Help with my dog's selective aggresiveness

Another quick update: A neighbor across the street asked about where my dogs was and i told him what happened. he then proceeded to tel me about the same little kid hitting his daughter in the face with a bat and the surgery she had to have because of him. probably not my dog im thinking.

 

Haven't read most of the replies, so ignore if I'm repeating things that have been said:

1. Dogs don't magically start being aggressive towards people. Ruling out medical issues with the dog, I can just about guarantee you that little neighbour kid did something to the dog.
2. You absolutely MUST keep this kid away from the dog. At 11 years old, this is more of a management issue than training issue.
3. This will escalate. Any such aggression must be immediately, firmly, and physically corrected. Corrective collar, e-collar, reasonable kick or hit, whatever you have access to at that moment As quickly as possible after the aggressive act. Look up something called "threshold theory" and how it applies to dog training. If you don't correct this behaviour, you are telling the dog that this behaviour is acceptable, and it will continue and get more frequent.

Managing the interactions between this dog and any "problematic" children is critical, because even though the neighbours have been reasonable so far, the next time they may want to press charges, and as soon as the authorities find out that this is not the first time, your dog will get put down. Your dog's life is now literally tied to your ability to manage its behaviour/problems. Were it me and my dog, that problematic kid would never set foot on my property again.

 

thanks for all the help and advice. i called the rescue i got her from because my parents are to busy and travel to much to have two dogs so she is back home with me. I told the rescue what happened and they reassured me that we can train this out of her and that she showed bite inhibition with it only being a nip is the saving grace. i am doing a lot of homework from her and will be meeting with the trainer in person soon. With reading the training i definitely dropped the ball with this dog and if i was more aware i could have probably prevented this very easily because minus this kid issue she is acting like the perfect dog in every aspect of life now that she is home. My excuse is i have a 1 and 2 year old so when this behavior was happening/starting i was dealing with newborns and my wife and i work full time and not giving the dogs enough time and love. So i am now keeping my dog. going down the training route, praying this is the right decision and that this is just a memory. Overall like i have stated over and over again she is great with everyone except this kid or when she gets scared. i trust her 100% with my kids.

 

my dog also doesn't like kids....i think he gets nervous aggressive. he is the calmest dog around grown-ups, and for the most part he is good (or nervous but wont do anything) around very calm kids, but the second a kid makes a hasty move, even if its not towards him, he goes to after them. he acts this way around any dogs that are larger than him as well (and being that he is 30lbs, there are many dogs bigger than him). i deal with it by just warning people before hand to approach him very slowly, and if there is a new dog or any kid around, I watch him like a hawk, basically holding him down until i see how he will react. in all instances he will show his teeth for a good 2-5 seconds before making any move. I do socialize him all the time, and he is a rescue, so who knows what happened to him before I got him. some dogs just aren't good with kids. thats literally his only downfall, other than his whole allergy issues ($$$$$$). hes not even scared of fireworks, or rain. anywho, seems like you already have your answer. good luck!