My dog was attacked yesterday

[Brovane]

Thank you, I will consider buying this.

Shit, now that I think about it, this old guy walks his Doberman around my block with out a leash at all. A few months back, said Doberman was in the yard, and came out to "greet" my dog, teeth showing and not looking pleased. Old man has 0% control over that dog. Sigh...

The spray should allow you to de-escalate the situation without creating the shit storm that firearm discharge would cause. You also will not have to kill a dog just because their owner is a A@#hat. It can also be owner eduction, because when their dog comes back home with pepper-spray on them and wimpering and crying that would get the person's attention real quick that maybe they should leash their F&%*ing dog.

 

[dustb0wlkid]

Respectfully, I believe it is both.

Respectfully, you are completely wrong.

 

[z1ggy]

^Agreed. Do they sell anything similar like this on Amazon? Jw because I walk my dog most days that it's nice out, and I'd want it ASAP. With Prime, I get most items in 1-2 days.

 

[Platypus]

scary.. glad your dog is ok. You might have her looked over by the vet just in case though? Not trying to worry you but its hard to see damage under fur, etc.

I'm somewhat fortunate that my dog is 100lbs and other dogs have never tried to mess with him because of his appearance, but he's a big teddy bear in reality. As much as I love dogs, if one was coming after mine intending to do harm I would probably kick it away from my dog at all costs.

Pics of dog?

 

[z1ggy]

scary.. glad your dog is ok. You might have her looked over by the vet just in case though? Not trying to worry you but its hard to see damage under fur, etc.

I'm somewhat fortunate that my dog is 100lbs and other dogs have never tried to mess with him because of his appearance, but he's a big teddy bear in reality. As much as I love dogs, if one was coming after mine intending to do harm I would probably kick it away from my dog at all costs.

Pics of dog?

I'll check her again, but she seemed fine. She looked scared for a little bit after, but the rest of our walk continued on as normal.

Okay I will post some when I get home tonight. I'll have to add them from my cell phone to my Imgur account.

 

[Brovane]

^Agreed. Do they sell anything similar like this on Amazon? Jw because I walk my dog most days that it's nice out, and I'd want it ASAP. With Prime, I get most items in 1-2 days.

Here you go. Even prime.

http://www.amazon.com/SABRE-RED-Pepper-Spray-Protection/dp/B002E6RERU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412870100&sr=8-1&keywords=dog+pepper+spray

 

[massmedia]

Since the physical attack was over by the time you got there id just pick up my dog and chew the asshole neighbor down. Your and your dog bear zero responsibility here for that incident.

if that big ass dog were still attacking my dog when i got there i would have ripped it apart with my bare hands, left its body in the road, chewed out the neighbor for being an irresponsible asshole with a breed that is capable of killing others animals and likely small children. Then i'd file a police report and sue for any medical bills to repair my ravaged hands in the defense of my dear friend.

zero sympathy

 

[inachu]

That's easier said than done. It's very difficult to grab a dog and show dominance.

Check out The Dog Whisper. I think Cesar offers some pretty good tips on dealing with dogs.

I kinda did the above what I mentioned.

My little yorkie back in the 1980's was attached by the larger chow family type dog and he had a death grip on his butt and refused to let go and when I ran after him in anger he squeezed my puppy even harder with his jaws.

I was so instantly in anger and tears and I think I stood there for 10-20 seconds on what to do and did not care if I got hurt just as long as my puppy survived as he was only 1 year old at the time. The large chow then took him to a shady spot and sat him down as if to make a meal of him and it was there fear left me and I knew what just to do.

My plan which did work like a charm went down like this...
As the chows attention was fully on my puppy snuck up behind him and yes! it was a male dog and my plan was to grip as hard as I could like a death grip on his nuts. Then just as fast as I grasp and squeeze with the death grip I also let go equally as fast as I backed away.

I always already 5 feet away when the chow let out a death howl of pain.

He went to lick himself as I went around to grab my puppy and it worked!

The chow looked at me one last time and I showed him my pumping hand which made him yelp one last time then preferred to forget about the puppy and me and I went inside to put neosporin on his bite wounds.

So yeah use my method if you think your dog is going to die.
Of course it will only work if the attacking dog is male.

If it would be female then I would have no issue getting a broom handle and putting it where the moon does not shine.

