For those of you who haven't read the background to Charlie:
He's a 2½ year old working cocker. We got him from a friend, who bought he out of a paper for her father, but her father couldn't cope with his boisterousness and gave him back after just two days. My friend was going to put him in the Trade-It, so we said we'd have him, as we'd talked about getting a dog, and he seemed just perfect.
The reason given by his previous owner for getting rid of him was that she'd become a childminder, and that as she had small children, he'd been shut outside all day. She felt it wasn't fair on him.
Everything was hunky dory, and we took him to the vets for a check-up. They scanned his chip and told us that he'd actually had two previous owners, and that the childminder had got him from a dog's home.
Two weeks after we got him, I gave him one of those bones made of hide (I think - they're solid anyway, and go a bit gooey when chewed and last for aaages) - and that was when he first showed signs of possible aggression. He growled if anyone went so much as in the same room as him, and wouldn't let me take it from him. In the end, we got his lead and he dropped it, and when he was out, I put it in the bin.
Soon after, I gave him a Kong for the first time, and again, he got really possessive of it and growled if we went near him. We thought that once he'd been here a while, he'd realise that we weren't going to steal it from him, and he would settle down.
Today, however, he took some chocolate from our daughter. My husband was in the garden with them at the time, and tried to take it from Charlie - and Charlie snapped at him, and bit him on the wrist, enough to draw blood.
Now, I'm really scared that he'll do it again, or worse, that he'll do it to one of our children, or one of their friends. In the summer, our garden is literally full of the neighbourhood kids!
I 'phoned our vets for advice, and they suggested that "if you can't cope, why not advertise him as 'free to a good home - suffers from food aggression' and let someone else train him". I felt awful, as I think three homes in 2½ years is enough for any dog to cope with. When I said this, the woman said it sounded like I'd already made up my mind.
We made Charlie stay out in the garden after the incident, and when he came in, he was his usual, lovely self.
It's breaking my heart, because I keep asking what would have happened had my husband not been there, and one of the children had been bitten. I don't feel I can trust him again.
I really don't know what to do. In most respects, he's such a sweetie, but as a first-time owner, this has really knocked me for six, and I don't know what we should do. My gut instinct is that we can't keep him, as I'd never forgive myself if something happened to one of the children, but I can't bear the thought of him being PTS.
Forgive the length of this post, but I really need some opinions