Family Dog Attacked- UPDATE Post 67 WITH (Graphic) PICTURES!

[Eeyores Butterfly]

wdwfam: I don't think so. I know last year is when his arthritis started, so it probably wasn't him, I don't think he has ever had an agility class, which is probably a good thing! We have knee high pet gates to keep him out of my father's room and the basement, if he did agility he could probably jump those in a heartbeat!

 

[OceanAnnie]

That was all so avoidable and sad for your poor dog! You guys should not have to foot the bill for the neighbor's mistake. History or not, they should pay for your pet's injuries. If it were me, I'd figure the bad blood is already there (wrong as it is).

It's just wrong all the way around. I hope Schnitzel's pain will be managed well and will have a smooth recovery.

Good luck with everything.

 

[clh2]

Please call the police. That way, there will be a record of the problem. Do you want this to happen to someone else's dog, or another person.?

I would also read up on dog-injury laws in your state. Where I live, things are pretty specific about what the dog owner is responsible for.

 

[zurgswife]

What if the next thing this dog decides to attack is a small child. And that child doesn't get as lucky as your dog. Your dad needs to forget about the trouble he might cause and realize this dog is dangerous to everybody that lives around there. How would your dad feel if next month this dog kills a child because he didn't want to make a fuss with the police?

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

We are considering it. I also reminded him that if it came to a "neighborhood feud" people would be on our side. My parents have lived in that house since before I was born (I am 23). My father jogs five miles around the neighborhood everyday, all the kids know him. He has helped people when their dogs have been hit by cars, when something bad has happened, etc. These people have been here a year and a half and have pissed off multiple neighbors with their dogs.

I think at this point it is still the shock of it all. I did bring up the idea of a kid, and he is not putting it out of his mind. At this point, we are glad that Schnitzel is okay. I'm sure our vet who is also a good family friend will recommend the same thing, and they'll probably follow her recommendation.

 

[Dolce27]

What if the next thing this dog decides to attack is a small child. And that child doesn't get as lucky as your dog. Your dad needs to forget about the trouble he might cause and realize this dog is dangerous to everybody that lives around there. How would your dad feel if next month this dog kills a child because he didn't want to make a fuss with the police?

I agree with this. Something needs to be done about this before something worse happens. The neighbors hate your family regardless if you do something about their dogs or not. I suggest that your father takes action. Call the police and make them pay the vet bills. By doing nothing, it sends the message to them that they are in the right and they don't have to take responsible action for their dogs.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Schnitzel is doing really well. He is not in a lot of pain, but the vet thinks that is due to the fact that he is one doped up doggie! They are keeping him another night just to be safe due to the extent of the damage. I don't know if my mother has talked to the vet yet about the whole situation- like I said they are good family friends and my mother is in a book club with her as well. I think she may just wait until she goes to pick Schnitzel up. Once she talks to her is when they will begin deciding what to do.

My parents are pretty upset over this, so I'm just going to sit back and give tehm some time to process it all. I've said my piece about what I think they should do (call the authorities and have the owners pay the vet bill), so they kne my stance on this issue. Once things settle down a bit I will talk to them again.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Well, Schnitzel is home, looking like a Frankenpuppy. I'm sure his cat is happy (he raised our cat Ailaina, she thinks she is a dog). I heard she wasn't quite sure what to do with herself without her dog.

Apparently he is getting around quite well. My mom rigged it so he can go potty on the deck since he isn't supposed to take stairs. She turned her back for one minute and he plopped down the stairs like it was no big deal. We have a feeling this is due to his being one doped up doggy so we are going to try to curtail this behavior.

My mother talked to our vet and she agreed that since we were in the street it is not our duty to pay the bill. Right now my parents believe they will take the bill to the owners and tell them that as long as they pay the bill and keep their dog on a leash they will not file a report with the authorities. They do have pictures and a vet bill as proof of what happened. The only way he could have sustained his injuries was from being shaken by a large dog. My father is going to wait to talk to them until he is sure he can do it without yelling. For what it's worth, the past few days when they've had the dog out they have had her on a leash. Perhaps they have learned their lesson.

 

[christiane]

Eeyores Butterfly...

I am so happy that Schnitzel is recovering well. What a terrible ordeal for him...he is a beautiful little fellow.

Please, please encourage your father to pursue this. He just needs to find out who handles this in his town and start the process. At this point, I would care less about what his nasty neighbour thinks.

