Behaviour
The wound gets 15 minutes under running water with soap, and the doctor decides the rest. Then you turn to the dog: why he bit and what changes at home.
Worth knowing. The person first: the wound washed for 15 minutes with soap and water, and a doctor the same day. Then the dog: if he has bitten for the first time he may be in pain (ears, teeth, joints), so a visit to your own vet comes before any plan.
Your five-year-old went to hug grandma's dog while he was eating, and the dog bit him on the cheek. Or you reached over the neighbour's fence and the dog in the garden caught your hand. Now there is a wound, a crying child and a long list of questions. Is it serious? Do we need A&E? What about rabies? What happens to the dog? We start with the person and the first few minutes, then move on to the dog: why he bit and how to stop a second bite. For a dog who growls and bites regularly, we have a separate guide on aggression.
They clean and assess the wound and decide whether to stitch it or leave it open. Many bites are left partly open so that infection is not sealed in. They also decide whether you need treatment against infection, and check your tetanus status, giving a booster if needed.
Rabies. The doctor decides whether you start rabies prophylaxis (a course of vaccines, sometimes with antibodies too). It depends on the country, the dog and the wound. Rabies is still found in wildlife in parts of Europe, including Romania, where foxes carry it, and it is common in dogs in many countries further afield. The UK is free of rabies in land animals, but a bite abroad, or from a recently imported dog, always needs the question asked. "It was a family dog" is not a reason to skip the appointment.
Reporting. In many countries the doctor or hospital notifies the animal health authorities. If a stray bit you, report it to the local authority or the police as well. In the UK, a dog that has bitten someone can be reported to the police or to the council's dog warden.
Observing the dog. If the owner is known, they take the dog to a vet, who keeps him under observation for a set number of days (usually 10 to 14, depending on local rules). A dog who stays healthy through that period did not have rabies virus in his saliva when he bit. That is why the dog is not put to sleep or rehomed during those days: while he is being observed, he is helping the person he bit.
Over the next few days, keep an eye on the wound. Redness that spreads, heat, swelling, pus, red streaks running up the arm or leg, a temperature: any one of these means back to the doctor that same day.
Most bites to children come from a dog the child knows: the family dog, the grandparents' dog, the dog next door. And almost never "out of nowhere".
A dog bites when nobody noticed his smaller warnings. Before a bite there are usually signals the adults miss: he licks his lips, yawns, turns his head away, looks sideways so the whites of his eyes show, goes still, pins his ears back, then growls or lifts a lip. A four-year-old cannot read any of that. Neither can an adult looking at a phone. The same situations turn up over and over:
Hitting the dog after the bite. The anger is understandable. The dog, though, does not link the smack to a bite ten minutes earlier. He links it to the child and to you, and ends up more tense whenever children are around.
Telling him off for growling. The growl is his last warning before teeth. A dog told off for growling learns not to growl, and next time he bites without warning.
"He's never done it before, it was an accident." Possibly. Something still got him to that point, and that something is still in the house. Change nothing and it happens again.
The "show him who's boss" lesson. The child told to take the food bowl away or pin the dog down "to assert themselves" is the child who gets bitten a second time. Behaviour specialists gave up the idea that dogs bite because they want to run the family many years ago.
Child and dog left alone "just for two minutes". Most bites to young children happen in precisely the minutes when the adult has left the room.
Putting the dog to sleep or rehoming him within hours, before the vet's observation period and before any assessment. That is a huge decision. Make it with a clear head, together with your vet and a behaviour specialist, not on the evening of the bite.
One with your vet, to look for pain: ears, teeth, joints, skin. With a dog in pain, any behaviour plan stalls. Then an assessment with a behaviour specialist, who sees both the dog and your home.
Young children cannot stick to rules by themselves. The rules are really for you: you are the one who makes sure they happen.
Lip licking, yawning, the whites of the eyes, the head turned away, going stiff. When you see them, scoop up the child and give the dog room. Ten days of watching for nothing but these signs will change you as a dog owner.
A bitten child may be frightened of every dog for a while. Do not push them to "make friends" with the dog again. Let them watch him from a distance and give them calm jobs: they put his food in the bowl, with you right there. Time does the rest. If the fear spreads to every dog in the street and does not fade within a few weeks, talk to your GP or paediatrician.
| Day | What you do |
|---|---|
| 1 | Doctor for the person. Check the dog's rabies vaccination. Fit the gates. |
| 2–3 | Vet check for the dog (pain) and start of observation, if required. |
| 3–7 | Every adult in the house keeps the rules. A diary: when the dog was tense and what the child was doing at the time. |
| 7 | Assessment with the specialist, diary in hand. |
For the dog: if he has bitten for the first time after years of putting up with children, assume pain until it is ruled out. Ear infections, broken teeth, arthritis, a wound hidden under the coat, thyroid problems or failing eyesight in older dogs all change how much handling a dog can take. Tell your vet exactly where he was being touched when he bit.
For the person: the wound stays a medical problem until it has healed. Go back to the doctor if the signs of infection above show up, if the hand swells or the fingers do not move properly, or if you have missed a dose of the rabies course.
After any bite to a child, we recommend an assessment with a behaviour specialist. All the more so if:
An assessment shows you what set off the bite and whether things can be sorted out in your home. Sometimes the answer is yes, with clear rules and work. Sometimes it is a new home for the dog, chosen carefully, with no children. Either is better than a second bite.
What dog owners search for most often on the internet about this problem, with the short answer.
Wash the wound under running tap water with soap for at least 15 minutes, press with a clean dressing if it bleeds and cover it loosely. Find out who owns the dog and whether he is vaccinated against rabies. See a doctor the same day, especially if the bite is on the face or hand, is deep, or you know nothing about the dog.
With a child, see a doctor the same day even if the wound looks small. Bites to the face, head or neck of a young child go straight to A&E. The doctor cleans the wound, decides whether to stitch it, checks tetanus and decides whether rabies protection is needed. Take the dog's and the owner's details with you.
The doctor decides, based on the country, the dog and the wound. If the dog is known, vaccinated and can be kept under veterinary observation, the course is sometimes put off or stopped. If it is a stray or an unknown dog abroad, it is usually started. The UK is free of rabies in land animals, but a bite abroad always needs the question asked.
Usually the owner takes him to a vet, who keeps him under observation for a number of days set by local rules. During that time the dog is not put to sleep or rehomed, because watching him helps the person he bit. After that, we recommend a pain check and an assessment with a behaviour specialist.
There is almost always a reason. Dogs give signals first: licking their lips, turning their head away, freezing, showing the whites of their eyes, growling. Children miss them. The usual situations are a hug, getting close to food or a bone, being touched while asleep, and pain. A dog told off for growling may go straight to biting.
A behaviour that appears suddenly or changes for no apparent reason can have a medical cause. For full details, consult your dog's own veterinarian.
They often come together: the same causes, plans that complement each other.
A growl by the bed, a hand grabbed "out of nowhere". The dog tells you something every time before he bites, and the cause can nearly always be found if you know where to look.
The child wants to hug him, the dog gets up and walks off. Dogs and children can grow up beautifully together, with a few clear rules and an adult keeping an eye.
A fox that will not run, a strange dog that bites you, a record with a lapsed vaccine. With rabies you never wait and see: prevent it, and after a bite act that same day.
He leans against you, you stroke him, and a few seconds later he nips. It is almost never "out of nowhere": he warned you, or something hurts.
An assessment session tells you where you stand and which plan makes sense for your dog. The behaviour programme then works step by step, reward-based only.