Our dog was attacked - advice?
Discussion
Unfortunately my wife kids and our 4 month old cavapoo puppy had a horrendous experience earlier.
They were walking our dog through nearby fields and noticed a couple doing some kind of whistle training with their Lab who was crouching, running, that sort of thing.
On seeing our puppy the Lab came at it, grabbed him by his neck and started shaking him and trying to run off with him. Unfortunately, my 6 yo old daughter was holding his lead at the time ( we get the kids involved with training / walking/ commands whenever it’s safe to do so. ). Luckily my wife was able to grab the lead and hold him while putting herself between the other dog and our kids . The owners seemed to have no clue as to what to do with their dog.
My wife shouted at them to get their dog on the lead and get him under control. Eventually they did while saying “sorry, I don’t know what to do, he seems so angry” and generally seeming clueless.
All are a bit shaken but thankfully ok.
I’m of the “it’s not the dog, it’s the owners” opinion generally. I be had lots of dogs, large and small, but our current pup is the first for my wife and kids.
I guess I’m asking what’s the best way to handle this kind of thing in future. Our pup was on a lead. We walk him regularly and he is well socialised (has a very good friend down the road- a huge mamalut!) and so on.
Pup is fine, wife angry, kids a bit traumatised. My 8yo was bitten quite badly a couple of years ago and it’s been a big deal for him to finally get a dog ( which he loves to bits and takes a great deal of responsibility for).
Any opinions or advice? I’ve spoken to my wife on the phone and told her she did everything right. But what is the collective advice?
In my opinion that other dog was out of control but as I don’t know the owners I have no idea if it was a once off, a first time event, or an ongoing problem.
I just hope they keep it on a lead from now on. If our dog had been one of our neighbours sheep it may have been shot.
What to do in future?
They were walking our dog through nearby fields and noticed a couple doing some kind of whistle training with their Lab who was crouching, running, that sort of thing.
On seeing our puppy the Lab came at it, grabbed him by his neck and started shaking him and trying to run off with him. Unfortunately, my 6 yo old daughter was holding his lead at the time ( we get the kids involved with training / walking/ commands whenever it’s safe to do so. ). Luckily my wife was able to grab the lead and hold him while putting herself between the other dog and our kids . The owners seemed to have no clue as to what to do with their dog.
My wife shouted at them to get their dog on the lead and get him under control. Eventually they did while saying “sorry, I don’t know what to do, he seems so angry” and generally seeming clueless.
All are a bit shaken but thankfully ok.
I’m of the “it’s not the dog, it’s the owners” opinion generally. I be had lots of dogs, large and small, but our current pup is the first for my wife and kids.
I guess I’m asking what’s the best way to handle this kind of thing in future. Our pup was on a lead. We walk him regularly and he is well socialised (has a very good friend down the road- a huge mamalut!) and so on.
Pup is fine, wife angry, kids a bit traumatised. My 8yo was bitten quite badly a couple of years ago and it’s been a big deal for him to finally get a dog ( which he loves to bits and takes a great deal of responsibility for).
Any opinions or advice? I’ve spoken to my wife on the phone and told her she did everything right. But what is the collective advice?
In my opinion that other dog was out of control but as I don’t know the owners I have no idea if it was a once off, a first time event, or an ongoing problem.
I just hope they keep it on a lead from now on. If our dog had been one of our neighbours sheep it may have been shot.
What to do in future?
Your poor dog and family, I hope they are all okay.
Unfortunately, I'm not sure the police will be particularly interested if it is 'just' a dog/dog attack. They only tend to get involved if it's dog/person.
The local Dog Warden would be the more likely option, but if you don't have the other owner's details or know where they live, there may not be much they can do.
As far as I am concerned, you are correct in saying that your dog was under control (on a lead). Their dog wasn't. I'm not sure what you could do to prevent the situation occurring again, I think your wife did everything right. I know that some people carry pop up umbrellas or 'Pet Corrector' sprays (just compressed gas) to keep aggressive dogs away, but this does depend on being able to react quickly enough, and risks your own dog being frightened.
Do keep an eye on your pup, though. If he was ragged, he might have bruising which will only come out later. And try to give him a positive experience with a friendly dog as soon as you can.
Unfortunately, I'm not sure the police will be particularly interested if it is 'just' a dog/dog attack. They only tend to get involved if it's dog/person.
The local Dog Warden would be the more likely option, but if you don't have the other owner's details or know where they live, there may not be much they can do.
As far as I am concerned, you are correct in saying that your dog was under control (on a lead). Their dog wasn't. I'm not sure what you could do to prevent the situation occurring again, I think your wife did everything right. I know that some people carry pop up umbrellas or 'Pet Corrector' sprays (just compressed gas) to keep aggressive dogs away, but this does depend on being able to react quickly enough, and risks your own dog being frightened.