 

[Remobz]

Well, I'll start off by saying she's fine. It wasn't even really an attack, but I thought it was going to turn out to be bad. She was chased by a large dog and bitten, but is ok. I'm really reflecting on what happened and the course(s) of action I could/should have taken if it got bad.

I was walking my dog down the street yesterday. We were in the middle of the road on my street, which isn't busy at all. We are walking by one of the houses on my street when I see a large dog in the yard...Looked like maybe a mix of St. Bernard and something else big. Dog was easily 100+lbs. As we cross by the house, again, in the middle of the street, the dog starts growling and actually leaves his property and chases my dog down, who began to run. This drew ANOTHER dog from another property who was not on a leash, after my dog as well.

So freeze frame: I have my 40lb dog being chased down by two large dogs, one of which is huge. What should I have done in that instant? Ran with my dog? I think not. Prey mode kicks in and they will chase even harder. So I got between the dogs chasing and my dog. I have a better chance against them than my 40lb dog does.

So the first dog I talked about reaches her before I can get in it's way. It bites her on the butt, but my dog does not yelp in pain. Her ears are back and her tail is between her legs. She does not view this dog as playful or friendly. Freeze frame again: I just saw a large dog bite my dog, granted on the rear section. What should I do? Go after large dog? Possibly punch/kick it? In the second I had to react, I yanked my dog toward me and yelled loudly at the dog to distract it. I chose to not do anything physical.

Now the other dog has joined in, but does not bite. It runs up to my dog but sees nothing more is happening and holds up. The first dog doesn't bite again, but continues to growl and bark. At this point, the owners of the first dog are now aware their dog has ran off their property and has gone after mine. All they do is yell and the dog goes back to them. Not even a sorry from them, not even a word recognizing that their dog was in the bad.

So luckily, my dog got away with just some slobber on her rear, and maybe a strong dislike for St. Bernard dogs. But it left me wondering, what should I have done if things did get out of hand? What if this dog and potentially the other dog actually attacked and mauled my dog? Am I in the right to defend my property (my dog) and myself if I feel in danger, potentially ending the life of the other dogs in the process? I am a gun owner, and I regularly carry on me when I am out in public. I do not want to turn this into a gun debate, but what if this exact situation took place when I had my fire arm on me and both dogs were attacking my dog and I viewed it to be a life or death situation for my dog or myself? I honestly do not think I would ever even reach for it, but if I did and hurt or killed the attacking dogs, would I be in the wrong? This was on state property (middle of street) so it get's kind of confusing for me. To a lesser degree, forget the gun and pretend I just beat one of the dogs and it needed surgery or at least a vet visit. Would I be responsible??

Sorry for the long read, but I got really concerned because this could have potentially become a very bad situation for me.

TLDR;
Dog was chased down by another large dog in the middle of street
Another dog sees and chases as well
First large dog bites my dog, no injury occurs
What should I have done? What if my dog was hurt, what if her life was in danger?

My dog is a mixed mutt with 35 pounds but he would of fought to the death. His nick name is "lion heart" but he cannot be around other dogs or he will fight and quite possibly die from bigger and more aggressive dogs.

 

[Gooberlx2]

OP's exact scenario, minus the second dog, happened recently a few miles down the road from my house. The guy walking his dog was carrying and did shoot and kill the aggressive dog. He took a lot of flak on facebook and whatnot after the news story broke, but the DA did not press charges.

http://www.denverpost.com/News/ci_26596989/No-charges-coming-in-shooting-death-of-Commerce-City-dog

Personally, I think perhaps shooting the dog wasn't entirely necessary, but I don't fault the guy for doing it either. The onus is on a dog's owner to be sure their dog is properly socialized, and properly contained.

My GSD is never let out front without a leash, and our backyard is fenced. I also worked very hard to socialize my GSD from early on. She was a little skittish as a puppy, but is now a hit with the neighborhood kids and good friends with some of the other (well mannered) neighborhood dogs. These things are important not only for everyone's mental well being (an out of control dog is nothing but a stressful PITA), but also for her own safety.

 

[Gooberlx2]

but I've let the homeowner know that if one of them gets a bite in then the leash is coming off the lab, and he will fuck them both up.

I wouldn't recommend it. If the incident did get reported, people bias against the larger dog quite often. You don't want to open up your own dogs to scrutiny.

 

[alkemyst]

My dog is a mixed mutt with 35 pounds but he would of fought to the death. His nick name is "lion heart" but he cannot be around other dogs or he will fight and quite possibly die from bigger and more aggressive dogs.

