12/20/2023
This is an uncomfortable topic, but very important.
Behavior euthanasia. Let’s talk about it. And just for fair warning, if you get rude, judgemental, or unkind, you’ll be blocked. I’ve experienced enough of that. I have zero tolerance anymore. This topic is hard enough as it is. I’m all for discussions, but disrespect is not okay.
The questions people ask all the time are, HOW do you make a decision like that? How do you know what’s right or when it’s the right choice?
There is no easy answer, but I’ve decided to share with you some basic principles and factors that I focus on communicating to people when they are contemplating this awful decision. In this article I’m talking primarily about Behavior Euthanasia due to aggression such as biting, however some of this can absolutely apply to severe fear and anxiety cases too.
1. Predictability. If you have a dog with a tendency to aggress or bite - predictability is everything when it comes to safety. For instance, if I have a dog who gets aggressive when in possession of a toy or a bone, that’s predictable. However it can vary can’t it? If the dog is aggressive over toys or bones but ALSO over any s**ce or item, that’s less predictable. Maybe outside of the home he doesn’t display that behavior but inside he does? Again, different variables. But predictably is extremely important because it allows us to talk about management and future prognosis.
2. Proximity. Let’s go back to the dog who guards a bone again. Maybe he only gets aggressive or has bitten someone when they get REALLY too close to him or try to touch him. That proximity mixed with that predictably is important. If the dog has a low proximity threshold, that makes the dog easier to manage. BUT if he has a high proximity, as in when he’s got a bone you can’t walk in the same room with him, that is a much higher risk. Proximity makes a big difference in safety also.
3. Inhibition. Bite inhibition is critical. This is the force and violence inflicted by the dog when he does aggress and how many times he bites. Even if a dog has low predictability, high proximity (both problems) but has GOOD inhibition, that’s a much safer scenario. A dog who has poor inhibition even with low proximity and high predictability is a really bad one. Why? Because if management fails, the level of damage incurred can be catastrophic to the wrong person (child) or animal (small versus large etc) An inhibited bite may result in contact with something, but not break skin, leave a mark etc. A poorly inhibited bite can result in punctures, crushing, tearing and more. Bite inhibition can lessen over time depending on so many factors, but it can also be an individuals characteristic, result of the trigger involved and more. Even still; this is an imperative part of risk assessment in cases. If the dog DOES bite, how much are we risking? A mild scratch, or reconstructive surgery. Dr Ian Dunbar scale of bites is a great place to start reading about levels 1-6 of bite inhibition.
4. Environment. Is the environment set up in such a way that’s making predictability, proximity and inhibition difficult? If the dog that bites over resources is in a very small home with lots of people/children, is that increasing the risk or potential for more aggression to occur. A dog who doesn’t like strangers in an apartment complex close to them all the time, etc etc. Can that environment be changed successfully has to be considered.
5. Number of incidents. This matters and then it also doesn’t. If a dog has really predictable aggression, in low proximity and really good bite inhibition, but has 4 bites on record - even if they weren’t reported, this is important to consider for safety and liability. Something has to change - whether its environment or management (see below) to ensure this doesn’t continue. But if a dog has only one incident, that results in a severe injury or worse fatality of a person or animal, that is a very extreme risk, even if it was predictable or low proximity etc. But a low predictive high proximity poor bite inhibition dog is a very high risk even if there’s only one incident.
6. Public safety and wellbeing. Is this dog a risk to the general public? Are these incidents ONLY happening in one environment or are they also happening elsewhere. If management is involved and that fails at some point, what is the risk to the public? The general public are not all versed in body language, etiquette and understanding of dogs, and many do not always take necessary steps to avoid potentially hazardous scenarios (it’s okay! He’s friendly!) This must be considered as an element in decision making.
7. Relationship. The humans matter here too. If we look at a dog with a multi bite history (even if predictable, low prox, good bite inhibition) but the human is now totally traumatized and scared of her dog and the behaviors, that’s a consideration here also. If the dog has done serious damage to someone or another animal, and the handler witnessed this or worse yet had to break it up etc, that can shift the entire relationship that person has with that animal. And not just that person, the whole family.
8. Management. Let’s say we check all the boxes. We have an unpredictable but low proximity threshold but poor bite inhibition dog in a good environment with 2 prior bites with a handler extremely dedicated to management. That management would involve preventing a third occurrence through the use of tools like muzzles, gates, leashes, fences etc. BUT what we have to truly understand and encourage thoughts of is WHAT IF that management fails. If the dog is only 1 year old, but may live to be 15, is that management level sustainable over a long period of time without getting complacent and having another terrible incident that then brings us back to square one. And if the history of prior incidents are already severe, what amount of risk is the person willing to accept in that case?
