Is it possible to humanely and painlessly de-fang my dog?
I've been traveling in Europe a while, and have come home to find that, though he's quite happy to see me (I know this because his defective tail is twitching mightily), in my absence, he's bitten a stranger.We tried a shock collar to no effect. Even at maximum setting, he was blissfully unaware of what was advertised to be a 'jolt of electric discipline.' This lack of response does not surprise me, as his tail is defective and he is rarely responsive to words like 'stay' or 'no.'
Still, I've grown fond of him, and though he is occasionally menacing and truly does resemble a character out of Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas - he has some redeemable qualities, including what appears to be unconditional love for me.
But then, who can really know the mind of a creature that very well may have been brought to life by a mad scientist somewhere in Ohio? Dr. Frankenstein's creation was a gentle creature, and tragically so - but then, Dr. Frankenstein's creature didn't bite people. And mine does. This is a philosophical quandry at best, and an ethical dilemma at worst.
This is why I think a de-fanging is possibly the answer. My husband, I'm sure, would be willing to pre-chew the dog's dinner (they're very close), and then, the dog could happily menace away... making that gutteral noise he makes that one generally only associates with demonic possession - and we and our guests could rest assured that the worst that could happen would be a resounding gumming; a possible staining of clothing by dog saliva - but that's what dry cleaners are for, right?
Earnestly awaiting your advice,
Biting Bowzer in the Backwoods
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I really, really don't think I would even consider something like a defanging. In the first place it's painful for the dog, in the second place it won't really prevent the dog from biting anyway. (Normally when they talk about defanging a dog it's the removal of just the four canine teeth. I don't think any vet will pull all of a dog's teeth.)Most dogs can be trained out of that behavior. the dog may act out when you're on the road because it feels abandoned. Does it stay with familiar people when you're gone?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comment, Anonymous - and no worries, I wasn't serious about pulling all my dog's teeth out. No one would do it, and even if they would, I'd never consider the infliction of that kind of pain on anything. The dog stays at home, with people he's familiar with. However, he bit Dave the first time Dave met him in Ohio, and for some reason, Dave thought it would be good to bring him home anyway. He is very sweet to us, and randomly un-sweet to others. Maybe training would change it, but many animal experts believe otherwise. Biting dogs tend to stay biting dogs. My only real option is to tether him a good distance from the house, away from any stranger flesh... So.. thanks for the thought, though!
ReplyDeleteI'm so sad to read this story...if only this Dog Whisperer type of love were as true as the love your puppy has for you...
ReplyDelete[link] channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/dog-whisperer
Maybe you can all sit around and watch the show and the dog will somehow magically "get it"...in a perfect world...