Dog attack

[GraciesMom]

I was standing by the dumpster at the RV park this morning, talking to my neighbor who has one little sweetheart of a dog and another, bigger shy dog. The lady that is next to me has two tiny precious poodles that got away from her when she was attempting to tie them up outside. They took off for us and my neighbor's dogs and were just doing the "sniff and greet" thing when the bigger dog attacked one of the little poodles, grabbing it by the neck. My neighbor got bitten up pretty good by the little poodle who was fighting for it's life, but the big dog had a death grip on the poodles neck and was turning round and round and shaking it. I was terrified. She finally managed to get the big dog off the poodle, who made a bee-line for the RV. He was bleeding and terrified. I'm waiting for the owner to get back from the vet. My biggest fear was that she was going to have a heart attack - she's an elderly lady and these dogs are obviously her children. I didn't think very well on my feet . . . I didn't know what to do. I was afraid of getting bitten, my neighbor was in the middle of the frey. I should have picked up a stick and hit the big dog but it all happened so fast. What do you do if a big dog attacks and you have no weapon to fight him off?

[GraciesMom]

I was standing by the dumpster at the RV park this morning, talking to my neighbor who has one little sweetheart of a dog and another, bigger shy dog. The lady that is next to me has two tiny precious poodles that got away from her when she was attempting to tie them up outside. They took off for us and my neighbor's dogs and were just doing the "sniff and greet" thing when the bigger dog attacked one of the little poodles, grabbing it by the neck. My neighbor got bitten up pretty good by the little poodle who was fighting for it's life, but the big dog had a death grip on the poodles neck and was turning round and round and shaking it. I was terrified. She finally managed to get the big dog off the poodle, who made a bee-line for the RV. He was bleeding and terrified. I'm waiting for the owner to get back from the vet. My biggest fear was that she was going to have a heart attack - she's an elderly lady and these dogs are obviously her children. I didn't think very well on my feet . . . I didn't know what to do. I was afraid of getting bitten, my neighbor was in the middle of the frey. I should have picked up a stick and hit the big dog but it all happened so fast. What do you do if a big dog attacks and you have no weapon to fight him off?

[Nathan Focht]

I have had English Mastiff for many years and used to show them. Over the years at shows I have seen many fights (few involving Mastiffs). In general, I believe that if a large dog is in a fight with another dog and you do not "control" the large dog, you are better to stay out. They are powerful animals and you do not want to get in the middle.

But, we have had some fights at our house over food or some other event. When I have had alarge dog fight, I grab the rear of the animal. The Tail, legs, etc. You have a better ability to pull the dog out of the fight and not get clipped by either dog.

A side note to your question is what if the dog was attacking you. I believe that if it is one dog, you have two goals. 1) Get your hands and/or arms around its neck so the teeth are in control. 2) Get your weight on the dog to control the body and claws.

If you look at a dog fight, they are going to the neck to control and submit the other. If you can completely control the dog, you will prove you are dominant and force a submission. But again, if they are not attacking a human, don't ask for trouble.

Finally, please make sure that the authorities are called and justice has its course. As a fulltimer with large dogs, we have to always convince people our dogs are "safe" because of these stories. Bad dogs are the result of bad owners and they need to learn.

[Route 66]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Bad dogs are the result of bad owners and they need to learn. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Unfortunately, many owners cannot control their dogs.

From the info in the OP, I believe both owners were at fault.

Neither could control their animals.

A trained dog is a beautiful thing.

[GraciesMom]

I made sure the police were called and that the little fellow was taken to the vet. I like the neighbor that has the big dog but I made sure the RV park knew about the attack.

I have had training to defend myself from dog attacks (good old Marine Corps self defense) but I had no idea what to do to get that dog off that poor little poodle. I think I will start carrying mace and/or a walking stick when I take my tiny doggies out from now on . . . this could have been me . . . as a rule, I don't let any larger dogs approach mine. People might think I'm rude, but it only takes one well placed bite to end their lives.

[Nathan Focht]

A funny counterpoint. I keep my bigdogs from little dogs because they often have poor doggy manners. Many come sprinting up into my dos face which is asking for trouble.

Why can't we all just get along.....

[tmar10]

It appears Bailey and I must be camping at the same places as Nathan. We have more trouble with small dogs with bad owners than larger dogs. The owners always tell me their dog was attacked by a larger dog and now has psychological issues.

If a dog is attacking another dog, the last place I want a hand or foot is between them. Grabbing hind limbs and pulling sounds risky if you do not know the animal you attached yourself to during the fight. Water, coffee, soda and/or mace could be a handy tools to get their attention. Other options are available and on the table if the offending dog will not leave or release. I have little patience with aggressive dogs that can't be controlled or their lazy owners.

[Howard Leap]

IMHO, there are way to many irresponsible dog owners who think its OK to allow their unsocialized, ill-mannered dog off leash. Even when there are definative rules posted about dogs MUST be on a leash at ALL times.

