A Dog Bit Me Today

Given all the years I’d trained aggressive dogs, you’d think that if a bite was going to happen, it would have been then. But surprise! It happened this morning at my local park. A man walking ahead of me on the path had three tank-like French bulldogs on leash. As I passed, the white one ran up to me. It behaved like any other social dog.

I normally ask permission before petting a dog, but since this one was already at my feet and appeared friendly, my knee-jerk reaction was to bend down and offer my hand to sniff. Guess what? He bit me. Hard. It didn’t draw blood, but the bite was right between my index and middle finger and it hurt like hell.

Here’s a fun fact: French bulldogs have a bite pressure of roughly 180-239 pounds per square inch. For comparison, the average non-working German Shepherd’s is 238. And I quote from the oracle that is Google: “Frenchies have surprisingly strong jaw muscles and leverage relative to their body weight.” Yep. I could have told you that.

I said to the man, “Your dog just bit me!”

He replied casually, “Oh yeah, he likes to nip people.” Seriously?

I said, “That’s not a nip. That was a bite, and it was actually a hard bite. Luckily it didn’t break skin.”

He apologized.

I said, “If you know your dog nips people, you need to stop letting him go up to strangers!”

I also mentioned that his dog gives no warning signs before biting, which makes things even more dangerous. Can you imagine if that dog had run up and bitten a child, or an older person with thin skin? The man apologized again and I went on my way.

I don’t know what’s been in the air lately. Perhaps the heat is frying brain cells. Recently, I was at the park chatting with friends. A Chihuahua belonging to one of them was sitting calmly on the bench next to her. A man walking a Great Dane approached. The Chihuahua instantly exploded in a volley of ferocious growls and barks. It was clear that the little dog did not want the Dane’s attentions. And yet, the owner let the Dane walk right up to him, not once but twice, despite me warning, “I wouldn’t do that!” Luckily, neither dog was hurt—the poor Dane was actually frightened—but it could have gone seriously wrong, especially given the size differential. And you know, I have a hard time imagining someone walking a Chihuahua up to a Dane who was lunging and snarling. I guess when it’s not your dog who might get hurt, it changes things.

The same day, I was standing on the sidewalk chatting with an acquaintance whose goldendoodle and I have a mutual fan club. A man with a mixed breed dog walked by. His dog wasn’t interested, but the man reached out to pet the labradoodle, who instantly lunged at him, barking furiously. You might think the man then took a step back, but you’d be wrong. Instead, he reached out again. Once again, my “I wouldn’t do that!” went unheeded. I told him twice that it wasn’t a good idea to pet this particular dog, and twice he somehow ignored not only my warning, but the dog’s lunging and barking. Read the room! Fortunately, he wasn’t bitten, and the woman thanked me afterwards for saying something.

I don’t expect the average person to be an expert on subtle canine behavioral signals, but I’m honestly baffled by how many people ignore the blatantly obvious body language of dogs who do not want to be approached. Or how owners of dogs who are potentially dangerous play it down and let them interact with strangers or other dogs. Those owners have been lucky nothing serious has happened…yet. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I wish kids were taught in school about canine body language and how to approach (or not) unfamiliar dogs. Assuming the lessons stick, it sure would save a lot of grief. ____________________________________________________ My new book The Afterlife of Buddy Gooddog: A Short Novel About a Forever Love is now available on amazon! You can also find my books and streaming seminars at www.nicolewilde.com and follow me on Facebook @NicoleWildeauthor. My mentoring service can be found at Dog Trainer's Friend. And if wildlife photos are your thing, check out my Instagram at nicolewildeart.