Dog burst my son's football

[Maverick99]

Took my 5yo football mad son to the park today to play with his new football that he got for his birthday. It cost £45 and was the first time he'd used it, after months of begging me for it.

He was kicking it through some goal posts when a dog (I think it was a staffy of some kind but know nothing about dogs so could be wrong) ran up to the ball which was about 10ft away from him and bit it, causing it to burst. It then started running around in circles around my son then back to its owner. Didn't seem dangerous but son was hysterical over his football.

Owner put the dog lead on and apologised, and I asked that he replaced the football. I was v pissed off and vocal about his dog and the fact that it wasn't on a lead. He said he couldn't afford it and refused to exchange details or tell me his name but was v apologetic.

Just feel pissed off that there was nothing I could do and nobody else helped me out as lots of people saw.

Can't afford to replace the football myself but thankfully my dad is going to buy him a new one tomorrow.

Not sure what I want from this thread, just a vent because I feel so irritated still and like I could've done more or handled it better.

Why would you assume the £45 ball was a scam? You could have looked up the ball on Google and saw the price. My kids aren’t into football but I know that branded ones are expensive.

The dog should have been under control and the owner should have paid for the football. The price is irrelevant it damaged your property.

You can likely fix the football yourself though with a bike picture repair kit.

The dog shouldn’t have been exercising in a children’s play area at all. Yanbu.

A dog popped a ball in a park. Get over yourselves.

This is the crux of it. You and xenobitch are the worst kinds of owners. You genuinely can’t see it. If my kid damaged something I would replace it if possible or pay and see it as entirely my fault. I would not expect the victim to ‘get over it’. Same as if I damaged something by accident. You are a disgrace.

The dog owner should’ve had control, and should have been apologetic but I have to say that if someone told me a football cost £45 I’d think they were trying it on!!

I might be a wimp-but the OP said she was very vocal and her kid was hysterical. I’d probably want to get out of there as quickly as possible and not want to get out my phone and start googling. The problem is with getting aggressive is it shuts people down. I’m not saying that OP was wrong but if someone was getting really verbal with me it wouldn’t even cross my mind to get out my phone-I’d want to scarper!!!!

Children's play area's are mostly fenced off, it was a open park.

How does an apology fix anything? His dog destroyed other people's property.

He should have paid for it, but also it is completely plausible he couldn't afford it. Money is very tight for people ATM. I appreciate you too, but tbh if I had to give £45 to a stranger I wouldn't be able to eat and so in this situation I wouldn't replace the football either not at £45.

@Everanewbie while I agree that small kids and high value items don't always go hand in hand, I would assume that taking a football to the park is a fairly safe activity. Swinging an iPhone around in a boot bag, maybe not. Climbing trees in expensive clothing, again risky.

But a ball at the park is perfectly sensible behaviour and all would have been fine had it not been for one irresponsible dog owner.

It wasn't accidental. It was a poor choice made by the owner that resulted in damage and loss to a child. The least he could have done was pay up.

Shit dog owners are the reason why I've taught my kids to kick out at approaching, off lead dogs, if they don't want to interact with them.

So the offender can choose whether or not to rectify the situation based on whether the victim behaves nicely? Wtf?

Look under section 2.2 of the Animals Act 1971: the owner is liable and the law is crystal clear.
If you know who he is, you can pursue the dog owner in the small claims court for replacement of the football.

You did the right thing by telling him his dog should be on a lead, and that he should pay for a new ball. Unfortunately you can't make him pay for a new ball, but at least he said he was sorry. For next time I'd take a cheap ball to the park. I always keep mine on the lead when we see kids play football, because he would do the same too. Most people wouldn't be able to afford £45 to give you on the spot, but asking for a tenner might have encouraged payment.

They won’t accept it, but the twats are the posters who are calling for an ordinary apologetic bloke, with a friendly dog, who couldn’t afford to pay £45 for a football, to be shamed on Social Media!

This kind of person so often leaps for a punitive, aggressive response to any perceived slight. It’s the same group that the poster who wanted compensation because a clock alarm went off at 6am belongs to. Maybe they are too young to remember when society just accepted that ‘shit happens’ and moved on.

100% agree. Permanently angry people. I avoid them as much as possible.

Your poor son must be upset and that dog should have been under control but to be honest if you had told me it would be £45 to replace a 3 year olds ball I would thought you were trying it on.
I appreciate you werent but I wouldnt believe it cost so much - I am not saying it didnt but as a person with no interest in football at all (DS is into Basketball) I would assume it cost no more than £20 or so

I wondered how long it would be before someone threw in the 'friendly dog' remark. So predictable.

Sorry but I don't want your friendly dog approaching me or my dogs when I'm out thanks. And I certainly wouldn't want them damaging my property. If that makes me a twat then I'll happily accept it.

Or, conversely, maybe the real twats are those who are either too dumb or too selfish to prevent their dogs from bothering other people in public places. Once again, why is it so difficult to keep a dog on a lead?

If people around you are angry all the time, you can see whether ensuring that your dog doesn't bother them and destroy their things won't help.

This is true but if someone legitimately does not have the money they do do not have the money. Not much can be done about it then.

Are you one of the thick people that says ‘oh he’s just being friendly’, when your dog leaps up at strangers?

What a wonderful way to get your child bitten.

No, are you one of the thick people who screams blue murder whenever anything happens that causes you a problem?

No. But I go through life being considerate and take responsibility for my actions.

Great way to teach your children 🙄