Ddog attacked today.

[JesusInTheCabbageVan]

Poor girl. I keep her on the lead because she can be reactive around unfamiliar dogs, and an off-lead boxer just went for her. It was a group of teen girls walking it and they were bloody useless, so after a few failed attempts to grab her, I managed to kick it away and it decided it wasn't feeling so brave all of a sudden.

I thought it was mostly posturing by both of them, but then when I checked her over I found a huge gash on her hind leg. I never even saw it happen - really wish I'd known now, I'd have kicked it straight away and a hell of a lot harder. Little shit.

I shouted at the kids and showed them, and one of them said, "Oh, she's not aggressive." I told them they had to tell their parents what had happened and keep it on lead at all times. I didn't even think to get their details as I was walking away by that point to get ddog to the vet. She's had stitches and will have to wear a cone for 10 days.

Just can't believe it. It made a beeline for her from a good 20 yards away.

Sorry to read this and I hope DDog heals up well. Hope you are ok too! Had this happen when our DDog was younger and like you I kicked the other dog off her as it had knocked her over and was going for her stomach.

Unfortunately there are idiots out there who do let their aggressive dogs off lead. Personally it’s made me overly cautious when other dogs approach her (and she’s been nervous of big dogs since and slinks behind me).

The only proactive thing you can do is if you have a community Facebook page, post a warning. Quite often, it’s usually not the first time a dog has done this.

Thanks - it's ridiculous how much it shakes you up, isn't it? I honestly think I'd be less upset if I'd been attacked myself. Unfortunately ddog is not a good patient and makes a huge fuss about wearing The Dreaded Cone, so cried pretty much all night and DH and I barely slept. She's looking surprisingly perky now though! Eaten a big breakfast and guilted us into giving away half of ours. Wound looking fine, thankfully.

I'm not on Facebook but DH is, so will ask him. I do know a lot of the dog walkers in that area though so will warn them. It's possible they might know who they are, although I've never seen them before.

It's so horrible when something like that happens. It happened to one of ours when DD was walking him (late teens, not a kid any longer).

TBH DD was more upset than the dog was.

It sounds like she has been very spoilt this morning (and well deserved!)! Yes it is a really horrible experience. I felt terrible for kicking the other dog off her as well but there really wasn’t an alternative.

I’m not a fan of naming and shaming on social media but I would put a description of the dog and owner on the community Facebook page. It does help others with more nervous dogs know where to potentially avoid or be a bit more cautious.

Beautiful girl by the way and hope you all get a better night!

Your poor girl. She really is a beauty, I hope she mends soon.

If you find out on FB who owns the boxer, or where it lives, I'd be minded to go round and have a (socially distanced) word with them. If the girls can't control the dog, they'll need to keep it on the lead.

And if you find out, you also have the option of reporting the incident to the dog warden.

Thank you everyone! Sorry I haven't updated - here's the war wound

I will definitely find out their details if I can, and if I see them again I'll be having words. At the moment I just can't stop feeling pissed off about it, combined with a horrible feeling that I've let her down by not acting faster at the time.

She's still finding it hard to settle at night with the cone on, but it seems to be healing really well and she's otherwise cheerful. Oh, and she's doing very well out of us for treats!

Your poor baby ;(

You didn’t let her down so go a bit easier on yourself, it’s just one of those horrible situations when your brain doesn’t immediately catch up with your eyes. Not a lovely wound but thankfully not critical. Sounds like she is getting a load of love.

Oh bless her... so sad hope she's ok. What a horrible thing to happen. I dread anything like this happening when I'm out with my pup.

So sorry to hear this. It’s terrifying. Well done for getting through it and taking such good care of her.

Ouch! Your poor hound. and poor you too. and 🦴 for hound

I now take a large stick with Mr when I walk my 3 little dogs as there are some dreadful bullying dogs out there and generally it is the ones not on a lead and often owners nowhere to be seen until dog attacks little dog. Very irisponsible not to keep fog on s lead imo.

That looks nasty. Hope your dog recovers fast. I’d want to track the owner down. Definitely put it out there on social media. Owners have put posts on our community page after a dog attack. I appreciate them taking the time to do it, so I can keep my eye out for the dog(s). Your beautiful lady definitely deserves all her treats. ❤️

Another night of crying 😬 it's not the injury, she's just an absolute drama queen about the cone! As soon as we take it off she's happy. It's looking so much better already though - the edges have knitted and it's nice and pink, no swelling.

I had the idea of making a poster with a brief description of the dogs and what happened, and putting it up at the entrance to the footpath. The dog attacked very fast with zero warning, so I think it would be helpful for people to be on the alert. And possibly shame the fuckers a little bit. Really hope I never see them again.

I remember 15 Yr old me turning the air blue, kicking and flailing and being told to calm down by a vicar whose three black terriers formed a ferocious ring around my airedale puppy. Moved too fast for a good kicking, hence all the swearing. He hated black dogs for the rest of his life. Definitely leaves you wobbly.

You can get inflatable rings which go round the dogs neck as an alternative to a cone, might be more comfortable for her?

I've just seen the photo of the wound - bloody hell!

In your shoes I'd report it to the dog warden (and, if they advise to do so, the police). A dog that is prepared to do that sort of damage needs to come to the attention of the authorities.

The incident was 100% not your fault. It's hard not to blame yourself for things like this but as time goes on you do get a clearer perspective.

That's a significant wound, @JesusInTheCabbageVan - the boxer sounds dangerous. I think I'd try to take it further, if I were you - as PP said, notify dog warden and possibly the police.

Hope your poor pup recovers well.

You said that your dog can be reactive and there was posturing first?
I think this will make a difference as to whether the dog wardens care, as it makes a difference as to whether it was unprovoked or not. Many dogs are not aggressive to other dogs but may react quickly if another dog starts being aggressive.

I hope your poochs leg heals well though. It does look nasty

Catching up on sleep - wish I could!

@Branleuse she is reactive, but in this occasion the other dog went straight for her without any preliminaries. It was quite shocking, which is why I was slow to react. It ran straight at her, really fast and I think that's when it got her. After that she did react, but it kept on circling her and darting in and out. I thought it was just posturing and no real harm done, but then when I checked her over I realised she was hurt. No injuries on the other dog.

@MotherofTerriers yes, we tried one of those when we got her spayed. Unfortunately they're useless on sighthounds because they're like double-jointed giraffes when they want to be! She can almost get at it even with a bloody great cone on.

Have tried this - t-shirt I've been wearing for two days, in the hope that the smell will calm her down! She might have it, but worth a go.

*hate it.

I've decided I am going to report it to the police just for info. That way if it does attack another dog (or a child, God forbid) they'll know it's not the first time and the owners are knowingly failing to control it.

Could hardly call myself a MNer if I didn't log it with 101.

I did wonder, they work on small terriers but a sighthound is a very different shape!