For $100, he could have a lawyer draft a letter asking for reimbursement of all fees and threatening a lawsuit if this isn't done.

Unfortunately one German Shepherd has paid the price for his owner's stupidity and now a second one might. That is sad, too. But a dangerous dog with idiotic owners is a bad combination.

And since these people have a history of being irresponsible with their dogs, I would also call the SPCA to investigate them.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I have encouraged them to report it- they know my stance on this issue. My father doesn't want to for several reasons:
1.) He's non confrontational
2.) He doesn't want to start a neighborhood feud
3.) They're not sure that we even have a county animal control (I'm assuming we do)
4.) This is not the first dog in our neighborhood to attack other dogs. One attacked multiple times and when the sheriff's department was contacted literally nothing was done. The dog continued to roam until she simply got too old to leave her yard. If the dog threatens people they will do something, but they won't do anything if a dog attacks another dog- even if that other dog is killed.

My parents know how I feel, and they aren't entirely sure yet what they are going to do. Schnitzel just came home today so I think they are trying to step back and collect their thoughts before making a final decision. I'm going home this weekend and may be able to talk them into it, but I won't push it too hard as that won't have any effect on my dad.

 

[golfgal]

They better just hope that dog doesn't go after a child next time. I am surprised that the VET didn't report it. When we took our dog in after her attack one of the first questions the vet asked was 'did you report this to the police'. If we hadn't they said they had to--maybe local ordinance??

If they don't pay you can file a claim against their homeowner's insurance for your vet bill. Finding out who they have would be the issue. There is a good chance they will get dropped from their homeowner's coverage too and that might prompt some action on their part?

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

We just got this e-mail from my aunt. She and my uncle are dog lovers and have raised several dobermans (another notorious breed). She phrased it better than I ever could have, so maybe they will listen to her.

Don't think this is the right kind of dog for your neighbors. Have to go to England to get a stable German Shepard, as unless you want to pay $$$$ in US, you can't find a good one that you can trust. Doesn't sound like they socialized her either since she is dog aggressive. Best to just have the police take care of it. Don't think you guys should go over there. Doesn't sound like owners are open to suggestions, such as a fence (6feet), or care about their dog (hence don't care about yours either). Should always be on a lead when out of dog run.

It would probably be best if police took the dog away from them and put it down, as she can't be trusted and perhaps (likely) a child will be next. Too bad, as the right owner would have at least made the dog manageable.

People don't do their homework! Our love to Schnitzel.
http://www.spdrdogs.org/breeds/gsd.html

 

[daisax]

Doesn't sound like they socialized her either since she is dog aggressive.

Socialization is very important, of course, but some dogs are simply dog aggressive and it has nothing to do with how well they're socialized -- they're hard wired that way (as individuals). There's a very strong genetic component to dog on dog aggression. That type of innate dog aggression is easily managed -- you don't let the dog loose with other dogs -- problem solved! So long as you recognize there's a problem and your responsibility to handle it, which it sounds like these lousy owners do not. Of course you shouldn't breed such dogs and pass on those genes.

There's another form of aggression which comes about when an essentially unstable dog is owned by irresponsible people (or a stable one is driven unstable by irresponsible people). That sounds more like the case here. Under this situation, with different owners who did socialize the dog and work with it the dog would have turned out differently. These type of people typically have a series of dogs that "don't work out" -- and don't see the common denominator.

 

[minniecarousel]

Best wishes for Schnitzel's recovery.

I really hope your parent's pursue getting payment from the neighbors AND reporting the incident to authorities. They would be putting the entire neighborhood at risk if they don't report this!

 

[christiane]

I can see why your Dad justs wants to keep the peace; it's hard to have to make a report on your neighbours.

But in this situation, I always ask myself "What is the worst thing that could happen if I don't do something." If I can live with it, then maybe I wouldn't report it. But I think your Dad knows you have a canine time bomb in your neighbourhood & something very bad could happen. Is it possible he could have some liability for not reporting Schnitzel's attack if the Shepherd fatally attacks another dog, or even worse a child??

If someone in the sheffiff's department doesn't take it seriously, then keep going up the ladder to find someone who will care. The town will be on the hook if something bad happens.

I like the idea of the vet reporting it, if your Dad is not comfortable. Contacting the home owner's insurance company is also a good idea.

I disagree with your aunt about American German Shepherds. A GS born in any country could do this. It is breeding, but it is also discipline, training & a responsible owner.

