Grr Off Leash Dogs!

[iheartmorrison]

I took Morrison for a walk, everything was going fine, until an off leash dog came up to us and attacked Morrison, I didn't know what to do. I wanted to grab Morrison but I was scared that the dog would attack me - and I was in shock. Thank god the dog wasnt interested in me.

Called my dad, who carried Morrison back to the house, I called the vet as soon as we got home.

Morrison was bitten near his groin area, and there was blood in his mouth. He was in so much shock, I didn't know whether he was alive or dead. The good thing was that he was alert, once we were on the way to the vet.

I was afraid of this happening, and I still can't believe it did. We were having such a nice time too. I was a wrek at the vet, dad wasn't helping, by telling to stop crying; I couldn't help it.

I know I need to call the council, I just need to calm down - I'm still so shocked that it happened.

Edited June 17, 2010 by iheartmorrison

[poodlefan]

I took Morrison for a walk, everything was going fine, until an off leash dog came up to us and attacked Morrison, I didn't know what to do. I wanted to grab Morrison but I was scared that the dog would attack me - and I was in shock. Thank god the dog wasnt interested in me.

Called my dad, who carried Morrison back to the house, I called the vet as soon as we got home.

Morrison was bitten near his groin area, and there was blood in his mouth. He was in so much shock, I didn't know whether he was alive or dead. The good thing was that he was alert, once we were on the way to the vet.

I was afraid of this happening, and I still can't believe it did. We were having such a nice time too. I was a wrek at the vet, dad wasn't helping, by telling to stop crying; I couldn't help it.

I know I need to call the council, I just need to calm down - I'm still so shocked that it happened.

Start thinking about what you might do if it happens again.. I'd be picking up my dog and taking my chances .. few dog aggressive dogs are human aggressive and a good boot to the ribs is a deterrant to many.

You need to get Morrison back with a few reliable dogs as soon as possible.

Did this happen in an offleash area?

[Scarlet]

As hard as it is you do need to calm down as your dog will pick up on your fear.

Take photos of the injuries and get your vet to give you a report too so you can give a copy to the council.

As soon as he is physically able to I would arrange play dates with others with very calm, friendly dogs so you pup gets over any anxieties. Maybe ask here on DOL for people to meet with your pup.

[merijigs]

You poor thing! Poor Morrison! We all know that a dog attack is horribly violent and literally shocking. I really, really hope that Morrison is OK and that you will be OK. If I could get my dog up off the ground without getting knocked over I think I would. The agressor dog would probably jump up so I would hold my dog up as high as I could all the time shouting NO! DOWN! NO! OFF! in the biggest oudest deepest voice I could whilst gradually backing away.

[mita]

Don't worry if you're still crying when you phone the council. They need to know the shock, distress & injury some off-leash dogs can cause.

I feel terribly for you & your pup. I hope you both will be fine.

I carry a largish umbrella when I take the dogs out on a leash. It can pop up fast to act as a shield....& it's strong enough to do a good thumping, if necessary.

If only the present laws about dogs needing to be on-leash in public places were policed strictly....& complaints acted on promptly. That would go a long way to dealing with dogs that are allowed by their owners to be dangerous to other animals & humans. So let the council know.

Edited June 16, 2010 by mita

[persephone]

Sorry about what happened- if you haven't experienced it before- yes, it is scary !

Hopefully Morrison recovers quickly :D

Try not to smother him now, out of guilt/sympathy...this may make him very anxious!!

You will be of most help to him if you are as normal as possible.... and get back to meeting nice dogs/walking asap.

:D

[W Sibs]

Oh no... poor Morrison!

:D to you.

Did this happen on the streets? Parks?

Like the other suggested.. once Morrison gets better, arrange doggie play dates for him with calm dogs.

[iheartmorrison]

No it was in a park, along the foot path. I should have done more and I feel so guilty, it might have minimised his injuires.

I was so scared, for his life. I need to calm down.

I saw him before I left the vet, he tried to get up when I said hi.

[Moselle]

Don't worry if you're still crying when you phone the council. They need to know the shock, distress & injury some off-leash dogs can cause.

I feel terribly for you & your pup. I hope you both will be fine.

I carry a largish umbrella when I take the dogs out on a leash. It can pop up fast to act as a shield....& it's strong enough to do a good thumping, if necessary.

If only the present laws about dogs needing to be on-leash in public places were policed strictly....& complaints acted on promptly. That would go a long way to dealing with dogs that are allowed by their owners to be dangerous to other animals & humans. So let the council know.

Good idea in carrying the large umbrella. I think it should become customary for people to carry something or other just in case. Seems that this is becoming more prevalent in which dogs are being baled or attacked in public parks. I would be paranoid in attending such places esp. with a smaller dog, that's not saying that larger dogs are in no danger but obviously the smaller the dog the less chance it has of defending itself if the aggressor is larger.

[Moselle]

No it was in a park, along the foot path. I should have done more and I feel so guilty, it might have minimised his injuires.

I was so scared, for his life. I need to calm down.

I saw him before I left the vet, he tried to get up when I said hi.

Make a point of reporting this attack to the council; you owe it to Morrison and to other dogs that might stand a chance of being attacked by this dog. You need not feel guilty, it can be daunting to find oneself in such circumstances; personally I would have aimed for the attacking dog's head or ribs with a swift hard kick. What breed is Morrison and what breed was the aggressor? So sorry this has happened to you and to poor Morrison. Hope he will be fine in no time.

[poodlefan]

No it was in a park, along the foot path. I should have done more and I feel so guilty, it might have minimised his injuires.

I was so scared, for his life. I need to calm down.