Needs to be trained.

 

[Sherclacki]

It's true that dogs should be socialized and trained, especially those breads that have a history of aggression. But, in the end it's up to the owner to be prepared. Even if you dog is socialized, their is no guarantee that another dog won't be aggressive or make your dog feel threatened. I read this great tutorial on how to stop a dog fight, I had recently witnessed a dog fight where the owner got a really bad bite and I wanted to know what to do if I'm ever in that situation.

http://www.shepardhavenlaw.com/stop-a-dog-fight/

Seriously good for everyone, especially dog owners, to know.

 

[z1ggy]

OP's exact scenario, minus the second dog, happened recently a few miles down the road from my house. The guy walking his dog was carrying and did shoot and kill the aggressive dog. He took a lot of flak on facebook and whatnot after the news story broke, but the DA did not press charges.

http://www.denverpost.com/News/ci_26596989/No-charges-coming-in-shooting-death-of-Commerce-City-dog

Personally, I think perhaps shooting the dog wasn't entirely necessary, but I don't fault the guy for doing it either. The onus is on a dog's owner to be sure their dog is properly socialized, and properly contained.

My GSD is never let out front without a leash, and our backyard is fenced. I also worked very hard to socialize my GSD from early on. She was a little skittish as a puppy, but is now a hit with the neighborhood kids and good friends with some of the other (well mannered) neighborhood dogs. These things are important not only for everyone's mental well being (an out of control dog is nothing but a stressful PITA), but also for her own safety.

I'd honestly worry about shooting my dog by mistake more than anything. In the heat of the moment, one is not as good of a shot as they might normally be, and if there was a scuff and both dogs moving around wildly.. I'd be pretty hesitant. If anything I'd try to hit in the leg or some place non lethal first to see if that would stop it. It's so tough in that split moment to determine if your dog's life is truly in danger, or if the animal is just being a bit territorial. I'd like to think, as a 185lb guy, that I could take on any 100lb dog with my adrenaline going. I love dogs and I'm not sure how I'd handle shooting one like that.

Read the article though, pretty bad on both sides of things. Glad the guy didn't face jail time though as the offending dog actually jumped a fence to attack. I feel bad for the offending dog's family, too. I love my dog like a kid and to see that happen, even if your dog is at fault must be terrible.

Hopefully I don't need to deal with this situation again. But I'll be buying that pepper spray anyway just in case. I'd like to think that could deal with 99% of the dogs I'd deal with on my walks.

Pics of my pup coming soon!

 

[tHa ShIzNiT]

I'd kick the shit out of the dogs coming up to me and my dog. Why has noone else really said that? Is that not a valid way out of this situation? And I mean literally kick, not like "kick its ass".

Also, my dog is a <10lb shih tzu named Keith, who I am irrationally in love with. I would die trying to save him.

Another edit: I'd probably try yelling at the dogs first, too.

 

[Gooberlx2]

I'd kick the shit out of the dogs coming up to me and my dog. Why has noone else really said that? Is that not a valid way out of this situation? And I mean literally kick, not like "kick its ass".

A few people have said that, and yes, kicking the other dog is perfectly valid....if it works. Some dogs will just turn on you instead.

 

[alkemyst]

I'd honestly worry about shooting my dog by mistake more than anything. In the heat of the moment, one is not as good of a shot as they might normally be, and if there was a scuff and both dogs moving around wildly.. I'd be pretty hesitant. If anything I'd try to hit in the leg or some place non lethal first to see if that would stop it. It's so tough in that split moment to determine if your dog's life is truly in danger, or if the animal is just being a bit territorial. I'd like to think, as a 185lb guy, that I could take on any 100lb dog with my adrenaline going. I love dogs and I'm not sure how I'd handle shooting one like that.

Read the article though, pretty bad on both sides of things. Glad the guy didn't face jail time though as the offending dog actually jumped a fence to attack. I feel bad for the offending dog's family, too. I love my dog like a kid and to see that happen, even if your dog is at fault must be terrible.

Hopefully I don't need to deal with this situation again. But I'll be buying that pepper spray anyway just in case. I'd like to think that could deal with 99% of the dogs I'd deal with on my walks.

Pics of my pup coming soon!

Unless you have had special training it's highly unlikely you could take on a 100lb dog that was intent on killing you.