Do keep an eye on your pup, though. If he was ragged, he might have bruising which will only come out later. And try to give him a positive experience with a friendly dog as soon as you can.
If you know who the owner of the dog is it's worth reporting to the police. No point if you don't know.
The flippant answer is take the malamut next time. I'd imagine that could teach the lab a lesson. It would be good to get the pup and the kids around a friendly dog asap.
It's s
t when stuff like this happens - sorry to hear about it.
The flippant answer is take the malamut next time. I'd imagine that could teach the lab a lesson. It would be good to get the pup and the kids around a friendly dog asap.
It's s
t when stuff like this happens - sorry to hear about it.Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 24th July 22:36
Thanks for the replies. We have no idea who they were although it’s a small village. Will keep an eye out though. Puppy and family are fine. Wife is still on the angry side. We have plenty of hazel around so I’m going fashion her a suitably sized walking stick.
And borrow the malumut !
And borrow the malumut !
All good advice above. Did your pup get taken to a vets. If not you must. An official report of a dog attack should be recorded by your vet. Also he may well be more bruised than it seems at the mo.
Terrible experience and I really feel these owners need to understand just how problematic their dog is.
The police should be informed, even if they won't act this time they may get other reports if the dog does a similar thing to another dog.
Terrible experience and I really feel these owners need to understand just how problematic their dog is.
The police should be informed, even if they won't act this time they may get other reports if the dog does a similar thing to another dog.
moorx said:
Your poor dog and family, I hope they are all okay.
Unfortunately, I'm not sure the police will be particularly interested if it is 'just' a dog/dog attack. They only tend to get involved if it's dog/person.
The local Dog Warden would be the more likely option, but if you don't have the other owner's details or know where they live, there may not be much they can do.
Been there OP, it's awful for all concerned.Unfortunately, I'm not sure the police will be particularly interested if it is 'just' a dog/dog attack. They only tend to get involved if it's dog/person.
The local Dog Warden would be the more likely option, but if you don't have the other owner's details or know where they live, there may not be much they can do.
Just apropos of the above, if you were in fear of attack from the other dog, even if not actually attacked, then IME the police are very much interested.
bexVN said:
All good advice above. Did your pup get taken to a vets. If not you must. An official report of a dog attack should be recorded by your vet. Also he may well be more bruised than it seems at the mo.
Terrible experience and I really feel these owners need to understand just how problematic their dog is.
The police should be informed, even if they won't act this time they may get other reports if the dog does a similar thing to another dog.
This is good advice. My 17 year old border collie got a mauling when attacked at night. He couldn't defend himself and was very bruised as well as infected.Terrible experience and I really feel these owners need to understand just how problematic their dog is.
The police should be informed, even if they won't act this time they may get other reports if the dog does a similar thing to another dog.
The police weren't interested because I hadn't been bitten. They may have taken more interest if I'd known the owner of the staffie cross.
Boosted LS1 said:
This is good advice. My 17 year old border collie got a mauling when attacked at night. He couldn't defend himself and was very bruised as well as infected.
The police weren't interested because I hadn't been bitten. They may have taken more interest if I'd known the owner of the staffie cross.
The police were very interested when someone's dog ran into our yard and started a fight with one of ours and came off worse.The police weren't interested because I hadn't been bitten. They may have taken more interest if I'd known the owner of the staffie cross.
The person who lost control of their dog so badly that it was hundreds of yards away from her reported it and we got 3 visits. Admittedly two of them were because I told them to FRO and that I had no interest in taking their advice about my dog's behaviour.
The other dog owner was a local councillor. w
ker.Im going to come at this from a different angle to the posters above. Its horrible when dogs go at each other and I can only imagine its worse when you have a puppy. I think sometimes the owners feel worse than the dogs.
Sometimes you have to chalk stuff like this down to the fact that dogs are an animal. You can have them as well trained as you like but they can have an off day, something trigger them out of the blue and if it is a one off for the lab how on earth would the owners have known to watch out for it? They are after all sentient beings.
Now if the owners of the dog were arrogant, suggested that the dog did it all the time etc then that is something very different to them being apologetic etc but only you can know the answer to that as you had the conversation.
If the pup is alright I would carry on as normal, reporting the Lab etc will not do a thing other than cause distress to the owners of the lab which may or may not be warranted. The police will only be interested if harm came to a human. I would however get the pup checked over for piece of mind and if god forbid it happens again get the owners contact details and if vets fees were involved ask them to pay.