9. Quality of life. Yes this matters for human and dog. Dogs living segregated, muzzled all the time, even in the house, or rotated etc can for many dogs affect their general happiness and life. Humans living with a dog they fear or have trauma from seeing things also deserve consideration too. Is that quality of life going to potentially lead to another incident?
All of this matters and none of it is concrete or black and white. Some people are willing to live certain ways and under certain parameters because they have the capability to do so, but others can’t or aren’t comfortable doing so. We have to remember that not EVERYONE wants to be a professional dog trainer. Not everyone has the capacity to do what’s needed in some cases to keep everyone safe. Their house is too small; they have young children, they have multiple small animals and pets, they live in an apartment, they don’t have a yard etc etc. Of course in these cases we are discussing ALL aspects of the dogs health, their life; their past and the humans too on top of just this stuff. No stone is left unturned. Judgement is not necessary if you aren’t living in the persons shoes and faced with this decision.
Can they just rehome the dog? In some cases, this can be a valid option. I have rehomed dogs too. Rescues and shelters are faced with this dilemma all the time. The majority of dogs now in rescues and shelters have SOME form of behavior concern - whether mild like housetraining a puppy or manners in a young dog, to separation problems etc etc. Dogs with histories of aggression or bites are much harder to rehome safely for liability reasons as well as ethical ones too. It’s so important to realize that if a person adopts a dog with severe aggression or a history of aggression and that aggression continues, or worsens, another incident occurs, even if everything is done the way it should be, the rescue is then liable and the reputation of ALL rescue dogs is in jeopardy. So many dogs who have no histories at all end up losing their lives in overcrowded shelters or rescues because people who have had a poor experience now won’t try again the next time. That’s a serious concern, and it’s happening everywhere.
What about training? Yes, some training can help and be extremely useful. But it also can’t undo prior incidents or histories. It can rebuild relationships, foster better coping skills, and teach good management, but it can’t undo genetics, it can’t always make unpredictable things predictable, it can’t change a bite from a crushing puncture to a small graze. Training can do a lot, but it also cannot do everything. It’s so easy to blame an incident or a situation on the person - even the handler will do it to themselves - because when we are dealing with this kind of painful decision if we can just find a way to make an excuse not to do it - “the person should’ve could’ve would’ve” but that’s not always the case. Truly, some dogs have traits that make them a liability to have in our society today safely. No matter how much a person does. Some are genetically predisposed, some are made that way through previous trauma, some are medical issues, some are a combination of all this and more, and some we will NEVER KNOW or understand. But placing blame is dangerous because it leads to false understanding even if its primary reason is to give us comfort and sense of security from the unknown.
There is no perfect, easy, feel good way to approach behavior euthanasia. No one I’ve ever met has WANTED to have these discussions or be faced with this. Ever. I’ve never met anyone, a client or rescue person or shelter person who has sat down and said “I’d really like to take in this dog only to have to be faced with saying goodbye to him after XYZ happens” So the only thing we can do is support them through this and talking them through this points above. I have had to do this myself. With my own dog. And it’s agony, but it’s also so so necessary now to have rational and non emotional considerations when discussing these cases. I myself was too emotional and so I NEEDED professionals around me to ask me these questions, guide my thought process. We have to also remember that dogs that are considered for BE are still good dogs. Most of the time they are wonderful loving companions, but when and if they do aggress, the risks outlined above are what have to be thought through. Thats what makes it so hard. Most BE cases are not these Cujo dogs that everyone has imagined is the scale we are looking at. On the contrary these dogs are often wonderful 99% of the time. BUT, in that 1% they aren’t, what is the risk - to the public, to the household, to other pets, to the handler? People can say anyone who makes a decision to BE just didn’t love their dog enough or didn’t try hard enough, and I will tell you in 23 years of doing this, the people who choose BE love their dogs more than anything. They love them more than their pride to “make it work”, or their own heart that is breaking, they love them enough to protect them from doing further damage or pain elsewhere. They love them enough to say goodbye to them peacefully and lovingly and by their side.
So those are my thoughts - briefly - for you to consider on this subject, and unless you’re the person faced with the decision - whether an individual, a family, a shelter/rescue or even a breeder, I’d gently suggest you hold off on passing judgement or blame. If you had a dog that you considered this with but ended up not needing to, that’s wonderful, but that doesn’t change the individual factors in every case. So, instead, listen, discuss, and be kind. You never know when you may need kindness back in return. Thanks for reading.
- Helen St. Pierre 12/16/23 - if you share give credit
