Liam Perk, 2 dies after being attacked by his family's Weimaraner

**Pene784** · December 23rd, 2009, 10:50 AM

CAPE CORAL, Fla. — A 2-year-old southwest Florida boy has died after being bitten by the family dog.

Police and emergency responders were called to a Cape Coral home about 7:40 a.m. Tuesday

Authorities say Liam Perk was walking by the family's 8-year-old Weimaraner when, without any apparent provocation, he was bitten in the neck. His family called 911 and the boy was taken to Cape Coral Hospital.

The toddler was pronounced dead less than an hour later.

Lee County Animal Control officials have taken the dog from the home.

Weimaraners aren't considered a violent breed and are usually good around children.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,...:b29481642:z10

ANOTHER ONE!

**Dakota Valkyrie** · December 23rd, 2009, 11:07 AM

No criminal charges will be filed regarding the death of a Cape Coral boy who was bitten and killed by a family dog this morning, officials said.
[...]

Leath said it’s difficult to say what might have prompted the dog to attack the boy.

“Animals will react in a fight or flight response depending on the circumstances. It’s instinctive,” Leath said.

“Kids play with dogs and pull tails and ears and dogs don’t like that,” said Dr. Robert South, epidemiologist with the Lee County Department of Health.

“It really comes down to the ability of the owner to have a well-trained dog and to teach children to be appropriately cautious around animals,” he said.

http://www.news-press.com/article/20...es-to-be-filed

Whether the male dog would be euthanized was unclear this afternoon.

"We're really waiting for the outcome of the investigation with the Cape Coral Police Department," Leath said. "It really depends after speaking with the family.

"We're waiting to get in contact with the owners and get a final disposition from them," he added.

Officials also are waiting to talk to all the parties involved before deciding what to do with the female Weimaraner.

"We're trying to give the family time to deal with the situation," Leath said. "We're looking out for the best interests of everyone involved."

According to Leath, a Weimaraner is "a sporting breed of dog that works in agility." Employed with the county for more than three years, he said this is the first fatal dog attack that he is aware of.
[...]

"We encourage everyone to exercise due caution and make sure animals are well supervised," Leath said. "I'm not sure if this played into this event or not, but our recommendation is to make sure all animals are supervised."

http://www.cape-coral-daily-breeze.c...id/513660.html

Just restating the obvious.

**lundwall1** · December 23rd, 2009, 11:57 AM

Just sad sad sad all the way around. poor baby, only 2. And I can't help but feel bad for the dog too not knowing what his/her fate is. Wonder what made the dog bite the baby? In my experience with that breed they are nice and docile. Children should at all times be suervised around the pets, expecially such large pets. I feel incredibly sorry for the family.

**Pene784** · December 23rd, 2009, 12:02 PM

In my experience with that breed they are nice and docile.

In my experience they were high strung and nervous. Not my fav breed for sure. I wonder if this dog was spayed?

**lundwall1** · December 23rd, 2009, 01:34 PM

Originally Posted by Pene784

In my experience they were high strung and nervous. Not my fav breed for sure. I wonder if this dog was spayed?

Yeah I would agree w/ nervous in my experience, nice and docile when they know (figured this dog would've known the baby since he was 2 years old?) the peson, and nervous and shy when they don't, but just have never met a "nasty, mean" one

**Twisted** · December 23rd, 2009, 01:48 PM

Well, it is possible that, if the baby was a member of the family, the dog was acting on an aggression toward the child in a sort of jealousy. I've seen that sort of behavior with animals many times. Admittedly most of my experience is with cats, which often urinate on the belongings of the new child, but dogs could act more violently toward a child.

We are, after all, talking about a dog that had 6 years on the kid. The dog could have felt very threatened by the change in the household.

**Athena** · December 23rd, 2009, 03:13 PM

Originally Posted by Twisted

Well, it is possible that, if the baby was a member of the family, the dog was acting on an aggression toward the child in a sort of jealousy. I've seen that sort of behavior with animals many times. Admittedly most of my experience is with cats, which often urinate on the belongings of the new child, but dogs could act more violently toward a child.

We are, after all, talking about a dog that had 6 years on the kid. The dog could have felt very threatened by the change in the household.

Yep. I may have to give away my poor butt doggie depending on how she reacts when our baby is born. She's a 120lb Rott/G. Shepherd mix who just turned 6 years old, who is capable of killing the crap out of a toddler. She's never bitten anyone, but that doesn't necessarily matter.

**lundwall1** · December 23rd, 2009, 03:26 PM

Originally Posted by Athena

Yep. I may have to give away my poor butt doggie depending on how she reacts when our baby is born. She's a 120lb Rott/G. Shepherd mix who just turned 6 years old, who is capable of killing the crap out of a toddler. She's never bitten anyone, but that doesn't necessarily matter.

CONGRATULATIONS! And understand about your dog - Myne passed :( I too am pregnant - BUT I have 2 cats, one that I KNOW will be noooooo problem, he does not have a mean bone in his body, my other one, the young one -I HATE to do it but I think I will have to get him declawed. He is a jealous cat and territorial. I am worried about him, I can;t imagine a big dog who has been the baby the whole time! Hopefully your dog will be just fine with your new addition! Good luck!

**Athena** · December 23rd, 2009, 03:30 PM

Originally Posted by lundwall1

CONGRATULATIONS! And understand about your dog - Myne passed :( I too am pregnant - BUT I have 2 cats, one that I KNOW will be noooooo problem, he does not have a mean bone in his body, my other one, the young one -I HATE to do it but I think I will have to get him declawed. He is a jealous cat and territorial. I am worried about him, I can;t imagine a big dog who has been the baby the whole time! Hopefully your dog will be just fine with your new addition! Good luck!

