DC was bitten by strange dog, owner has now contacted me

[Villanelle]

Yesterday my DC was bitten by a dog at the park. He was playing in the play area, went down the slide and then started running after his younger sibling, the dog came out of nowhere and started chasing him. It caught up to him and bit him on the leg and back. He was hurt (puncture wounds, bleeding and bruised) but not enough to need stitches, thankfully. It was terrifying though and could have been so much worse. It was a big dog, like a Weimaraner, and totally out of control in a children's play area, the children(!!) walking it had to drag it away.

We contacted the police but they're going to contact us again in a couple of days.
It was posted about on FB by someone who witnessed it. I didn't reply to it but somehow the owner of the dog has contacted me. They haven't apologised or anything, just given me their phone number and told me to phone them.

I want to shout at them for being so irresponsible, I'm so angry. I don't know if I should reply to them or just leave it up to the police/dog warden. I don't want to argue with them, of course, but I don't think they realise how awful the situation was?

This makes me absolutely livid op and the owner is unlikely to be sympathetic from the sound of it.

My poor pre-schooler used to absolutely adore dogs until one too many jumped up on him and now it's taking ages for him to like them again - and of course any progress is instantly shot to pieces when another dog jump up on him/charges towards him barking its head off. "Don't worry, he's friendly!!" has come to mean "my dog's going to jump up on you and I'm not going to stop it" in his head, so he's terrified now. Then some dog owners blame him/me when he won't then go up and pat the dog to 'make friends' because he's still in a state of fear and alarm. "Well he's never going to get used to them like that" has been said to me.

I've had nightmares recently about him being bitten.

How scary for your boy and for the children walking it.

Was it a puppy or excitable young dog? Was the dog belonging to the children. What if it gets put down, those children will feel guily forever as they were in charge.
I know they aren’t your problem ( or the dog) but I think there is more to consider about what you want the outcome to be.

I don’t think the owner will apologise sadly, as it makes them automatically culpable. As a PP said they won’t want their pet put down.

It is likely if you call them there will be excuses galore, they might say they wont let the children walk the dog again (which you don't know if you can trust them to follow through).

You are very lucky it wasn't worse. Report to the police and handover their FB, phone number and any other details/photos of puncture marks etc you have. Do not warn the owners you are doing this as they may hide the dog with another family member.

It is not your responsibility what measure are taken or what happens to the dog. It is your responsibility to report it to ensure the appropriate professional investigates and ensures another child is not hurt.

I just wish dogs weren’t allowed
Wow....this site just keeps on giving the love. One dog's bad behaviour shouldn't banish the joy of millions.

Similar thing happened to me as a young child at a park, I spent the next 30 years terrified of dogs. I wouldn't go round friends houses if they had a dog, and as an adult I even turned down a really good job because I was scared of going in people's houses in case they had a dog that jumped up at me. It was awful. I've gradually overcome my fear and now have my own dog!

It makes me so mad when strangers let their dogs jump up at people, especially small children. It's horrible being afraid of dogs because someone didn't control theirs.

The police asked the person I knew who got bitten whether they wanted the dog put down. The person I knew felt so guilty after the owner pleaded with them, they said no. I expect that’s what’s happening here. So don’t contact them back as it shouldn’t be your decision to make.

@Ohnomoreno

I just wish dogs weren’t allowed Wow....this site just keeps on giving the love. One dog's bad behaviour shouldn't banish the joy of millions.

So the joy of millions is more important than the fear, inconvenience, annoyance, and sometimes terror/injury/death of millions of others? People can get joy from their dogs in their own homes and on their own property and with their dogs on leads in public places. Given that a significant amount of dog owners aren’t willing to act with any consideration for other people then yes, I would happily see dogs (especially large ones) banned as domestic pets.

It’s so terrible. It really seems there’s been an increase in this sort of thing as every other week there seems to be some sort of dog incident in our local park including attacks of other dogs/people. Is it lockdown dog owners who don’t know what they’re doing? I would be livid, and I’d want the dog PTS.

The police asked the person I knew who got bitten whether they wanted the dog put down. The person I knew felt so guilty after the owner pleaded with them, they said no. I expect that’s what’s happening here. So don’t contact them back as it shouldn’t be your decision to make.

Awful. How would they feel if another child got attacked? There’s some dogs/owner local to us who have got away with biting people on about 5 separate incidences. I don’t know how.

Penalties
You can get an unlimited fine or be sent to prison for up to 6 months (or both) if your dog is dangerously out of control. You may not be allowed to own a dog in the future and your dog may be destroyed.

If you let your dog injure someone you can be sent to prison for up to 5 years or fined (or both). If you deliberately use your dog to injure someone you could be charged with ‘malicious wounding’.

If you allow your dog to kill someone you can be sent to prison for up to 14 years or get an unlimited fine (or both).

