Dog Attacks - Page 1

Well this is a subject everyone  hopes never to have to talk about.  My husband and our male were walking; then stopped in front of our home; and woman walking a large black lab cross was out with her aggressive male which broke away from her and started attacking our male;  my husband put his body between the dogs and flashed an led light in the dogs eyes which he was carrying in his pocket.  Never thinking he would need it for this.  Got the dog away from our dog (whom was a very good boy and let his dad do the work of trying to stop the attack, did not go off on the dog as that is how he has been trained) and the dog kept coming back for more as soon as his eyes focused again.  This dog is a neighborhood problem and has been for some time.  He is usually locked up behind their fence but goes off every time someone walks by with dogs.  But our concern is that the dog was going for my husband AND our male;  not just our male.  Did not make contact with either but tried. 

How do you feel this should be handled, what is the proper way to handle these clueless people.  The stupid woman did come over and apologize afterwards;  said "he never acts like this at the dog park"  my husband replied, well lady this is not the dog park.  You have an aggressive dog.  Left it at that.  Should we make a report to animal control or what?

unless they (animal control)  sees the  dog loose they won't do anything..trust me....been there done that...buy a hornet/wasp spray..it sprays up to 25 feet...works like a charm....get that dog in the face and he will never come after you again...I had to use it once I still see that dog around so no permanent damage as far as I can tell....but he never comes closer that 50 feet...still barks and follows but at a distance.

 Even if they do nothing, make a report. At least if something happens again (God forbid) the dog now has a history. 

I agree with jenni. Make a report with either animal control or police. As she said, if it happens again, you have a greater chance of recourse if it's in writing.

Normally I'm one of those people who believe's neighbors should try to handle things neighborly without including the police and courts. But when it comes to animal cruelty and the safety of others all necessary action needs to be taken.  

That inccident could have easily involved someone walking a dog on leash with a lot less training. That could have been a young boy or girl walking his family pit-bull terrier (which might have made things a lot harder to break apart)

Was their any injury to your husband or dog? You say this dog is a neighborhood problem. What other inccidents have occured with this dog? Does this dog have a record of breaking out his yard? Do you have any type of communication with the neighbor

thanks to all,  James no one was hurt.  But yes, the incident could have been really bad.  My husband does have experience and thought fast;  but did not want to hurt THEIR dog either;  that is who he is.  But I also thought what if that would have been a kid; and we have several elderly and disabled people in the area that walk dogs and wheelchair dogs.  These people are OK neighbors, but totally clueless;  like HELLO;  take your dog to dog class or dog aggressive non response training or ??  We feel lucky no one was hurt.  But someone might not be so lucky if there is a next time and I hope it will not be me;  I would not be so kind to the dog or the owner.    Nan  Thanks for responses, really helps to clear my head as to what to do about it and I am going to make a police/sheriff report.  Nan

Documentation, and others also filing reports.  Take pictures of the dog acting agressive to show proof, and especially if it is ever loose or out of the owners control.

I had a owner that was out walking her 4 month old Labradoodle puppy.  Sweetest thing, got along great with other dogs and people, very social in class.  A neighborhood dog came charging, going over a 6 foot privacy fence, knocked it down enough to climb over.  The owner stepped between her puppy and the charging dog.  The dog bite her twice in the leg, then attacked the puppy right before her eyes.  The lady came out of her house, grabbed the dog by the collar, drug it back to their yard and into the house, never once asking if the puppies owner was ok.  The puppy was rushed to the vet for emergency care and died shortly after the attack at the vet's office.  A report was filed, the dog was confiscated by animal control, and finally the owners gave permission to euthanize the dog.  It turned out to be a Presa Canario.  Animal Control was not aware there was a dog of this breed in the area.  Horrific experience for the puppy owner.  She had just gotten her puppy and had attended 2 sessions of Puppy Kindergarten class. 

The thing that probably helped more than anything was that other neighbors were willing to file reports that they were afraid of the dog and that it had charged other people, dogs and kids.  Think it had even bitten someone else. 

Goodluck, and I hope that no one gets hurt by this dog before the situation can be resolved.

Marsha Seck

mnm:  thanks for the heads up.  I will ask around to see if anyone has seen any incidents prior to this.  So sorry about  your friends puppy what a sad, sad story.  That is my point for this post, to try to protect other animals in the area and figure out what to do myself.  Nan

First off, most dogs look ferocious behind a fence. Especially in their own yard. Secondly, since you have done such a good job of training your dog to not react even when threatened, why not offer your services to your neighbor and help them train the dog?