Chowder was just attacked

[bjolly]

my older dog, Chowder, was just attacked down the street from our house. The neighbor's huge american bulldog burst out of his front door (I guess the storm door wasn't latched) and attacked him. The owners ran out and pulled him off but he got loose and grabbed Chowder again.

Chowder is limping on his right back leg and every so often he just sits down and doesn't want to keep walking. He did that all the way back to our house. He won't let me look at the 2 areas on his back that I think he got bit on.

I'm waiting for my partner to get home with the car so we can go to the emergency vet. I can't believe this happened.

 

[Renee750il]

Poor guy! He's probably as stunned as you are, maybe even a little shocky. Getting home under his own power is a good sign though. Keep us posted, if you will, I know I'll be worrying about him. (((((((((((((HUGS)))))))))))))))

 

[Miakoda]

Let us know what the vet's examination shows.

 

[sassafras]

How scary.

 

[Xandra]

Poor thing. I hope he's sore and he just needs some rest. Like Renee said, he's probably pretty shook up himself.

Did the owners offer to cover any expenses, or do you think they will if you request it?

 

[~Dixie's_Mom~]

Oh no! Poor boy, I hope everything goes smoothly!

 

[MPP]

Oh, poor Chowder! And he's such a nice dog too; I always enjoy reading about him. It doesn't sound as if he's majorly hurt, but at the very least, he's shocked and disoriented.
Please post immediately when you get home from the evet. You know we'll all be on pins and needles. Hugs for you and gentle head-strokes for the boy.

 

[bjolly]

thanks! My poor boy. He was very very shook up. (so am I!) They shaved two large areas on his back and found multiple puncture wounds under the fur. They gave him an injection of pain medicine and gave us some pills for pain and some antibiotics. It doesn't look like the wounds are deep but they are definitely painful. The vet said they're going to be very bruised and swollen over the next day or so.

I'm so thankful it wasn't worse. Thankfully he didn't get him on his belly, or break any bones. My brother in law's chihuahua was visiting for the evening, and often I take him with us for walks. If he had been with us the dog probably would have killed him.

 

[MPP]

Poor, poor Chowder. I certainly hope he doesn't have any lasting ill-effects emotionally from this. His physical wounds, while painful, don't sound overly serious, which is a very good thing.

Are you going to talk to these people about paying the vet bill? And you might want to discuss with them, courteously, what steps they are going to take to contain their dog, since now they know that he will attack other dogs unprovoked.

 

[Lolas Dad]

Poor, poor Chowder. I certainly hope he doesn't have any lasting ill-effects emotionally from this. His physical wounds, while painful, don't sound overly serious, which is a very good thing.

Are you going to talk to these people about paying the vet bill? And you might want to discuss with them, courteously, what steps they are going to take to contain their dog, since now they know that he will attack other dogs unprovoked.

In addition you may want to report it to your local animal control. They should know about this also. It's your call though.

Glad he is going to be ok.

 

[Renee750il]

Moving around periodically during the day will help alleviate some of his soreness. Poor fella. Just walking along, minding his own business . . . Surely the dog's owners will be eager to pay the vet bills.

 

[bjolly]

that's what kills me, he was just having a walk, not bothering anyone. It was awful not being able to protect him better. It happened so fast.

I really hope he doesn't become fearful because of this. He has always been skittish of new people, but he loves other dogs and has never had any fear of them at all. Now, our puppy Eli is afraid of strange dogs but has been getting better....seeing this happen last night probably will set him back.

the owners were apologetic and are going to cover the vet bills, so that's good. We are thinking about making a report to animal control. I know it was an accident, but this is the second incident we know of with this dog. A few weeks ago he and another dog got in a fight down at the park at the end of our street, and a woman who intervened got bitten. I don't know how that fight started or if the other dog was hurt, but clearly the owners need to take steps to keep their dog away from other dogs.

my poor boy:

 

[Doberluv]

Oh wow! Those are some nasty puncture wounds. Those hurt sooooo much. Poor guy. Yeah, those people need to do something about that dog. I'm so glad the Chihuahua wasn't with you then. He very well might have been killed. It sounds like this neighbor's dog is a real menace. I hope he won't be affected by dogs in the future, but he might be. Lots of vibes coming your way. Give Chowder some pats and a treat for me.

 

[MPP]

Poor Chowder. Those bites look nasty! And so many of them. That dog meant business, obviously.

It's good that they are going to pay the vet bills without coercion. It should, but doesn't always, happen that way. I'm a little up in the air about reporting it. I don't know what I'd do.

Pets and ear skritches for Chowder. Hugs for you.

 

[Taqroy]

Awwww poor Chowder. That's good of them to cover the vet bills at least. Maybe you can try to talk with them about how to contain a reactive dog if you don't want to call AC? It's a tough decision for sure. ((((hugs))))

 

[Danefied]

Poor guy!
I hope he heals up quickly and uneventfully.

 

[Renee750il]

They sound like reasonable people. Maybe a friendly neighbor-to-neighbor chat about keeping their dog contained, and perhaps getting some professional training help would do the job.

Getting AC involved tends to destroy any chance of continuing an amicable relationship or accomplishing anything.

Tallulah will dive out the door every once in awhile if she gets a chance and the whim takes her, so one of the things I try to do is make sure there is always a closed door between her and any outside door being opened. If, for some reason, I can't do that, I make sure she's in a good, solid STAY back away from the door, and even then I watch her like a hawk, for any slight twitch. If she twitches, I shut the door, put her farther away in the stay and do it again.

Maybe something like that will help them get this under control, along with working on desensitizing their dog -- as much as possible -- to other dogs. It may be that his drive is too strong for desensitization, but even just taking the edge off would help.

 

[Giny]

Aw, poor guy! Glad he's going to be OK physically, hopeful the same will be for his mental state.

 

[Doberluv]

Even a small, fenced outdoor vestibule-type thing would help...if they open their door, there's a small outdoor area which has a gate. That way, there's double the security, like they do with aviaries.

 

[bjolly]

thank you all for the good vibes! He is still sore but doesn't seem to be in too much pain. Eli keeps wanting to play with him and we keep having to fend the little guy off.

my partner wanted to report it but I'd rather talk to the owners directly about it and that's the way we're going to go for now. They're reasonable people and as long as they're taking steps to prevent more incidents that's enough for me. I don't want anything to happen to their dog, and I don't want bad blood in the neighborhood. I just want everyone to be safe.

Now if we talk to them and they don't seem to take the problem seriously, that's another story and we would report it then. I don't think that'll happen though. The other dog is about 2 years old and was ok with other dogs as a puppy. I suspect his dog aggression has come out recently and they're just starting to realize it's a problem. He's perfectly friendly with people. We noticed that they recently put a much taller, more secure fence in their yard, so that's a start.

anyway, thank you all for the good vibes and ear scratchies for Chowder. We've been giving him lots of extra love.