My dog bit my child should I put him down?

In this article we will try to answer the query ‘My dog bit my child should I put him down?’ In addition, we will also look at what it means to put your dog down, is it a shame to put your dog down, first aid for dog bites, why would your dog bite your child, and finally the statistics of dog bites in children. 

My dog bit my child should I put him down?

To answer this question would be a little difficult because at the end of the day it is your dog and the decision must be yours. 

However, there have been instances where a dog is put down, for its aggressive nature. Euthanizing a perfectly healthy, joyful, and happy dog can be the most heartbreaking thing one has to do. Nevertheless, it is important to do so, for behavioral problems. It is certainly not acceptable that a dog bites a child. It could lead to a lot of complications. If this incident has occurred more than once, you know that the right decision is to put the dog down. 

Having a loyal four-legged companion is the best thing one can ever ask for. Coming to a creature that loves you and looks forward to meeting you is the happiest thing. In fact, every child should have the opportunity to spend their childhood with a dog. A furry and fluffy animal, you can cuddle and love whenever needed. But what if the dog has certain behavioral issues? 

However hard it might be, the right thing to do this to put the dog down or send him away to a farm. 

What does putting down a dog mean? 

Now that you have decided that you might want to put your dog down for biting your child, you should know what exactly does it mean to put a dog down. 

Well in simple terms, putting down a dog means to put it down o sleep forever. A dog is injected with a dose of Euthanasia. Euthanasia is an overdose of barbiturates that stops a dog’s heart. Some dog parents use this to free their four-legged baby from suffering an incurable illness. 

The word euthanasia is derived from the Greek words “EU” which means good and “Thanatos” which means death. A “good death” that would occur without pain or distress. Usually vets. Give a sedative to the dogs before the procedure, because many get anxious. However, if your clinic does not do this you can ask for it. 

Most vets use a seizure medication called pentobarbital, which stops the heart and brain of the dog immediately. This barbiturate pushes down the central nervous system starting with the cerebral cortex, the part of the brain that decides mindfulness. The pet will slip by into unconsciousness, and afterward, progress to sedation where the pain will not be felt. With an overdose of pentobarbital, profound sedation is trailed by the halting of breathing and afterward via heart failure.

This is called Euthanising an animal. This is the act of giving the most humane death to your pet, who might be suffering from unbearable pain. 

The benefits of utilizing a barbiturate are the speed of activity and the negligible pain caused to the creature. 

To infuse the willful euthanasia solution, a vein is first set up by effortlessly cutting the fur. A needle might be embedded straightforwardly into the vein and the willful solution gradually infused, or a catheter (a little plastic cylinder) might be embedded in the vein and the infusion given through it.

Most creatures pass on rapidly, within ten seconds. Their eyes stay open and a few creatures empty their bowels following a passing. A few creatures pant after they have kicked the bucket and may even jerk. These ordinary, mechanical reactions may be distressful to the pet owners. 

Is it a shame to put your dog down? 

Usually, pet owners make the decision to put their dogs down if they are suffering from an incurable disease, or going through some unbearable pain. However, if your dog is having some behavioral problem too euthanasia can be considered. 

The world looks down on dog owners who put their pets down. But it is certainly not a bad decision, If you know that your dog has a behavioral problem, which cannot be solved, or if your dog is aggressive once, he will do that again. It is certainly better to save yourself and others from harm. However, if you think that the dog can be trained otherwise, please do consider that option. But most trainers agree that aggressive dogs with behavioral problems usually cannot be trained. They usually recommend euthanizing them, if they have gotten out of hand. 

People may look down on you for having to do such a cruel act, but you know what is the right thing. You know what it makes you feel to have lost the best companion of your life. Believe in the decision you have made and remember to forgive yourself. You might have to a bad deed to save your dog from the suffering ahead. A bad deed done with good intention is always forgiven. 

Factors that affect the euthanasia decision 

• The dog’s age:  If your dog is older enough and has been rehearsing the unwanted behavior for a longer period of time, it will be difficult to fix. In this scenario, the trainer may recommend euthanasia. 