Sometimes you have to chalk stuff like this down to the fact that dogs are an animal. You can have them as well trained as you like but they can have an off day, something trigger them out of the blue and if it is a one off for the lab how on earth would the owners have known to watch out for it? They are after all sentient beings.
Now if the owners of the dog were arrogant, suggested that the dog did it all the time etc then that is something very different to them being apologetic etc but only you can know the answer to that as you had the conversation.
If the pup is alright I would carry on as normal, reporting the Lab etc will not do a thing other than cause distress to the owners of the lab which may or may not be warranted. The police will only be interested if harm came to a human. I would however get the pup checked over for piece of mind and if god forbid it happens again get the owners contact details and if vets fees were involved ask them to pay.
Sorry forgot to add, your pup is of an age where experience's start to have less of an effect on future responses and behaviours which is good as hopefully this would have had less of an effect than if the pup was 10 weeks.
It is however important that you continue to socialise, don't stop introducing the pups to other dogs as a result of this. If a dog reacts badly to the pup and you are able to calmly call the pup away that is the best response so as not to reinforce any negativity on them.
It is however important that you continue to socialise, don't stop introducing the pups to other dogs as a result of this. If a dog reacts badly to the pup and you are able to calmly call the pup away that is the best response so as not to reinforce any negativity on them.
Thanks all. Appreciate the responses. Our pup is fine, no damage. He was a little odd last night but I put that down to adrenaline. I think he maybe thought it was playtime. My wife and kids are still a little traumatised but that’s understandable as it’s the first time they have had a dog etc.
He’s been playing with the big boys today (neighbors) and seems fine.
He’s been playing with the big boys today (neighbors) and seems fine.
I would encourage this to be reported to the police and your vet.
Your six year old daughter is probably not too dissimilar height and weight to a fully grown lab; although I agree with the notion that the owners bear the responsibility for its actions, the dog is an animal at the end of the day, and when in assault mode may not be able to distinguish between a pup, a bird, a threat or a child.
If the owners cannot control it, they need to be assessed, reprimanded or even prevented from continuing to own animals. If this wasn't a 'soft grip' gun dog, the outcome could have been different for all.
A lab is there to retrieve, not attack; it may have been playing, but no dog owner should have to worry about other, poorly trained or controlled, dogs when walking their dog. Especially when small children and families are involved.
I hope both your family and your dog are not affected by this OP!
ETA: as above, compressed air is an excellent idea to disrupt this type of situation in future!
Your six year old daughter is probably not too dissimilar height and weight to a fully grown lab; although I agree with the notion that the owners bear the responsibility for its actions, the dog is an animal at the end of the day, and when in assault mode may not be able to distinguish between a pup, a bird, a threat or a child.
If the owners cannot control it, they need to be assessed, reprimanded or even prevented from continuing to own animals. If this wasn't a 'soft grip' gun dog, the outcome could have been different for all.
A lab is there to retrieve, not attack; it may have been playing, but no dog owner should have to worry about other, poorly trained or controlled, dogs when walking their dog. Especially when small children and families are involved.
I hope both your family and your dog are not affected by this OP!
ETA: as above, compressed air is an excellent idea to disrupt this type of situation in future!
Edited by JIMMYJ4ZZ on Wednesday 25th July 21:12
makaveli144 said:
Stuff
+1 from me. If it's a small town and there's a good chance to spot them again, I don't think it's anything a concerned word or a bit of a lecture can't solve. Personally, I wouldn't think of taking it to the police unless the lab owners were complete aholes about it.No dog, good or bad, should be off lead if the owners don't have control over them in every circumstance. I've been on the other side of this, having adopted a very dog aggressive border collie. He just didn't get off lead at all, but I had to constantly put up with friendly dogs coming up to him and setting him off, and razzing him up, completely ignoring their owners screeches from afar. I would never think of reporting them to the police, even though their dogs and other could be at risk because of them. Of course, I was always the villain even though mine was secure on the lead.
But obviously, accidents do happen despite the best intentions. In the early days, I fumbled with the lead once while trying to train him, and he shot off at a dog so far away, I couldn't even see it. Took a wee chunk out of a beautiful and gentle lurcher. I can honestly say I've never felt lower in my life than I did that day. I still get sweats thinking about it 8 years later. I think if I'd had a knock on my door from the police that same night, I'd have felt so hopeless that it would have been enough to make me consider giving up on the dog. Instead, I took it upon myself to work much harder with him, and feel like I gave a very troubled dog a safe loving home that he wouldn't have otherwise had.
