Traumatic dogwalking: All’s well that ends well?
December 10, 2006
BoyDucky and I were walking the [big one, not the little munchkin] dog today when a strange dog came bounding out of a sideyard, collar and leash-free, headed straight for us. Of course, I hauled my dog behind me to hide her from the other dog. Of course, she pulled so hard on her leash and collar that the collar snapped free and they clashed amid my shouts and those of the neighbors’ kids. And of course, I broke that cardinal rule of dog fights: NEVER jump in the middle, you will get bitten. It’ll be accidental because neither dog will realize that it’s YOU they’re biting and not the other dog, but the only foolheaded adult stood in the safety of his yard shouting at his dog and made NO attempt to help. But PLEASE, there was NO way that I was going to let my old arthritic dog get hurt. I don’t know if he just got tired or my fury scared him off, but the other dog finally stopped attacking long enough to be driven back to his home while BoyDucky kept her from charging after her attacker.
I was so angry I was shaking. That idiot dog owner never once bothered to come ask if she was alright, he just waited for his dog to come back and then hid in his house. If you’re dumb enough to let your dog run free and attack other dogs wearing NO collar so no one can get a hold of him, have the plain decency to check and see if your dog did any damage!!
What a jerk. His behavior only reinforces my belief that it’s not the dog you have to be worried about, most times it’s the people who own him.
My dog is mostly ok, no real harm from the biting that I could find, but I’m sure her hips and knees are hurting like the blazes. She’d yelped once during the fight, and it was the sort of yelp she can’t hold back when her joints hurt. She’s hanging out with ole geezer now, having had a liberal dose of joint meds, multivitamins and a coated aspirin. Geez. Kids are stressful.
Oh and by the way, if you ever come across a dogfight, don’t ever physically put yourself in the middle. If you can, grab a hose and turn it on both dogs full force, it’ll scare them and force them to break it off long enough for owners to pull them apart. This goes double, triple! if you don’t see any owners in the vicinity: strange dogs may not turn on you but they definitely have no reason to worry about whether that mouthful is you or their antagonist. If you don’t have a hose, REALLY loud noises will usually get their attention and break it off. It’s the best you can do. I remember having to clean up a little old lady who got into the middle of a dogfight trying to save the little dog being attacked and that’s really traumatic too.
I would report the owner to your local animal control. Generally they have laws about keeping a dog tied up or at least having a collar. And the dog is obviously a nuisance if it’s running free and attacking your dog. I agree it’s the owners fault, but reporting him could potentially avoid a worse outcome in the future.
I second what moneyfwd said. Definitely make a report. The dog owner is a real piece of work.
I’ll have to swing by and get his address, and then that report’s getting called in!