So this afternoon I took my beast hiking at the Middlesex Fells like we frequently do when the weather is nice.
Right after we got into the park, we saw a couple young girls with 2 dogs, one of which they were carrying. They looked a little nervous seeing me and my dog, and I said "It's okay, he's friendly" like I normally would.
One of the girls said "Oh, we just got attacked by an off-leash dog."
I asked what kind of dog it was, and she said it was a black long-hair lab. She said the owner said to her something like "Wow, I don't know why that happened ..."
Anyway, I expressed my sympathy to her and thanked for letting me know, so we could keep a watch out. Their poor dog's ear was bloodied up pretty good, and her paw was hurt and had to be carried out.
So Manni and I continued our hike, and after a while we came up on an off-leash dog that matched the girl's description. I quickly said to the guy (from a distance) "Sorry, my dog is not friendly, so I need to keep them separated."
He said "Yeah, we just got in a fight a few minutes ago", confirming that it was the same guy.
Anyway, we walked just a few steps closer to them (it's a narrow trail, we didn't have a choice) and out of nowhere the dog snarled, growled, and lunged at Manni. Fortunately the guy was able to grab the dog before it could attack Manni.
I'm furious that this a--hole would let his 100+ lb dog brutally attack a 30 lb dog, then continue on his hike without putting the dog on a leash.
Anyway, for all you folks that attend the Fells, I figured I'd give you a heads up in case you encounter this dog and his less-than-responsible owner. The owner is probably young 30's, tall, thin, and Causcasian. I'm not good at identifying dog breeds, but he was basically a large long-hair jet-black retriever.
Talk about spoiling an otherwise great hike.
Right after we got into the park, we saw a couple young girls with 2 dogs, one of which they were carrying. They looked a little nervous seeing me and my dog, and I said "It's okay, he's friendly" like I normally would.
One of the girls said "Oh, we just got attacked by an off-leash dog."
I asked what kind of dog it was, and she said it was a black long-hair lab. She said the owner said to her something like "Wow, I don't know why that happened ..."
Anyway, I expressed my sympathy to her and thanked for letting me know, so we could keep a watch out. Their poor dog's ear was bloodied up pretty good, and her paw was hurt and had to be carried out.
So Manni and I continued our hike, and after a while we came up on an off-leash dog that matched the girl's description. I quickly said to the guy (from a distance) "Sorry, my dog is not friendly, so I need to keep them separated."
He said "Yeah, we just got in a fight a few minutes ago", confirming that it was the same guy.
Anyway, we walked just a few steps closer to them (it's a narrow trail, we didn't have a choice) and out of nowhere the dog snarled, growled, and lunged at Manni. Fortunately the guy was able to grab the dog before it could attack Manni.
I'm furious that this a--hole would let his 100+ lb dog brutally attack a 30 lb dog, then continue on his hike without putting the dog on a leash.
Anyway, for all you folks that attend the Fells, I figured I'd give you a heads up in case you encounter this dog and his less-than-responsible owner. The owner is probably young 30's, tall, thin, and Causcasian. I'm not good at identifying dog breeds, but he was basically a large long-hair jet-black retriever.
Talk about spoiling an otherwise great hike.