 

[Brovane]

Read the article though, pretty bad on both sides of things. Glad the guy didn't face jail time though as the offending dog actually jumped a fence to attack. I feel bad for the offending dog's family, too. I love my dog like a kid and to see that happen, even if your dog is at fault must be terrible.
That was my thought. I wouldn't want to

Hopefully I don't need to deal with this situation again. But I'll be buying that pepper spray anyway just in case. I'd like to think that could deal with 99% of the dogs I'd deal with on my walks.

That was my thought about the Pepper Spray. I wouldn't want to be put in that situation and have my only option lethal force. That and as the article talked about you have a leash in one hand and a gun in the other. That isn't a good way to have high accuracy. You also get a all the negative publicity, but if you just pepper-sprayed the dog, everyone comes out alive and you don't have to worry about the DA pressing charges. The guy was luckly that a 3rd party did see the incident and basically backed up the gun owners account of what happened. Without that it could have been she said versus he said and the DA might have pressed charges.

 

[z1ggy]

Unless you have had special training it's highly unlikely you could take on a 100lb dog that was intent on killing you.

Define special training? Not sure they had dog v human classes, other than just reading about something online.

 

[Markbnj]

I'd kick the shit out of the dogs coming up to me and my dog. Why has noone else really said that? Is that not a valid way out of this situation? And I mean literally kick, not like "kick its ass".

To move toward the other dog to kick it, you have to relax the tension on the leash holding your dog. I don't know if you've been in this situation, but they can injure each other significantly before you can do a damn thing about. I would certainly kick the other dog if it came to it. But the first thing I try to do is simultaneously restrain my own and frighten off the other.

 

[SlitheryDee]

What you do is take your dog to the vet and the owner of the large dog gets to pay the bill for that and all future vet visits related to that injury.

People who don't pen up their dogs really piss me off.

 

[Puppies04]

Go and ask the owner what he plans to do when his dog that is left to run loose attacks a child.

 

[Wuzup101]

Personally, I would have shot it if I thought it was likely that it would bite me and I had no other method of deterrent to try first (i.e. pepper spray - which I don't typically have available). I wouldn't have allowed my leashed dog to run and create a chase. Granted, I'd have to REALLY believe that I was going to get attacked/bit. That being said, it's not the ideal solution. I like dogs a lot, but I don't like other people's dogs enough to let them bite me instead of shooting them (perhaps I'm just a bad person).

Now that you know there may be a potential threat, I certainly agree with the pepper spray (that's a much better solution than having to use a firearm on a dog). I wouldn't want to be in the situation where I only had spray though.

Also note, dogs are not humans. You don't have to believe that there was a risk of death to shoot a dog that chases or harasses you (you - not your dog... the other dog confronted YOU). No DA is going to press charges against you for shooting a dog unless there is strong evidence that you did it unprovoked (i.e. shot it in your neighbors front yard while it was sleeping and it was caught on film).

Note: I don't condone harming animals if it can be avoided. However, in the case of pets, it's the owners responsibility to control their animal.

 

[Puppies04]

Unless you have had special training it's highly unlikely you could take on a 100lb dog that was intent on killing you.

You get a 100lb dog in a headlock and it is basically screwed. If you are some sort of manlet or child you might have a problem though.

Doesn't work? poke its eyes out or grab a leg and yank it as hard as possible, you will most likely break it.

Want another option? Wait until it opens its mouth to bite you and shove your arm as far down it's throat as possible (your choice if you rip out its still beating heart but kudos if you do).

BTW I love dogs and would not consider any of these unless I actually thought it was going to kill me

 

[z1ggy]

You get a 100lb dog in a headlock and it is basically screwed. If you are some sort of manlet or child you might have a problem though.

Doesn't work? poke its eyes out or grab a leg and yank it as hard as possible, you will most likely break it.

Want another option? Wait until it opens its mouth to bite you and shove your arm as far down it's throat as possible (your choice if you rip out its still beating heart but kudos if you do).

BTW I love dogs and would not consider any of these unless I actually thought it was going to kill me

Meh, I can't tell if you're actually serious here or what. My dog is just 45lb and frisky as shit. When we wrestle and she's going total ape shit, she can be a lot to handle. She also has a pretty strong bite and it would be incredibly hard to get a dog twice as big as her off your arm or leg if it bit.

And I certainly hope you're not serious about ripping a dog's heart out by reaching down it's throat.