I saw him before I left the vet, he tried to get up when I said hi.

No one knows how they're going to react until something like this happens IHM.. don't beat yourself up. In my experience, most novice owners freeze. At our club you see instructors run a long way to pull dogs apart while the owners stand there stunned. As you unfortunately now know.. its terrifying to see your dog attacked. :D

He's at the vet. He's alive. It's a start.

Reporting it to council and coming up with a 'protection plan' for Morrison is about all you can do now. It's a horrible horrible thing to go through. Its happened to one of mine too. Educating yourself about the signals to watch for in other dogs and figuring out what you can do to protect him may help if you are unfortunate enough to experience another aggression incident.

[Bisart Dobes]

ARGHHHHH ! Such a bad age for him to have this happen - poor baby.

Just one question ??? Has he had anesthetic at the vet ??

[kinsella]

Good idea in carrying the large umbrella.

I used to carry a riding crop, lighter than a brolly and better reach. Worked wonders.

[mita]

Good idea in carrying the large umbrella.

I think it was an RSPCA Qld publication where I got the idea about carrying an umbrella....a long way back.

Important that it's one which will pop up quickly. Apparently, much of dog aggression depends first on eye-balling, so you can pop it up as a shield while an attack from another dog is brewing. When that dog can't see its target, the aggro sequence gets disrupted. Also the whoooosh of the umbrella going up can startle the attacking dog off.

It's also easy to move the open umbrella around if the dog should circle.

If worst comes to worst.....a strong umbrella can be used to thump a dog off.

I agree that the OP shouldn't beat herself up either.

I had a similar experience which frightened the heck out of me....& I don't frighten easily. In this case, a huge German Shepherd came roaring at speed across the park straight at me & my 2 gentle shelties. I had nothing to protect us with. All I could do was scream 'Stop!'. But I honestly thought the shelties & I were done for. I bent down & put my arms around them.

Fortunately, the GSD's owner... way.across the park (where dogs had to be on leads)....turned around from talking with other people.

He yelled for his dog to stop....& thank god, it did, only a few yards from us.

It was the terror from that event which sent me looking for something that would help if it happened again. Then I found the RSPCA tip about the 'brella.

Edited June 16, 2010 by mita

[Erny]

ARGHHHHH ! Such a bad age for him to have this happen - poor baby.

Just one question ??? Has he had anesthetic at the vet ??

Why do you ask, BD? Curious.

And I agree - bad age for pup to have this happen, if it had to happen at all. Once he's physically well enough, enrolment to a reputable dog school with instructors who have canine behaviour knowledge under their belt, would be what I'd recommend. And ASAP. It will be a case of easy does it, but as fast as possible.

[iheartmorrison]

They put him on an iv drip to get his heart rate going, and wait till he is stabalised to do x- rays and anything else.

[iheartmorrison]

They put him on an iv drip to get his heart rate going, and wait till he is stabalised to do x- rays and anything else.

[SE7EN]

I'm sorry to read this. I truly hope your dog makes a complete recovery.

Last week I took my dog to the local oval for a run. I have an Amstaff, he is big and strong. When we got to the park there was a woman with a dog (off lead) and it was running around enjoying itself. I bobbed down with my boy between my knee's, calmly talking to him, as we both watched her dog shoot around the oval.

Less than a minute past when she looked directly at me and my dog. I was then thinking it's only a matter of time now, she will call her dog, now that she is obviously not alone in the park, and put it on a leash.

How wrong I was. She not only didn't call it back, she turned her back on us completely to look the other way. A minute later her dog sees my dog and comes running over at speed.

My boy is fine with other dogs. He's never had a fight. He's been attacked, but he didn't fight back, and it was over before he could luckily. But this woman didn't know that ...

But it gets worse. Her dog runs straight at my boy and I'm doing my best to hold onto him tight. I don't know what to expect. The last thing I want is her dog attacking my dog, and my dog attacks back and seriously hurts her dog.

Her dog is female, at least that's good news. She isn't a fighter, even better. The woman notices her dog and starts screaming. She's running at us now screaming? I yell back its OK my dog won't attack. But she's going hysterical ...

Next thing my boy lunges I look down and he's trying to mount her dog. I put a quick stop to that as the woman approaches. "Shes on heat" she cries out.

Who in their right mind takes a dog ON HEAT to a public park and lets it off leash? No wait, who does that, and then SEES another person with a dog, and doesn't call their dog back? Unbelievable.

I'd like to say the story ends well, but the truth is, when I mentioned to her, its not the best idea to have a female on heat running loose in the park, I was met with a mouthful of abuse. And then told if my dog had of hurt hers, she would have had my dog put down.

/shakes head in disbelief ...

[Bisart Dobes]

ARGHHHHH ! Such a bad age for him to have this happen - poor baby.

Just one question ??? Has he had anesthetic at the vet ??

Why do you ask, BD? Curious.

And I agree - bad age for pup to have this happen, if it had to happen at all. Once he's physically well enough, enrolment to a reputable dog school with instructors who have canine behaviour knowledge under their belt, would be what I'd recommend. And ASAP. It will be a case of easy does it, but as fast as possible.

General anesthetic causes short term memory loss - a great thing if your dog has been attacked .

[Bisart Dobes]

They put him on an iv drip to get his heart rate going, and wait till he is stabalised to do x- rays and anything else.

See above why I asked re G/Anes.

I hope all is well with him - sounds like shock with his heart rate. Poor baby boy - my heart and thoughts are with you both.

In the future if you like I have a big sooky boy who adores puppies and can get the most timid one playing - happy to have a 'play date' if it suits.