Dog attacked puppy

[heatseeker14]

A dog approached dpup today and attacked him. Owner was nowhere in sight. The dog pinned him and made him really yelp. I watched the dog run off and in the distance I saw a lady waiting for him. I didn’t realise at the time that the dog had caught dpup under his mouth.
Do you think I should say something next time I see her? I have a witness who saw what happened. Is this a common occurrence in the dog world? Am I overreacting?

Common for dogs to not be too keen on puppies or other dogs? Fairly common.

Common for them to not like them enough to fight? Somewhat common.

Common for other owners to not be anywhere close enough to supervise and control their dogs? Sadly, very common.

I'd still say something but expect to get a fairly negative response because people who don't supervise their dogs rarely enjoy being told they are shit owners

Sorry your litte guy was on the receiving end

I'd say something. An unrestrained dog attacked your puppy and caused physical injury. That is just wrong. Although, if your puppy was also off-lead, then you are also partly to blame.

I hope your pup is ok now.

No you are not overacting and yes despite what some will tell you I do think it's happens having seen distraught owners in the vets with their dogs having been attacked by other dogs.

I had to intervene once with my puppy and shouted at an owner to recall their dog and they just said 'oh mine doesn't like puppies'

When you say the dog had caught your puppy I would get them checked over just incase there is any damage you can't see. Also be aware that lots of people on here say that their dogs became reactive after being injured or attacked by another dog so might be worth getting advice on how to manage interactions to avoid any fear.

You're not overreacting. Id take him to the vet to get checked over.

I don't agree that if your puppy was off lead you are partly to blame. Sounds like this dog was a long way from it's owner and it might well have attacked your Pup if it was on the lead.

I've had a dog come from nowhere and bowl mine down a hill with much snarling. Mine was off lead but minding his own business. Thankfully he wasn't hurt. The owner who appeared later said "oh, she can be a bit nasty". Idiot. Mind you, dog is 8 now and we've only had the one bad experience, most people are sensible.

I hope pup is okay.

Thanks for your replies. Dpup was on a lead when he was attacked. Tbh I can’t see why it would have been his fault if he was off the lead, unless he ran up to the dog and jumped on its head. I appreciate most adult dogs aren’t keen on bouncy puppies, but Dpup didn’t run up to the other dog.
I’ve cleaned him up and the wound looks okay. Thankfully it is not too deep. Will keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn’t get infected.
I do worry about how negative experiences will affect his behaviour @BiteyShark. Shortly after he saw a dog he knows well, so at least he finished the walk on a good note. He has been more clingy than usual this afternoon. Probably just a coincidence though.

Tbh I can’t see why it would have been his fault if he was off the lead, unless he ran up to the dog and jumped on its head.
I'm largely with you there, though I'd not be happy to let a puppy run up to any strange dog (with the best will in the world, it will sometimes happen, though, when recall training etc; fortunately my last puppy had the sense to realise when she wasn't welcome about 10 yards out and leg it back to me).

People who don't watch their dogs are bloody annoying, and people who don't watch them when they know they have aggression issues are downright irresponsible.

I still have dpup on a long line so he can’t run up to random dogs. Not ready to let him off yet, but his recall is getting so much better now.
Today has knocked my confidence a bit. It’s the second time a dog has run up to him like this. I can’t read their body language and it is all over so fast.

I'm sorry about your pup

My advice would be to get right back out there. Don't build this up to be a big scary incident that means your dog can't go out on walks - he's still young and he can get over this. Back out there and fake that confidence - even if you don't feel it at the time.

Ours was attacked as a puppy by two off-lead terriers and he got bitten on the throat. Like yours he was on-lead. The situation wasn't helped by the fact that our neighbour has one who jumped into our car and bit him on the stomach

What helped a bit was finding someone who had two very friendly terriers and letting him socialise with them. He now mostly ignores them but it did take a lot of work.

This dog was quite atypical and the owner was a complete idiot. You should definitely have a word with her if you see her again and consider reporting her to the Dog Warden if she is dismissive.

The dog was atypical because although adult dogs will often tell puppies off, they do it in response to a puppy being overwhelming rather than running up to a puppy minding its own business, and they do it in a way that might look scary but doesn't actually harm the puppy. An adult dog who goes out of his way to run up to a puppy minding its own business and causes physical injury, should be on lead and muzzled.

The owner was an idiot because she had no control over her dog and allowed it to approach another dog on lead.

Do get your puppy back out there as quickly as possible and try to stay as calm as possible. If you can, when you see a dog running up to your puppy, step between your puppy and the other dog, extend an arm and say STOP quite forcefully, but only if you are confident that you will not get bitten yourself!

Thanks @adaline and @Booboostwo. Thankfully he was absolutely fine when I took him out today. A couple of dogs approached him, and he wasn’t phased by them at all, so it looks like it is more my issue than his, which is good.
I will have a chat with the lady if I see her. I think she needs to know what her dog gets up to when her back is turned. I don’t think it is normal behaviour for a dog to approach a puppy and have a go full on like this.