If you allow your dog to injure an assistance dog (for example a guide dog) you can be sent to prison for up to 3 years or fined (or both).

I suspect also the issue is the kids were walking it and what they are telling their parents happened, plus as said, the risk the dog could be put to sleep, which is resulting in the owner’s attitude.

It's not just one dogs bad behaviour though is it?
Dogs bite people often. They also bound up to small children and jump up all over people while their owns feebly call them back while saying they are just being friendly. Something does have to change.

100% agree with MayorGoodwaysChicken.

I don't understand why Britain is so backwards with its dog laws. Other countries have clearly marked out separate areas for dogs to be off lead so that only people who choose to have to interact with them.

Some of the large breeds we have in the country now are ridiculous, there is no way the person walking them could hold them back even when they're on lead.

I'm a dog owner but if my dog ever bit a person (especially a child!) I would not hesitate to have it PTS. I could never trust it again around people, and it is too terrifying to think about the damage a dog can inflict. OP I would pass the owner's details directly to the police and make sure you have a record of you doing so, so you can rest easy that you have done all you can to protect others from this dangerous dog in the future. Do also pass on photos of your poor child's injuries. I wouldn't engage directly with the owners - if the owners haven't already done the right thing then you are unlikely to be able to persuade them.

Let the police deal with it.
I'd not want to risk direct contact with them tbh.

Moronic dog owners! Talk to police only.
I hope your child is ok. My DC is still really scared.

@Villanelle IDK if anyone has already said this, but take clear photos of your child's injuries over the next two weeks, use the setting to add the date stamp to each photo

I had to tell one girl of ten that just because she 'always' took her spaniel into the playground that wasn't a reason why it should be there. It had actually growled at me as I walked in: probably being protective of her. For a child nervous about dogs, that could have been a reason not to use THEIR playground.

Yesterday my husband had to ask to women throwing balls for their Labradors while their children played on the swings to remove the dogs.

Was it a puppy or excitable young dog? Was the dog belonging to the children. What if it gets put down, those children will feel guily forever as they were in charge.
I know they aren’t your problem ( or the dog) but I think there is more to consider about what you want the outcome to be

That is disgraceful victim guilt-tripping.

The facts are for the police to investigate, and for the law to decide on. So what if it was a young excitable dog? It shouldn’t have been in the playground, it shouldn’t have been in the care of children. The owners by doing that caused serious danger, and actual harm.

How can the OP know what the ‘outcome’ might be? She reports and the dog gets put down / she doesn’t report for fear of upsetting the child-owners and next time it rips a kids throat out / she reports and they get fined and sent on a dog care course ... the whole point of a justice system is that matters get dealt with within the system at one step removed from the victim.

And if the police asked me if a dog should be put down I would say not my decision to make, I have done my job reporting the crime and the injury.

How old were the kids walking it? I think it’s illegal for a child under 12 to walk a dog with no adult?

Take your child for medical attention/documentation of the injury. Take good photos as well.

Ring the owners - ask for their address./contact details, see what they have to say.

They MAY be panicking, they may have discovered their children took the dog out without permission, they may genuinely want to know how your child is, they may be wanting you to know what action they have taken or what action you may want them to take.

Based on what they say, decide wether to report to the police or dog warden or both.

If it were me... if there were some mitigating circumstances, for instance, children took out the dog by themselves without permission, and they seem 100% aware this was dangerous, that their dog was dangerously out of control in a public place and caused injury, and they have sensible measures in place to prevent that happening again (ie, kids bollocked, dog not to be off lead, won't walk there again, dog to be muzzled, trainer/behaviourist consult booked) then I might be inclined to let it go...

If they seem clueless, or if they seem like they don't give a shit, then police AND dog warden is the way forward.

That will get them a visit and a talking to, it should also get them advice, you may be able to take it further for example, court, and a court order can be made to the owners, for example that the dog must be on lead and muzzled in public, must have insurance, must attend training classes etc etc.

Until you talk to them you don't know and could well be getting yourself worked up without reason (for example they could have already had the dog euthanised, maybe its not their dog its visiting and its gone home elsewhere now).

drpet

My child developed a phobia of dogs following an incident. This child could experience scarring, pain and ongoing anxiety requiring costly therapeutic interventions. He is likely not going to feel calm going for walks again any time soon. He deserves compensation and access to timely help if necessary which won't be available on the NHS. And his owner needs a deterrent.

The dog's owner needs a deterrent.

I wouldn’t contact them - just pass the details they’ve given you and the FB post on to the police and let them deal with it. If you ring them, it’s probable that the conversation will get heated and you may end up saying something you regret. Best left to the authorities.

If they wanted to apologise they would have done it in writing. It's worrying they want you to call them, it shows they don't want evidence of what was said.