

Went to the vet yesterday and he thinks it might be due to severe arthritis in both front wrists so we are going to try pain management for a week and if he still bites after that the vet said we don't really have any other options - we can help the pain if it is on the outside but he said there is nothing we can do if it is internal. Bentley got sick already this morning and hasn 't had anything to eat since dinner so i am hoping he will be able to hold down breakfast and his meds, otherwise i am not sure what we are going to do.

 

[chandab]

I put my old Aussie on Springtime, Incs Fresh Factors; they did seem to help her with her arthitis aches and pains, she was even able to tolerate the puppy bouncing around her. I really like their products, but they are a bit spendy. They have recommended levels, but then you can go higher as needed. I think Bridgie was on 5 tabs daily the last year or so before I lost her (she was about 35#, she was a smaller girl).

http://www.springtimeinc.com/product/fresh-factors/dogs

 

[Mona]

Did they do bloodwork on him to check for cancers? Are his "wrists" swollen? The only reason I ask, is when our Boxer got Lymphoma, he went off his food, and our Great Dane went lame, and even before any physical sign could be seen, we learned that he had bone cancer in his "wrist" joint of his front leg, but by the time it was found it had already swept through his internal organs, so all we could do was manage his pain and when it got to the point where it was no longer manageable, we had to have him put to sleep. Just something to have checked if they havn't yet.

 

[shorthorsesmt]

They did a stool sample to check for bleeding but didn't find anything. His wrists aren 't swollen at all, the movement is restrictive our vet said that normally the pads of the toes can touch the back of the leg in a dog without arthritis but bentleys can only go to about a 90 degree bend. The vet did see anything that would lead him to think cancer. Right now he wants to try one thing at a time. We are to pick him up to put him in and out of the truck and elevate his food and water to help with the vomiting. We also bought a heated dog bed for him to ease the aches and pain, which he started laying the min i put it down and plugged it in. The good news is he kept his breakfast and lunch and pain killer down so far, hopefully we are heading in the right direction

 

[Mona]

Oh, well that is certainly good news! Wishing the best for your family with him.

 

[mini horse mania]

Is he doing anu better now,

 

[shorthorsesmt]

We haven't seen any agression pop up since he started he pain management meds, but he got sick with the runs today and still tonight. I will be calling the vet in the am to see what he says, hopefully he will have some ideas. I want to thank everone for their concern it helps to know others care