Almost as bad are the people who think their dog is under control on a 25 foot retractable leash. One of our dogs was recently attacked by a doberman whos owner thought his dog was under control as the leash reeled out to its full 25'...in less than a second the dobie was on top of our Border Collie with a 3 to 1 weight advantage. We also have a neighbors house that we must pass by twice when we walk our dogs. He thinks it's OK for his Pit Bull to be loose in his yard and would prefer to stick his head in the sand about the power of the dog and the liability he incurrs if it bites someone.

When we walk our dogs I carry a 750,000 Volt stun baton in my back pocket (less than 1 lb. about 8" long....cheap insurance at about $40). I hope I never have to use it, but it's there if I need it.

[Lorna]

You may want to try carrying one of those aerosol powered air horns that you can pick up in the boating section of many stores (like Wal-Mart). They are quite loud and will do double duty: call attention (help) to you and hopefully distract the animal. I have found the smaller the dog, the nastier they tend to be. At least that's been my experience and I have owned large dogs (formally abused American Eskimo Spitz was my smallest @ 40 lbs, Husky/Borzoi Mix @ 65 lbs, then the largest was a Lab/Chow mix who was big like a Lab but built like a Chow @ 80+ lbs). And I NEVER used a retractable leash. Although my Husky/Borzoi ate up a fat mini doberman (I thought it was a pot bellied pig until it barked at me) thst was on one. All the parks I had my dogs in had rules that stated 6-8 ft leashes. Harnesses help with the larger dogs (Husky/Borzoi snapped a chocker chain collar to eat the piggy dog... she thought she was protecting her girls).

[Paulin]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I carry a 750,000 Volt stun baton in my back pocket (less than 1 lb. about 8" long.... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Where can I buy one of these? Any permit required?

[Howard Leap]

Paulin,

A search on the internet will bring up lots of sites that sell all different types of tasers and stun guns.

This is where I bought mine... Stun Baton..

and its on sale now for just $30.

As far as I know there are no permits required in Texas to carry one. When we bought ours we checked with the local authorities as to the resrictions. That said, here is a list of states where there are NO restrictions (keep in mind this website is maintained by a company that sells the stun guns) : List of States

It appears that they are currently legal in California.

[chasfm11]

I, too, was bitten by a Doberman while riding my bike. I can tell you that there was nothing I could have done and no weapon that I could have carried that would have prevented that attack. The dog was 20 feet on the other side of the owner. When I rode by, the dog, on a retractable leash, quickly ran past the owner, traveled another 25 feet towards me (about 50 feet total) and grabbed the calf of my leg before I could react. While this is going on, the owner is saying "don't worry, she won't hurt you."

I ride my bike 3 times a week for cardio exercise. This wasn't my only dog encounter so far and I don't expect it to be my last. IMHO, stun guns and pepper spray will be of limited use and I probably would end up using them against the owners as well as the dogs. Most of the owners that I've run into with uncontrolled dogs were aggressive toward me if I attempted to address the dog situation. Our town has a leash ordnance requiring the dogs on no more than a 6 foot lead in public but those ordnances just don't apply to some people, don't you know? I didn't have my cell phone will me for the Doberman attack but never leave home without it now. BTW, that owner refused my direct attempts to get him to identify himself and the police have been unable to find him since.

The air horn does sound like a good idea. If you got close enough to the dog's ear's with it, they may be so startled by the power of the sound that they would break off the attack. At least it is an interesting theory. I hope that I don't have to test it in real life.

[Happymi]

The air horn sounds reasonable to me. Just remember how our RV horn scares the heck out of people when we use it. Can you imagine how a dog would react with the horn going off in there face?

When I was a child I remember my father saying "If you get attacked by a dog remember to fight him like a bad man." I was attacked by a Chow-Rot. mix a few years ago. The first thing I remembered was what my father had told me when I was a kid. I knew the owner of the dog but I was injured and bruised. I believe if the owner hadn't help I would have been in the hospital for some time. As it was, I was bruised and had many holes in my clothes and skin. This dog had attacked several other people before and the owners knew about it. I insisted that the dog be put down. I believe if I had the air horn it would have worked.

I have two little dogs that I walk on a leash in the campgrounds and I am going buy and carry the air horn on their leash. I never even thought about a dog fight in a campground. Thanks again iRV2 members.

Great Idea
Happymi

[hondo122]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Route 66:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Bad dogs are the result of bad owners and they need to learn. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Unfortunately, many owners cannot control their dogs.

From the info in the OP, I believe both owners were at fault.

Neither could control their animals.

A trained dog is a beautiful thing. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I have to agree with you, had the poodle been controlled this could have been avoided. My experiences with Zeus are that the tiny dogs are the agressive ones, he has had numerous little dogs come up and snap at him. Now before everyone gets excited he will not attack another dog if I'm with him. He knows I'm the boss and expects me to stop the other dog. The only dog he ever went at was a wolf mix whose owner had no control. He was protecting me at that point.