Dog attack

Had Shadow out for her first decent walk yesterday since she's stopped limping & some terrier attacked her... Luckily it didnt get a good enough hold of her to leave a mark!!

The dog attacked her as i was walking her into the park (no owner to be seen) but i ran it off before it got to her... Then on the way home it came running out of a garden & jumped on Shadows head!! Was so fast i couldnt react in time to block it. Shadow was muzzled but i had it really loose & my first thought was it was going to come off & she'd kill the other dog, so i grabbed her & the other dog by the collars & kind of threw the smaller dog (not in the air just in the other direction) but it kept coming back!! There was nobody around and the dog started snapping at me when i got in the way so i ended up resorting to kicking it... I must of landed about 5 or 6 kicks before it backed off!! I actually couldnt believe it!! Anybody have any advice they can give me incase this happens again? I walk in the same park all the time & walk the same way every time i go & if that dog lives in the house where it had come out of the garden im guessing im going to have another run it with it... I can usually handle this kind of situation but i never met a dog that was so determined!!

Sorry to hear that, tbh although probably frowned upon I would removed the muzzle and just have it loosely around the dogs neck, least then she has a chance to defend herself. If shadow got hold of the dog I very much doubt you would have a repeat performance and would teach the little terrier a lesson
Alternatively you could walk with a stick so you can bat any annoying little furballs away but then Holding a dog a stick and a bag full of poo can sometimes be abit awkward.

sorry for your experience one of the many cons to being a bullbreed owner, in circumstances like this your damned if you do and damned if you dont.

Eli you poor thing it isnt a nice situation to be in having to protect your dog against such a pest. I now how hard it is not to allow shadow to defend herself but I woudl be afraid of the consequences if Shadow where to get hold of the terrier and inflict lots of damage. In a situation like that I would have a good pair of boots and use them or if you have friends with other dogs all walk together and let them sort the little fecker out providing they aren't a bully breed. You have to try and find out who owns this nuisance of a dog and threaten him with law if it happens again. there is the water in a squirty bottle that might help fend him off or even a big stick. I always carry a stick when walking my lot and am not afraid to use it.

Find out where the dog lives, call the dog warden. :)
And I agree with LisaStaff let shadow defend herself, it most defo wont happen again.

Suggestion 1: 'let shadow defend herself' are you for real?? That is hardly the first option, oh ya here comes a 10lb terrier, I'll just let my 50lb pit eat him... You really think a pit will just nip the other dog and send him on his way? The only place that dog would go is the ditch on the side of the road after 30 seconds...

Suggestion 2: 'call the dog warden' of course, snitch on someone, that's great alright.

Give the dog a proper kick and if it's done right he won't come within 20 ft again, if he does you didn't kick him hard enough. Don't let the dog settle it, that's asking for trouble.

That little terrier has 'big dog sdyrome'! A Telling off by shadow will sort it out, i dont mean litteraly let shadow maul the dog, a flick away will do. I do the same with mine, they flick em way like flies. ( While wearing muzzles) And I never have a problem with them dogs again.! Shadow needs to let that dog know who is boss!

Yes that is apart of the wardens job. Its not about 'snitching' its ellies dog who being abused by this dog, and its owners is takin no responsibitles.

We are all asuming that the terrier in question is small and if thats the case then Harry is right. As much as we would like the easy way out and let our dogs defend themselves it isnt the responsible thing to do unless your life depended on it. I have on many occasions been in a similar situation but have had to deal with Collies charging out of gates. The stick across the puss at full force works wonders and if you can get another lash in on his behind as he re-treats thats even better. It is the price we have to pay for owning these breeds as it is our duty to keep them out of harms way even if its in self defence. We can not predict the full outcome of the wrath of a pit bull once the muzzle is off but I would much prefer to pull a small terrier of Hank than the other way round. No matter how much abuse our dogs get in these confrontations it is often a long time before we can pull them off or force them to let go. the dog warden would be an option but I would at the very least prefer to give the owner a chance to get his dog under control at all times. Just as if I got into trouble with my dog I would like to be given a chance. So a threat of law would be my first option and see how keen he is about looking after his dog.

