Please help, I am so upset, my dog supposedly bit a child :0(

Hi all,
My 6yr old rotti bitch is so dorcile, well behaved, she doesn't bark or growl at anyone, so many people have been back and forth this house over the years and not once has she taken a dislike.

My neighbours grandaughter popped round today as she has on many occasions, the dog was in the house and I had nipped to my neighbours to give them something they had asked for. My daughter answered the door and nipped back inside for something.

Next thing I know my neighbours grandaughter comes out crying saying my dog had bitten her, she had two circled marks just above her ankle in a horizontal line bout and inch wide and some bruising, nothing had punctured the skin or anything but she was adament that she had been bitten.

I phoned the vets and made an appointment for her to be put down tomorrow .

My partner came home and said no she wont be going to the appointment as he doesn't believe for a second that the girl was bitten, we went to her parents house and seen her leg after the hospital visit (they advised antiseptic cream) now this is where it is strange she now has four circle marks two horizontal on the side of her leg just above the knobly ankle bone bit and then two red circles towards the back of her leg in a straight line.

If my dog had double sets of teeth I could understand but she hasn't, her fang width is 3 inches apart the marks are an inch.

Can somebody help me with this I can't understand or see how my dog has bitten or what I should do but they are adament that she did bite her even though none of us were present, they are going on a 5yr olds account.

Thanks

Edit:
Forgot to add we measured the gap between her teeth and they are 3 inches apart, her paw however is exactly the same width apart as the marks and she has a nasty habit of giving her paw when nobody wants it, her nails have dug into me a few times as she is heavy but I still can't rule out the bite fully apart from the marks don't add up to her teeth, there is no way

the marks are sort of 0 0 0 0 but going around the leg in a straight line, I cant understand how that could be a bite

if no one witnessed it then i personally think the dog deserves benefit of the doubt so i wouldnt be going to the app either.

Well something obviously bit the child. I'd work on the premise that it was your dog and make 110% certain it can never happen again.

If she was only bruised she was lucky and the dog was restrained.

I'd have a vet check in case she has a pain somewhere as well.

rune

Every dog deserves a second chance in a case such as this, especially where there is no reliable witness to what happened. If your Rottie DID bite the child, then what did that child do to such a normally calm and good tempered dog to make it react?

I have heard of cases where vets have found pencils jammed deep into dog's ears, and other such atrocities. For the dog's sake, I would always advise to be sure never ever to leave it alone with a child.

I could kick myself for leaving them alone and I never ever usually do, it was just a little errand that I didn't even think about, I usually put the dogs out the back if I am nipping out and kids are coming round but completely forgot today. More fool me hey :0(

i dont understand the post.

did you mean your neighbour's young granddaughter came into your house and then you left her there whilst you went next door to your neighbour's house to meet your own daughter so you could collect something?

No, sorry my head is in the shed.

I went round to my neighbours to drop something off, as I was in there her grandaughter went round to mine and knocked the door, my daughter answered and then went back into the living room for her shoes but left the door open, whilst she was in the living room my dog suposedly bit my neighbours grandaughter. Hope this makes more sense

Pressuming this happened, are they asking for your dog to be PTS.
You say the child has been round many times before and nothing has ever happened like this before, could it be your dog was feeling under the weather
I think if this was me I would have a sit down with the neighbours have a frank but rational discussion about things, and try pointing out that no-one really saw what happened etc., and promise that in future maybe it be wise if in the future she didn't come in to yours unsupervised.
I think as they have willingly let her come round on other occassions they must know your dogs fairly well to allow her to do this.
I think to make a snap decision without proof might be a harsh one, without sitting a talking it over first.

Hope things work out xx

I personally wouldn't put the dog down. If nobody was there to see what happend, then I would give the dog the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps the child caught the dog unawares or unintentionally hurt it etc. You just never know. You must feel awful about the whole situation. Its a difficult situation to be in. I would keep a very close eye on your dog in the future when it is around children. Just in case.

I have just spoken to the mother, she is being great about the whole thing thankfully. She is still going on her daughters account mind which I think we all would but the child does lie alot which puts alot of doubt in my mind, obviously something happened I just don't know what and out of my own stupidity wasn't there to see it.

She is saying that its up to me with the dog, whatever I want to do which I think means there is no need to put the dog down.

She can't get round the issue herself as all my neighbours know the dog and love her, she is such a sweety. She is usually fine with the kids, they often take her out on the grass area and play football or fetch with her, she just isn't aggressive at all. She hasn't long had an all over check up and there was nothing wrong, so don't know whether to take her back now and have another.