2 year old pittie mix needs new home

Barleby (Bart) is a pittie mix, neutered, approx 2 years and big (about 70 pounds and very strong). Vaccines are up to date. We adopted Bart from Bright Eyes Dog Rescue last September (2023). They told us he was good with kids, but he will growl at my kids (who are 12 and 9) every now and then and has bitten the 9-year old. Given his behaviour with my kids, he NEEDS to be in a home with no kids. He'd be great with another dog sibling (but will be food aggressive, so FEED SEPARATELY!!) OK with cats -- sometimes he will chase our cat though (I think to play) and other times he walks right past the cat and doesn't care that he's there. He did chase the cat, growling once, so it might be best to have no cats in the home too. Here's a bit more about his personality: - Other than (sometimes) food aggression, he's great with other dogs - he's a regular at doggy daycare and the girls love him and call him a "lover." - Kennel training - he hates being left in the kennel when we are not home. Gets very stressed, drools quite a bit, barks very loudly. So, we have never left him more than a few hours. But, when we are home, I leave the kennel door open and he will wander in there on his own during the day to take naps and just relax. I will also close the door when he is in there when we are eating supper or if we have company and he is fine with that. It just seems to be when we leave him in there home alone that he gets upset. - He can be leash reactive. Sometimes he flips out when he sees another dog on a walk, other times, he walks right on past. Off leash, he's the friendliest boy - the Walmart greeter of the dog park. - Energy: I do not find he has too much energy around the house - he is pretty chill and will lay down and sleep while I'm working. I don't find him needy at all until evening time when he knows it's time for a walk. -Walks - we do a 40 minute to 1 hour walk a day, or a 30 minute to 1 hour trip to the dog park and that does him just fine. (Even when it was minus 50 and we were unable to do that though I didn't find he had too much energy in the house.) - He's quite smart and is continuing to learn his commands. Currently, he knows sit, lay down, shake a paw, speak and stay. (He'll only stay for a short time, though, and will often cheat before I release him.) His commands really go to heck when we're outside (and among other distractions though!). So, while he knows these commands, they need work to really get him to be obedient, especially when you're out of the house. - We have been working on impulse control. He won't eat his food at breakfast or supper until I give him the okay. And he does that very well. - Great sleeper - sleeps in a dog bed in our room and sleeps thorough the night just fine (lets me sleep in!) - SO FRIENDLY with other adults and dogs, but barks like a killer dog if someone comes to the door or a dog walks past the house -Not a chewer 😊 - He’s a hole digger! I suspect, though, if he had a friend to play with in the backyard and wasn't left out there for very long he wouldn't do this. I think he does this with us if we leave him outside and he gets bored and mad lol (note that we don't ever leave him out for more than 15 minutes!) Note: I wouldn't be rehoming him if it weren't for the negative interactions with my kids (he's also growled at their friends when they come over -- and the kids were simply walking by -- not engaging with the dog, not near his food, etc.). The reality is that I don't trust that there won't be another, worse bite. I don't want kids that are afraid of their dog; I want a dog who loves the kids as much as they love him. And that's just not Bart. :( And yes, we've talked to a trainer. After his first bite with my son, we hired a trainer for an assessment and she recommended that we rehome. She thought maybe we just weren't the right fit for him and he isn't the right fit for us. (He's our first dog, so we're "green" dog parents and he's an adolescent dog with some anxiety and discomfort with kids. She said, " he's lovely boy but I don't think you're the right fit for each other." And yes, I did try to surrender him to Bright Eyes (even offered to foster him to get him back on their website) and they denied us. All 3 times that I asked. I'm so heartbroken to make this post and desperately want him to go to a wonderful, loving home.