Well i didnt see a tag on the dog but if it comes out of the same garden again I'll defo be knocking on the door to see if its their dog... Shadow was fighting back (even with the muzzle on) but the little f**er didnt seem to care!! I gave it some pretty hard kicks but it took 5 of them for it to back off... I just really dont like having to kick another dog because i dont want to hurt them & wouldnt like somebody seeing me kicking some little dog, it just looks bad!! My friend had a run it with it too with her little dog but it didnt show any aggression towards her dog, must just have a thing against big dogs... I used to carry a stick but yeah it can be pretty awkward, but i might start doing it again, even just for awhile untill i feel safe again... I got such a fright!! My hands were shaking and all. Its not like me to get worried or anything when things like this happen, i think it must of been how determined the little dog was, never met one like it before

ellie i think you did the right thing, we have to understand here that if ellie had off took that muzzle off you might just be having your dog put down at this moment, we can all blame the little terrier but at the end of the day who own's this dog is whats most important, there's plenty of people here on the forum that have dogs that are not good with other dogs including my self and if any of these dogs got out they would do the same as that little terrier, its up to the owner of that dog to have it under affective control, another point is that if it be the other way around i would most certainly have being reported, IMO any1 that would take a muzzle off a dog that would be more than capable of hurting or maybe killing another dog should maybe think again at what the consequences can lead too, i would never allow any of my dogs to defend their self against another dog, think of it this way, if you encounter a dog thats attacking you and your dog is muzzled then its half the battle but if you slip your dogs muzzle off to defend its self then your digging your self deeper into problems that could result in you losing your dog regardless weather it was your fault or not because your dog happens to be a pit bull.. its very unfair but it is the reality.

YENALED1 wrote:We are all asuming that the terrier in question is small and if thats the case then Harry is right. As much as we would like the easy way out and let our dogs defend themselves it isnt the responsible thing to do unless your life depended on it. I have on many occasions been in a similar situation but have had to deal with Collies charging out of gates. The stick across the puss at full force works wonders and if you can get another lash in on his behind as he re-treats thats even better. It is the price we have to pay for owning these breeds as it is our duty to keep them out of harms way even if its in self defence. We can not predict the full outcome of the wrath of a pit bull once the muzzle is off but I would much prefer to pull a small terrier of Hank than the other way round. No matter how much abuse our dogs get in these confrontations it is often a long time before we can pull them off or force them to let go. the dog warden would be an option but I would at the very least prefer to give the owner a chance to get his dog under control at all times. Just as if I got into trouble with my dog I would like to be given a chance. So a threat of law would be my first option and see how keen he is about looking after his dog.

Have to agree i really wouldnt like having to try pull Shadow off a small dog & wouldnt want to risk her getting taken off me for "attacking" another dog... People wouldnt see it as her defending herself they'd just see it that she killed some poor helpless little terrier. It could of just been a once off thing that the dog got out, but my friend lives around where the dog attacked shadow & said shes seen it out wondering around a good few times, so dont think this is going to be my last run in with it Think i'll try using a stick for now & if it comes out of the same garden again I'll knock in & have a word with them

Harry wrote:Suggestion 1: 'let shadow defend herself' are you for real?? That is hardly the first option, oh ya here comes a 10lb terrier, I'll just let my 50lb pit eat him... You really think a pit will just nip the other dog and send him on his way? The only place that dog would go is the ditch on the side of the road after 30 seconds...

Suggestion 2: 'call the dog warden' of course, snitch on someone, that's great alright.

Give the dog a proper kick and if it's done right he won't come within 20 ft again, if he does you didn't kick him hard enough. Don't let the dog settle it, that's asking for trouble.

put very bluntly harry but i have to agree with you.

celticpitbulls wrote:ellie i think you did the right thing, we have to understand here that if ellie had off took that muzzle off you might just be having your dog put down at this moment, we can all blame the little terrier but at the end of the day who own's this dog is whats most important, there's plenty of people here on the forum that have dogs that are not good with other dogs including my self and if any of these dogs got out they would do the same as that little terrier, its up to the owner of that dog to have it under affective control, another point is that if it be the other way around i would most certainly have being reported, IMO any1 that would take a muzzle off a dog that would be more than capable of hurting or maybe killing another dog should maybe think again at what the consequences can lead too, i would never allow any of my dogs to defend their self against another dog, think of it this way, if you encounter a dog thats attacking you and your dog is muzzled then its half the battle but if you slip your dogs muzzle off to defend its self then your digging your self deeper into problems that could result in you losing your dog regardless weather it was your fault or not because your dog happens to be a pit bull.. its very unfair but it is the reality.