Hope Schnitzel's recovery continues to go well.

Christiane.

 

[rileyroosmom]

I'm glad your dog is doing better!

I had a similar incident happen to our dog 7 years ago. My family was outside in our front yard with our nearly blind, 10 year old toy poodle (she weighed 6 pounds). A lady was walking in the street with a large boxer. Before I knew what happened, the boxer had broken away from the woman, ran in our yard, and had my dog in it's mouth. My then husband came running with a shovel to hit the boxer, but him running scared off the boxer. Turns out, the lady walking the boxer was the nanny. The owner called us to discuss considering paying half the vet bills. I went nuts saying she should pay the whole bill. My dog's tongue had been ripped in half and a few puncture wounds. She stayed for a few days at the vet and recovered, never fully, her little tongue always hung out of her mouth.

The bill was over $1,000. We filed a report and took the woman to small claims court. Guess what, she never had to pay a dime!!! The court didn't consider the dog our "property". We were at fault for not having our 10 year old blind toy poodle on a leash. Thank God the dog didn't grab my 4 month old daughter instead who was sitting in a bouncy seat on the lawn with the dog sitting next to her - although a child is considered property by the courts and they would have had to pay the bills!!! Ridiculous and crazy.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Riley: That's just sick! I would think the fact that your dog wsa in your own yard would mean something. I don't understand some people logic sometimes.

 

[Microcell]

I have encouraged them to report it- they know my stance on this issue. My father doesn't want to for several reasons:
1.) He's non confrontational
2.) He doesn't want to start a neighborhood feud
3.) They're not sure that we even have a county animal control (I'm assuming we do)
4.) This is not the first dog in our neighborhood to attack other dogs. One attacked multiple times and when the sheriff's department was contacted literally nothing was done. The dog continued to roam until she simply got too old to leave her yard. If the dog threatens people they will do something, but they won't do anything if a dog attacks another dog- even if that other dog is killed.

My parents know how I feel, and they aren't entirely sure yet what they are going to do. Schnitzel just came home today so I think they are trying to step back and collect their thoughts before making a final decision. I'm going home this weekend and may be able to talk them into it, but I won't push it too hard as that won't have any effect on my dad.

You know, this is sticky for your dad, because bad neighbors can really make life miserable.. especially if nothing will be done by the local authorities anyway. I would keep an eagle eye out for the kids in the neighborhood to be sure!

 

[Microcell]

Socialization is very important, of course, but some dogs are simply dog aggressive and it has nothing to do with how well they're socialized -- they're hard wired that way (as individuals). There's a very strong genetic component to dog on dog aggression. That type of innate dog aggression is easily managed -- you don't let the dog loose with other dogs -- problem solved! So long as you recognize there's a problem and your responsibility to handle it, which it sounds like these lousy owners do not. Of course you shouldn't breed such dogs and pass on those genes.

I have to say I agree with this.. I have a Jack Russell and she is the sweetest dog ever, loves everyone, and we have two cats. As nice as she is, and as much as she licks the dickens out of one of the cats (is too scared of the other) she does go to Kennel when we are not home. I have researched and am thoroughly convinced if I don't do that, I will come home to a dead cat someday. It is just her nature. She has killed 14 snakes in her year and 1/2 with us, and is very interested in the neighbor's chickens. We have taken measures to keep those dumb chickens safe (though the dog was here first, and is predatory by nature, but instead of building the coop in the side yard, it is right in my dog's view...).

So even with a very loving dog, there are genetic attributes toward doing predatory things... but to say that Jack Russells (or german shepherds etc..) shouldn't be bred is going a little far, isn't it?

It is just like saying that bad parents that raise bullies shouldn't be breeding. Though in principle I might agree, it isn't really realistic.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I'm at my parents' now and got to see Schnitzel, the poor thing looks kind of like a clown. He had his drains out today, and now he has a soft blue collar to keep from tearing at his stitches, and a red mesh shirt thing that protects the stitches. He is shaved all around his back and chest, and on part of his paws. I'l attach a picture sometime tonight or tomorrow.

He does seem to be doing well. He is wagging his tail, has a spring to his step, honestly he looks better than he has in awhile (well, energy wise). And the best news....

Drum roll please...

We think the neighbors got rid of the dog! My parents haven't seen or heard it in three or four days now, which never happens. All I can say is good riddance!