05/11/2021
*****long post alert *****
Today during a walk just off of Temple green road, 2 of my girls were attacked by another 2 dogs - 2 terrier type dogs.
My 2 labs were next to me after just having a treat when the dogs rounded a corner near us. They covered the ground between us in seconds and grabbed my chocolate lab by an ear on each side and began to pull, coco - howling in pain dropped to the ground while I tried to prize the dogs jaws apart. I sent Tillie away so she wasn’t also attacked or getting in the way of me trying to help coco. The owner arrived by then and started yanking one of his dogs (still attached to my girl) by the hind legs to get it to let go.. the other dog he’d shouted at and it had let go. He managed to get the dog to let go by pulling its mouth, then things got even worse - the dog then clamped on to Coco’s throat and wrestled her to the floor, the other dog ran back over and grabbed her by the tail, they pulled in two opposite directions until coco fell to the floor again.
I had to resort to punching the dog repeatedly while kicking the one that had hold her her tail.
The dog at her tail took off running and began to attack Tillie while I carried on trying to get the dog to loosen its grip on my girls throat by any means.. the owner was trying to prize the jaws again.
After a final kick to the dog it let go of coco and the owner was able to try and get it on a lead, at this point it noticed that the other dog was attacking Tillie and set off and pounced on her. Tillie fought back with all she had but again one got her by the throat and one at her tail after hanging off of her ears.
I quickly pulled coco on the lead while quickly assessing any wounds so I could help Tillie get free. The screaming from my girls while this attack was happening was horrific. I managed to hold Coco on the lead, kick one dog at Tillies tail and then kick the one at her throat.. they both let go as Tillie was still fighting back too, but they tried to then get back on Coco!!! The owner had been bitten by one of his own dogs and was bleeding and still trying to get his dogs on a lead.
The dogs were completely out of control.
The whole thing lasted minutes and without any dramatisation, I believe they would have killed one or both of my girls if we hadn’t manage to fight them off, Coco’s eyes had rolled back in her head as her airway was being constricted.
The owner got his dogs on a lead, told me that one of his dogs will go for anything, that he hadn’t known I was there or he would have had them on a lead.
I called my husband to ask him to come and help me assess the girls when I got them back to my van.
I said to the man I’m going to need your details so that I can contact you if one of my girls needs medical attention, he said well you’re not getting it and set off walking… So I began filming him and followed him.
He gave me various threats of being sued for filming him, told me that the attack was my fault for being where I was, that I was definitely not getting his details and that, that’s just what dogs do.
I carried on following him.
He finally turned on me and gave me his name and street name and set off walking again.
His dogs were still trying to get at my girls while they were on leads.
He shouted over his shoulder that that was all I was getting of his details that I wasn’t getting his house number and carried on storming off.
I carried on behind him as it was a single track lane and we were nearing the end of it.
My husband was at the end of that lane.. my husband got out of our car and asked the man what had happened, the man had a total change of character.. told my husband what had happened was agreeable and said his dogs should probably have been on a lead, gave him his full address and name.
I was standing to the side checking on the girls injuries, once I’d finished I told the man that he should be ashamed of himself that he was just going to walk away from what his dogs had done and that it had taken my husband speaking to him for him to give me his details, and that he should be ashamed of the way he’d spoken to me.
He never asked if coco and Tillie were ok.
I took my girls home and checked them over properly, coco has a puncture wound on her throat, a bruise on her mouth and a cut on her tail. I then told coco’s mum what had happened.
Her mum has taken her for a check up at the vets and she’s been given antibiotics and painkillers as everything will hurt later on, but the wounds are superficial.
Tillie came off better and doesn’t have any puncture wounds but is achy and shaken.
I’m ok, shaken and heartbroken that my girls have had to go through such an awful thing, but proud that all 3 of us handled ourselves well. I’ve passed the mans details to Coco’s mum and dad for them to do with as they need.
I’ve been doing my job for years and have seen dog fights and dog disagreements and even dogs attack eachother, but nothing as violent, unprovoked or needless as what’s happened today.
