Can I take legal action? Dog related trigger warning

[Ellythe]

My dog is my baby. I got her 3 years before my child died and she helped me through it all and she knew him.

I am currently in the USA, waiting for a plane home 8 days earlier than planned because I got a call from the woman looking after my dog saying that her Mastiff has mauled my dog and she has lost a leg and an eye in the fight. I've seen the cctv footage and my dog walked near her dog and he lunged at her and then attacked her.

Shockingly the boarder doesn't notice the interaction between the dogs until her neighbour comes running into her house shouting because she can hear my dog yelping and screaming. At the time of the fight the person I paid to look after my dog was grooming another dog and in a completely separate area of the unit. The other person insured to look after the dogs was out at the shop and so there were 5 day care dogs and 4 home boarding dogs + her own 3 dogs.

What is my legal recourse?

I want her to pay for my dog's treatment, the flights etc.

I would never have let her look after my dog if I realised she wasn't in the same area as the dogs. I didn't realise that dogs were being left completely unattended for up to 6 hours whilst she's grooming.

For the avoidance of doubt my dog didn't do anything to cause her dog to attack her, she merely walked passed him and he just went for her.

She is 6 years old and I cannot lose her. She is the last connection I have to my child. I'm beside myself right now. This is hideous.

I need to know what to do next. Do I report to the council? The rspca? The police? I want to take any and all action I can.

Absolutely horrible! Poor Rosie!

She's a real cutie OP. They bounce back better than you think, so hold on to that thought.

I fully understand your devastation at what has happened to her. You thought she was safe and now feel you've let her down because she's been badly hurt. It's great you've made the boarder pay upfront. Like you I'd be doing everything I could to ruin her business. I'm not sure if the no win no pay lawyers take on these cases, but they may be an option for this sort of negligence. In Australia your dog is treated as property, so be prepared to hear that terminology if you pursue the court route. It's not minimising what has happened to her, but is just how the law works.

How absolutely awful, I’d bury her in legal action until the cows come home. I hope Rosie makes a full recovery.

This is absolutely traumatising OP, I'm so sorry.

What a poor love. ❤️ Your baby knows you love her with all your heart. And your love and strength will help her to heal more quickly. My plonker ate a sock last year and nearly died. He was tube fed in the beginning and had 3 surgeries in the end as the wound herniated. It took a few months but he made a full recovery. Dogs recover much faster than humans.

I am sorry you’re being made out to be some kind of perpetrator with this woman. She sounds absolutely vile. I hope she’s never allowed to own or look after animals again.

She's saying that her insurance company won't cover the cost because she wasn't actively looking after the dogs

So she was uninsured as well.

Op I am so very sorry to read this thread.

Good luck with the legal side of everything

She should have insurance.

You should have insurance.

I'd speak to your insurers and ask their advice.

Sorry - I just spotted the update where she paid.

Good for you for trying to also get her closed down. Is your dog is a real cutey!

This may be a bit of help but there is a tripod cat group on Facebook so there may be a dog one too. If not ask to join the cat one and explain the situation. They have been so helpful as my mums adopted feral cat had to have a leg amputated at Christmas and we had no clue what to do. Animals do adapt but in your case it is awful and they shouldn't have to.

Sending hugs to you and your pooch.

The hoarder should have insurance so you should be able to claim, or can you claim off your pet insurance?

Not sure whether you came home early or not. If so, can you claim that off your travel insurance?

Sorry, just saw the update.

Off to check my dog home sitters credentials…

This is terrible advice, DO NOT name them or get people from MN or anywhere else to engage with her on social media. It's a sure fire way to undermine any legal case you have.

Sue her for every thing you can. Some one should be in the same room as the dogs,and its disgusting that she had to be told by a random person on the street.

So glad she’s back with you. It sounds like she’s breached her insurance by not supervising ms therefore they won’t pay. Hope you hear from the council soon xxx

Christ on a bike, this is horrific! Your poor doggo, OP.

Keep doing what you're doing and nail that boarders arse to the wall.

That's so awful! I hope they get shut down and you get reimbursed for all expenses.

I'd be going to the papers once you get justice!

It can go through as a civil case. My mums friend left her dog at a kennels whilst she went on holiday a number of years ago and the staff failed to lock the gates properly and an XL bully type got in and killed her bedlington terrier. She got a financial award which was donated to an animal charity as it wasn’t about the money, shockingly the kennels are still allowed to operate but it was covered in the newspapers so at least people were made aware of how awful they are. It did take a couple of years to run through the courts.

I hope your doggy makes a good recovery.

When will the government wake up and introduce laws to ensure that all dogs are muzzled in public? Then we wouldn't have incidents like these and no more lives would be lost and all these dog attacks would stop.

Your poor poor dog, i’m so sorry. This is my worse nightmare. Healing wishes to you and your little one

I’m sorry I’m not a lawyer so I didn’t realise. Why does speaking out publicly undermine a legal case? If it’s true and factual surely it’s not slander? It’s just warning people / the equivalent of a bad review

That's horrific.

Her insurance should cover the treatment of your dogs but I'm not sure about your flights and would think that it's unlikely.

However, the lack of supervision is very concerning and the dogs should not have been left alone.

I hope Rosie responds well to treatment.

I'm so sorry for everything that has happened to you OP 😔💐

Omg that’s is shocking I’m so so sorry I’m deeply upset on your behalf
if she is a registered boarder or business she should have insurance for this
you need to ask her about the insurance she should have
then get legal advice
I’d be going down the route too
i hope someone else is more knowledgeable and can advise you on the legal advice
I really hope your poor dog is ok and heals well and you get over this big shock

This is my nightmare. Sending so much love to you and Rosie. My little terrier is currently lying next to me and I’m resisting the urge to grab her and cuddle her tight.

Can you share what part of the country you are in?

It speaks volumes that her insurance won’t cover her, I hope that she’s never allowed to look after dogs again.

i’m looking at kennels for my dog, she’s always been home boarded in peoples house before now but she was hurt at one of them. After reading your ordeal, the idea of a kennel where she doesn’t interact with other families dogs doesn’t seem as bad as it did before.