Have to agree, i would never risk loosing shadow so would never let her fight... I have to admit i prob would let her if a large dog was mauling her & i couldnt stop it, but even then i'd have to think twice before i took the muzzle off

fair play elie, we all at some stage encounter dogs coming at us weather they are good or nasty, there is a small air bottle you can buy at most pet shops now, its only the size of a deodorant bottle but gives out a huge blast type noise when you press it, if a dog approaches you just blast it at the dog, both dogs wont like it but its handy because it also stops your dog if he or she is getting a little frenzyfied with the whole approach.

That stuff is good, I saw someone using it before in the petshop in Athlone. It's just compressed, CO2, it doesn't harm the dog just shocks them.

celticpitbulls wrote:

Harry wrote:Suggestion 1: 'let shadow defend herself' are you for real?? That is hardly the first option, oh ya here comes a 10lb terrier, I'll just let my 50lb pit eat him... You really think a pit will just nip the other dog and send him on his way? The only place that dog would go is the ditch on the side of the road after 30 seconds...

Suggestion 2: 'call the dog warden' of course, snitch on someone, that's great alright.

Give the dog a proper kick and if it's done right he won't come within 20 ft again, if he does you didn't kick him hard enough. Don't let the dog settle it, that's asking for trouble.

put very bluntly harry but i have to agree with you.

Well I think it was justified.

That sounds handy! Im heading to the petshop tomorrow to get a backpack for shadow (going to put bottles of water in it to help burn that flab lol) so i'll see if they have it

what about carrying a "squirty" bottle with a mix of water and amonia in it, when the dog approaches just squirt it on the ground in front of the dog and if that doesnt send him to the hills then i dont know what wil, harmless and extremely effective, once out of the range of the scent of it the dog will recover but just make sure ur pit is on ur other side and walk off as soon as u squirt it so shes not left with the smell in her nose..

tommy1985 wrote:what about carrying a "squirty" bottle with a mix of water and amonia in it, when the dog approaches just squirt it on the ground in front of the dog and if that doesnt send him to the hills then i dont know what wil, harmless and extremely effective, once out of the range of the scent of it the dog will recover but just make sure ur pit is on ur other side and walk off as soon as u squirt it so shes not left with the smell in her nose..

nope that is far to dangerous as you might not have time to see the dog coming and it could backfire and end up in eyes.

I never suggested that she take the muzzle off. Shadow could easily flick them away with her head. When little dogs come over to mine shouting and barking , mine always muzzled and leashed will flick them aside and todder on. No harm done to either dog.

Must check out that squirty bottle to , might distract his lordship as well .

I thought ammonia is what your kidneys produce and it's what's in piss?

Harry wrote:I thought ammonia is what your kidneys produce and it's what's in piss?

yes Harry all animals would produce small amounts of ammonia. Household ammonia is readily available but is very corrosive and is classed as a hazardous substance.

Oh right.. Doesn't sound like nice stuff :L

Irresponsible of me to suggest taking the muzzle off I know but to be honest, Im absolutely SICK of things like this, this happens to me nearly every single time I walk my dogs, there are so many dogs roaming where I live.
To the point that Im getting out of bullbreeds. Theres no enjoyment in even taking your dog on a walk because you have to watch everyone elses dumb ass dogs. Cant even go to agility training without some SAP having their dog running on the course or anoying the fook out of mine.
Ronnie got charged by Bichon Frise in the week, the fella just watched it as it ran into us and started nipping at his legs, you can only imagine what we said Ian was near strangling Ronnie trying to left him up in the air and boot the other dog away. It also makes it alot harder when you have 2-3 dogs with you. My lot will turn on each other if they cant get near the other dog.

I have gotten to the point were i say to myself the next time Im just going to keep walking and if Ron gets hold of another dog then so be it, whether I do this of not is another thing...I dont like the thought of another dog being hurt but after nearly 5 years of this Im sick to the back teeth of it.
Crossing roads, changing direction cant go inot the local park because all the roaming dogs just hanging around....just boils my piss!

I love my bullbreeds but at the moment there are more cons to owning one than pros.

just to add, I meand 5 years as I never encountered roaming dogs in the UK like I have here. The old one of two but where I live everyone seems to just open the doors and let the dog take itself for a walk