My dog bit an old lady.

[Milliemoons]

And I feel so awful about it. He’s a chihuahua, he’s tiny but he still drew blood. He’s never done it before. It was super windy, I had my newborn in a pram and my three year old who was running off and I took my eye off him for one second and he just launched himself at this poor lady.

He was off lead but he usually is and I’ve never had a problem (he’s 7). We were in a public park where dogs are permitted off lead. Needless to say I won’t be risking that again.

She was really worried about needing to go to the doctor to be vaccinated (I assured her he was fully vaccinated and healthy). I apologised over and over but the poor woman was shaken up.

I just keep thinking about it. DH says not to worry, I apologised and I reassured her I would not be allowing him off lead again.

Has this happened to anyone else?

What possessed you to start giving her (bad) advice about whether she needs medical attention or not? 😱

It’s absolutely standard to require at least a tetanus shot if you’re bitten or deeply scratched by an animal.

You really should have exchanged details AND advised her to get medical attention - the wound most likely will be infected. It really doesn’t matter how healthy you think your dog is, it’s teeth/mouth may not be.
I’m a dog owner of a small dog and she is never off the lead except in our fenced garden - people should keep their dogs on a lead. I never leave her alone with children despite appearing to be soft as a brush.
Your children are at risk too btw - your dog IS a biter. Get a muzzle.

I can’t believe how many people are dismissing your dogs behaviour. What if it had got to your three well before you had and bitten them or bitten another child. I would be looking to rehome the dog. I’ve had dogs the whole life with my children and they have never shown any aggression. After speaking with friends and family, I would imagine the old lady would have gone to the police if I was you, I would report it to them myself also.

They would check if the lady had had previous tetanus vaccinations that would cover her, or if not , give tetanus. Also if elderly, skin can be thinner and healing more prolonged, so may need extra wound care. Antibiotics may also be required.

Wrong! You do generally need a tetanus shot after a dog bite, especially if the wound is deep or dirty, or if you haven't had a booster in the last five to ten years. Also dog bites can cause serious infections, so probably best not to comment on something you clearly don’t know much about!

When I was bitten I asked a paramedic outside the hospital as I felt like it was dramatic to get a jab but he said I absolutely needed it.

Didn’t have to be done with a car full. OP could have gone home and taken her address and arranged to go with her.

It’s so frustrating, people let their small dogs get away with things that bigger dogs or certain breeds would be absolutely hounded to the vet’s door to be PTS for, all because they are ‘so tiny so won’t do much damage’.
Not long ago I was out with mine at a field, 1 dog off lead one dog on as it was a rescue foster dog and we are training recall etc and a long haired chihuahua came racing over yapping, growling and snapping at our older labradors legs. The owners stood over the other side yelling ‘Poppy’ but making no attempt to come and retrieve their dog and of course ‘Poppy’ had no recall. I was stood there for 10 minutes with my Labrador trying to warn the dog to get lost as politely as she could without actually biting it and the on lead dog getting incredibly anxious. Eventually the owner managed to grab it but didn’t apologise and I told them under the law they were actually required to have their dog under control. They were clueless but had my Labrador not been so well trained and socialised that dog could have been seriously hurt.
The lady’s leg will take a long time to heal, OP should have taken her number.

She needs a tetnus so if you’ve reassured her (incorrectly) that she doesn’t then yes i’d be posting on town social media pages to try and locate her. Any dog bite requires attention, especially an elderly lady. I’d do my best to track her down, make sure she gets a tetanus and take her some flowers. And as you say, lead and muzzle from now on. Agree in getting a check up too.

This, you always need action after a dog bite. They're very nasty.

Some hospital staff would report it to the police if the victim hasn’t.

The hospital would give the tetanus jab as they did for me.

Is your dog stressed out about the newborn and 3 yr old together? I would say it’s becoming a huge bite risk towards them

Of course but I know that some hospital staff report these things to the police too.

I got bitten by a small dog and had to have a tetanus (and antibiotics) but it has scarred me forever unfortunately on my leg. I think the person knew their dog was a biter but let them off anyway. I also don’t think you should have been giving her medical advice!

You know you can't have him anywhere near your children ever now? He could randomly decide to bite them at any moment

This is why I have stopped.
going to parks. So many off lead dogs and irresponsible owners.

This is such dangerous advice. The dog can never be trusted again and the OP has little ones. Putting the dog down or giving it away is the only risk free option here. Keeping the dog is putting her children at risk. I've seen consequences of this first hand and it's not pretty.

Correct. It's a disaster waiting to happen. The dog needs to go

Not according to the law it doesn’t, it doesn’t matter how big the dog is, it was not under control in a public place and has bitten a more vulnerable member of our society.
Dogs are dogs, not fur babies, little humans and owners are accountable for their behaviour regardless of size.
That ‘small nip’ has broken the skin of an elderly person not some strapping 20 something year old with lovely elastic skin who can be easily seek medical attention for themselves. This older lady may not have any members of family around her and she may not drive.
To be honest with MN you never know what bonkers replies you’ll get and how a thread will go but 90% of people on here are correct.
The dog warden or police aren’t going to say it’s ok that the dog has bitten someone because it’s small.

Im sorry that’s awful for all of you and makes me feel very wary of dogs, that this was so out of character and unpredictable. I was bitten on my fingertip by a Jack Russell when I was delivering leaflets, it was a nasty bite and I still have very mild loss of sensation in that fingertip. I was given Antibiotics, tetanus booster and the wound wasn’t stitched because of infection risk and I thought this was standard. There is advice on NHS website about what to do after an animal bite. If you can find the lady from FB groups etc to ask if she needs any help with this then do. But otherwise I think you are right to treat your dog as a bite risk now.

PTS. No one should be bitten by someone else's pet.

Poor woman. It’s an offence to have your dog bite someone and flee. Your dog needs to be pts.

Absolutely. Plus, it's a horrible shock being bitten by an animal. She'll always be nervous around dogs now, which will limit where she goes.

You were out of order for not having your dog under control and for advising this poor lady that she didn’t need medical attention. How irresponsible.

You need to track her down and ensure she is okay and has had her would seen to properly.

Then it’s time to immediately rehome the dog with full disclosure or PTS.

That dog cannot be trusted in the same home as your children. Put them first.