• The dog’s breed:  While small breeds can do a ton of harm, a bitey Chihuahua can be eliminated from a perilous circumstance definitely more rapidly than a giant breed dog that needs to nibble. This means that if you have a giant dog, you may want to consider putting him down.

• The severity of the problem: it also depends on hard the dog bites, does he draw blood out. Or send people to the hospital? In addition to this, the number of times the same problem has occurred also matters. You can fix a behavior if it has happened once, but not after the 50th time. 

• The number of problems: It is easier to deal with a dog who has one behavioral issue. Rehabilitating a dog with separation anxiety is adequately hard. In any case, imagine a scenario where your dog additionally shows dog hostility, regional yelping, or animosity toward outsiders, your youngsters, or other family pets. Such a dog can be a test in any event, for the most committed and experienced of controllers. 

• Quality of life: A dog that spends each waking second pacing, whimpering, participating in self-damaging practices or fanatical enthusiastic practices, or isolated from the family in the storm cellar or yard is having a troubled existence. How well such dogs react to prescription and additionally conduct alteration unquestionably influences the visualization for change. In such a scenario, it is better to have your dog euthanized. 

What to do if your child was bitten by a dog? 

If your dog has bitten your child, you should first worry about your baby. Know this first aid for dog bites and help save further complications 

Control any bleeding. 

If your child is bleeding, the first thing you need to do is to stop the bleeding use a clean cloth and apply gentle pressure on the wound, until the bleeding stops. If the bleeding is excessive, elevate the injured area. 

Clean the site

It is very important that once the bleeding has stopped you clean the area of injury. Take any antiseptic or clean water and pat the area with it. This will avoid any infection to cause 

Cover the wound 

 An open wound is a house to various bacterias and fungi. Do not let a fresh wound be exposed to the environment. This may only add the infection and the wound may become nasty. Take a clean bandage and cover the wound, until you reach the doctor. 

Why would a dog bite your child? 

In spite of the fact that guardians might be slanted to rehome the dog, Dr. Elmaraghy,  Chief of the Department of Otolaryngology at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, proposes investigating what circumstance the puppy was in when the individual lashed out. “You need to choose whether the episode was incited or not incited,” he clarified. “Also, that is a pretty significant thing, since, in such a case that the dog was not provoked, the dog might be sick.” Furthermore, he clarified that dogs seldom chomp without reason, regardless of whether they’re sick or feeling compromised. “Dogs will, in general, be incited into a gnawing,” he said. “It is anything but a thing that they haphazardly do. On the off chance that your pet nibbles your kid, guardians should be concerned. It could be a genuine, critical issue and the dog may have to see the vet.”

Statistics of dog bites in children 

A study found out that around 37 percent of U.S. households have a dog. This means that there are about 70 million dogs across the country. Among these 5 million people in the U.S. are bitten by dogs each year, half of whom are children.

To understand what age range of people are most at risk researchers analyzed 7,900 cases of dog bites logged between 2007 and 2014 in the National Trauma Data Bank for patients 17 years old or younger. The results showed that 34 percent of the kids were 6 to 12 years old, and the other 30 percent were 2 years elder or younger. The majority of cases, nearly 84 percent, occurred at home. 

This shows that dog bites among children are quite a normal thing happening around the world. 

Conclusion 

In this article we have tried to answer the query ‘My dog bit my child should I put him down?’ In addition, we have also looked at what it means to put your dog down, is it a shame to put your dog down, first aid for dog bites, why would your dog bite your child, and finally the statistics of dod bites in children. 

FAQs: My dog bit my child should I put him down?

Refernces 

https://www.popsugar.com/family/Dogs-Who-Bite-Kids-Must-Put-Down-27330753

https://www.dogster.com/lifestyle/ask-a-trainer-when-is-it-time-to-put-a-problem-dog-down

Dog Euthanasia: What Is It? When Is It Used?