If the owners of the lab seem sorry, and acknowledge the dog shouldn't be let off anytime soon, then thats a good result. If they are pricks about it, then go ahead and report them. But I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that they are total villians. Considering they were doing whistle training in the first place suggests they have some awareness of their responsibilities. Which is a lot more than you can say about lots of owners.
Edited by Wrathalanche on Wednesday 25th July 22:14
Thanks. I’ve always had rescued dogs before so I guess I’m inclined to give the benefit of doubt. In this case it’s the first dog my wife and kids have had and I think it worries them more.
One of my previous rescues was about to be put down but eventually lived a happy life (an abused dash). To be fair, the owners of the aggressive dog were mortified so I’d like to think they’ll adjust accordingly. Maybe I’m in happy land but in my experience past- I’ve never met a bad dog. Bad owners maybe.
One of my previous rescues was about to be put down but eventually lived a happy life (an abused dash). To be fair, the owners of the aggressive dog were mortified so I’d like to think they’ll adjust accordingly. Maybe I’m in happy land but in my experience past- I’ve never met a bad dog. Bad owners maybe.
M3ax said:
Thanks. I’ve always had rescued dogs before so I guess I’m inclined to give the benefit of doubt. In this case it’s the first dog my wife and kids have had and I think it worries them more.
One of my previous rescues was about to be put down but eventually lived a happy life (an abused dash). To be fair, the owners of the aggressive dog were mortified so I’d like to think they’ll adjust accordingly. Maybe I’m in happy land but in my experience past- I’ve never met a bad dog. Bad owners maybe.
The Lab may have been grumpy because of the heat and acted out of caricature. One of my previous rescues was about to be put down but eventually lived a happy life (an abused dash). To be fair, the owners of the aggressive dog were mortified so I’d like to think they’ll adjust accordingly. Maybe I’m in happy land but in my experience past- I’ve never met a bad dog. Bad owners maybe.
Labs can have a prey drive - small fluffy animal, looks like rabbit/squirrel - chase and catch. Beam proudly at owner, job done .
Good news is that your puppy wasn't hurt. Get puppy to socialise with lots of different size dogs and hopefully there won't be any anxieties from this incident.
However, a year old Bichon Frise cross which I look after, had a 'prey chase' from a large mongrel dog in our local dog park and has now been scared of all large dogs since then, even though no harm came to him.
Good news is that your puppy wasn't hurt. Get puppy to socialise with lots of different size dogs and hopefully there won't be any anxieties from this incident.
However, a year old Bichon Frise cross which I look after, had a 'prey chase' from a large mongrel dog in our local dog park and has now been scared of all large dogs since then, even though no harm came to him.
Dogs are animals, some are grumpy some are not, most are poorly controlled by their owners, most if not 99% of owners have absolutely no idea of what their pets can do. Many dogs are just finding out what the rules are, as they have no concept of the pack rules, they are rarely taught their place in the life ladder. Labs are usually brilliant for being happy dogs, but sometimes they don't work along our expectations.
In this case of a dog attack, the owners of the attacking dog were typical public, completely unaware of what our pooches can do. The only time one of my dogs has bitten/nipped someone, was by the softest of our labs PeeWee, who wouldn't hurt a fly, but the postie opened the door and put the letter throught the gap, and the lab nipped (different to grabbing another dog by the neck and shaking) so it is difficult to make rules apart from getting the public to realise that dogs are related to wolves/wild dogs, they can't always work out what we expect, there is aggression out there although less than there is down the pub on a friday night.
We try to domesticate and ensure all are safe, but animals don't recognise all our rules when they are not familiar with them, and there is no chance that all our pooches will be on the same page. I try to make sure my pups dont exceed the acceptable limits of doggy society, but we will never get everyone to accept their dog/child can be a complete moron.
Hope cavapoo pup from OP is ok and doesn't bear the mental scars.
In this case of a dog attack, the owners of the attacking dog were typical public, completely unaware of what our pooches can do. The only time one of my dogs has bitten/nipped someone, was by the softest of our labs PeeWee, who wouldn't hurt a fly, but the postie opened the door and put the letter throught the gap, and the lab nipped (different to grabbing another dog by the neck and shaking) so it is difficult to make rules apart from getting the public to realise that dogs are related to wolves/wild dogs, they can't always work out what we expect, there is aggression out there although less than there is down the pub on a friday night.
We try to domesticate and ensure all are safe, but animals don't recognise all our rules when they are not familiar with them, and there is no chance that all our pooches will be on the same page. I try to make sure my pups dont exceed the acceptable limits of doggy society, but we will never get everyone to accept their dog/child can be a complete moron.
Hope cavapoo pup from OP is ok and doesn't bear the mental scars.
Edited by Thevet on Friday 27th July 16:09
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