Congrats and good luck to you, too! And, while it's not ideal, declawing is pretty easily balanced out by the nutritious, scheduled food, warm home and affection you provide. I think it's a pretty fair trade.

**Twisted** · December 23rd, 2009, 03:32 PM

Originally Posted by Athena

Yep. I may have to give away my poor butt doggie depending on how she reacts when our baby is born. She's a 120lb Rott/G. Shepherd mix who just turned 6 years old, who is capable of killing the crap out of a toddler. She's never bitten anyone, but that doesn't necessarily matter.

It, of course, depends greatly on your dog's temperament, but my experience with Rotts and G. Shepherds both says that they are strongly devoted to their family unit, and respect the chain of command well. If you and your significant other are on the top of the dominance tree, the dog likely will adjust well simply because you do.

We had a fiercely territorial Chinese Shar-Pei when I was growing up. However, she never showed aggression toward any member of the family, even the ones we had just brought home.

My guess is that this dog may have had a dysfunctional household as far as dominance is concerned, and that left it feeling very uncomfortable. When the pet dog is given a dominant role, it often demonstrates greater fear and aggression since it no longer takes its cues from the owner.

**Adorkable** · December 23rd, 2009, 05:10 PM

My son is 3 weeks old, and my terribly spoiled jack russel really doesn't seem to notice him at all. Occasionally she'll give him a little sniff, but doesn't really seem interested even when he's crying. I'm 99.9% positive sweet Sophie won't ever hurt the baby, but we still don't leave her alone in the same room with him.

You just have to be careful when animals are involved.

**Athena** · December 23rd, 2009, 05:25 PM

Yeah, I'm not so much concerned about Elke for when the baby's still not mobile - when my sister had my niece, they moved back from Idaho and in with me for a few months. Elke paid no mind to Marley then. Now that Marley's starting to get around, though, it clearly makes Elke nervous. Elke's always happy to see her, but if she's scootin' too close to Elke, she'll occasionally growl lightly. Which I think is generally a good thing in that she won't snap without ample warning, but makes it pretty clear that Elke's not toddler-friendly. And, while never leaving them unsupervised is helpful, it's by no means foolproof when you've got a dog my size. A since snap from Elke could cause serious damage.

Of course, maybe I'm just paranoid because I had a terrier almost rip my upper lip off in a room full of adults when I was 3.

Eh, I worry too much.

**Lizard** · December 23rd, 2009, 05:36 PM

Originally Posted by Athena

Eh, I worry too much.

**thebooblady** · December 23rd, 2009, 06:07 PM

My lab was never a problem with my kids. The only thing he would do if they were aggravating him in some way was growl. But a few times he nipped at them, but so lightly that all it did was leave a wet spot. He knew better than to hurt them. He was just warning them to get away and it worked.

**Siobhan** · December 24th, 2009, 07:37 AM

Originally Posted by Adorkable

My son is 3 weeks old, and my terribly spoiled jack russel really doesn't seem to notice him at all. Occasionally she'll give him a little sniff, but doesn't really seem interested even when he's crying. I'm 99.9% positive sweet Sophie won't ever hurt the baby, but we still don't leave her alone in the same room with him.

You just have to be careful when animals are involved.

Be very careful as your child becomes mobile, as JRT's are notorious for biting small children. In fact, the National JRT Association advises families with children ages 6 and younger not to select a JRT as a pet, and to choose a more child friendly breed instead.

My own JRT was very aggressive towards my nieces and nephews when they were small, and would have happily bitten them all, had he been allowed near them. His attitude changed completely as each of the children neared the age of 10 or so, since he realized that they would gladly throw a tennis ball
for as many times as he would run to retrieve it (which is basically until he's exhausted).
He's a neutered male, and has always been aggressive towards men, except for his Grandpas, since he hasn't been raised with a man around in his home.
He's starting to show some confusion towards my oldest nephew, who at age 15 stands at 6'3" and 220 lbs. The JRT recognizes that my nephew *smells* the same, but now *looks* very different.
Fortunately, #1 nephew knows to greet the dog by name in a happy voice, and to ask the dog for his ball as soon as he (nephew) arrives.

I adore this breed, for their loyalty, energy, intelligence, and overwhelming personalities, but I do exercise caution when small children or adult men are around my beloved hound.
I got my MIL two females from the same breeder parents (just a later litter than my own), and her girls are very good around everyone, small children included - so you may have no problems with your own JRT being that she's female, but please be careful until you know for certain how she'll react to the baby once he starts crawling and walking around.

**Pene784** · December 24th, 2009, 12:24 PM

Quote:
Originally Posted by lundwall1 View Post
CONGRATULATIONS! And understand about your dog - Myne passed :( I too am pregnant - BUT I have 2 cats, one that I KNOW will be noooooo problem, he does not have a mean bone in his body, my other one, the young one -I HATE to do it but I think I will have to get him declawed. He is a jealous cat and territorial. I am worried about him, I can;t imagine a big dog who has been the baby the whole time! Hopefully your dog will be just fine with your new addition! Good luck!
Congrats and good luck to you, too! And, while it's not ideal, declawing is pretty easily balanced out by the nutritious, scheduled food, warm home and affection you provide. I think it's a pretty fair trade.

Yeah I would most definitely say declawing is not ideal. They actually cut the cats toes off at the first knuckle. It is horribly painful and usually requires a fentanyl pain patch for several days. The larger and older the cat the longer and more painful the recovery. It will take that kitty months to recover. There is an alternative called "Soft Paws". These are little rubber caps that are glued on to the claws. Takes about 10 minutes to apply and have to be replaced every 6 months or so (depending on the cat). Check it out.