I suspect that the owner was being economical with the truth, and that the pitbull had shown evidence of this type of behaviour before. This would explain the owners lack of urgency to return home, as it wasn’t a new occurrence.
"I can’t even imagine what the couple with the little dog felt like." Scared, no doubt. But, on the other hand, many of them have Napoleon complexes that make them unsuccessfully provoke larger dogs into fights...
Yes David, I agree. And although I felt terribly for them, THEY were the ones approaching the fence when they could clearly see two huge, riled up dogs in the yard. I felt kind of angry over their stupidity. But still, the whole attack shouold not have happened.
My teeth and jaw are still clinched after reading. My Alvin , sweet, gentle English black lab plays with pitts on beach and park. Thus far no prob. I actually like them and find some extremely great looking and well behaved BUT as you keep a watchful antenna. What a scene and terrifying experience. Dog fights are brutal and instantaneous. A few years ago I was at an off leash dog beach swimming with Alvin. A young man with 2 un neutered 9 month old Great Danes was mean to Alvin and me. The dogs on those silly (my opinion) plastic leashes that with adjustable cords. They left.. walked way up to leave. Alvin ran like a locomotive. Attacked both dogs. I was right behind . A young huge guy got Alvin off. Blood all over Alvie but he was ok. Lots of screaming and drama. I calmed. Walked away asap. I’m sure Alvin sensed the guy was mean and protected me. My vet actually shocked. “Alvin??? !!! He attacked 2 Danes ?? “ The owner of your house sit ? I’d have been on first plane, car or bicycle.
Oh wow, how awful. I bet it's because the males were un-neutered. I've seen plenty of altercations at dog parks because of this. Even the sweetest of dogs can have huge problems with unfixed males.
Years ago I owned an Anatolian Shepherd that in adulthood became quite aggressive to anything she deemed a threat. And I mean ANY thing: even a car slowing down to turn a corner. I think there was a genetic factor as I was aware of a few issues with some litter mates. But there was also the attack from two dogs who had escaped their tethers (chain -ugh!) and evidence that humans, probably kids, were antagonizing her in the yard while I was at work. At the time my job was taking me hours away from home during the day and I couldn’t be home to protect her.
I walked her daily but we kept running into off leash dogs and it got very stressful. Eventually, even after months of working to desensitize her, I made the difficult decision to euthanize her for the safety of the community I lived in. It was incredibly painful and I still grieve her 7 years later.
Ouch Jean, I can't imagine having to make that decision. Especially since she loved you and allowed you into her life 😪 I have heard of rare cases like yours where the dog just can't live a quality life because of ingrained aggression and it is heartbreaking. I'm so sorry your poor girl had to live with that.
Thanks for that honest recounting, Kristi -- it sends chills up my spine, and I suspect there was a part of you that didn't want to share it because we dog fans don't want to cast aspersions on an entire breed. And we all nurture the illusion that if we just treat a dog — any dog — with enough love and skill, things will be okay. YES, the owner should have immediately abandoned their trip and come home to deal with the outfall. What if it had been a little kid instead of a little dog their pittie went after? I don't want to tar all pitbulls with the same brush either, but it's a breed that was engineered for certain characteristics (because people, dammit) — and in some individual pitties, those characteristics get switched on by certain stimuli and shit happens fast. I even see traces of this in our sweet, usually chill lab/pit mix Nora — which is why I'll never entirely trust her around little kids or small animals.
It still sends chills through me as well. It could've been SO much worse all around. I'll never forget those two people screaming at me to grab "my dogs" not knowing they weren't my dogs! I felt so helpless.
First of all, Kristi, bless you for handling the whole experience. It is nothing less than traumatic for everyone involved. I won't get into my thoughts about who did what and why they should or shouldn't have. Everyone does what they can in any situation. I think where we go wrong is when we're so traumatized by it, we just want to forget and tell ourselves it was just a one-time occurrence that won't happen again. I know I've been guilty of this in the past. After an incident is exactly the time to start addressing the behavior and work on preventing it from happening again.
A personal story: I visited a shelter years ago, interested in adopting a dog. There weren't any that seemed suitable for my household at the time and I left. While walking back to my car, a volunteer walking a dog was heading my way. I made eye contact with her and we smiled and said hi. I looked at the dog and in that nanosecond, the dog leaped toward my face. She got me under the eye with her paw. I headed right to my car and waited until I stopped shaking and crying. Finally, I went back in and told the staff at the desk what had happened. Yes, the dog was a pit mix. No, I do not harbor any ill will toward the breed. I adore them.
FACT: Any breed can be aggressive. Period.
My pug is reactive and thankfully not aggressive. I'm working hard on her reactivity now. It is a slow process that takes an abundance of patience and consistency. I am optimistic I can work with her because I'm making the effort to see her and her reactivity from her perspective and learning to keep calm and be mindful in each situation.
@TeriLeigh, you have perfectly expressed why I stopped bringing my dogs to dog parks years ago. It's not the dogs. It's the owners. I'm so sorry you had those experiences and grateful you and your Shiba are physically okay.
For anyone who is interested in more information or perspective, I highly recommend Patricia McConnell's books, specifically The Other End of the Leash and The Education of Will, which is a story of personal trauma and recovery as well as one about her dog, Will.
I'm currently working through a reactivity video training by Spirit Dog Academy. I appreciate their methods and techniques, as well as their willingness to help, even long distance. I recommend checking them out for anyone who is interested.
I know of Spirit Dog and even purchased some of their stuff in Dezi's beginnings. She was reactive for her first 2 years. She WAS the dog that lunged at random humans while walking on leash. I always had to remain vigilant. Thankfully, after about 2 years we have worked out most of her reactivity. But she's still not bulletproof.
I agree with you on so many points here. Humans often completely fail their dogs.
As Nana & Papa to five grand dogs, my wife and I frequently board the dogs of our 3 sons. One of those was a Jack Russel Terrier. In the house with us he was sweet and gentle. We would take him on our 3 mile morning walk, and he was just fine - unless another dog of any size came into view. At that point he would go full Cujo, biting the leash, leash holder, and anything between him and that other dog. This persisted after endless obedience classes, and even a canine shrink. There was just a switch in his little brain that set him off, and he had no control over it. He passed away at 10, felled by a weird virus, in spite of heroic attempts to save him. Remembering him is still a mix of good and bad.
So sad. They do have whack-a-do prey drive, and this is a prime example - I’m not sure how you can work with that, other than by REALLY good fences. I think the fact that the owner did not come home says something, as does the fact that the gate was easily stormed by the pair. I have had an extremely reactive dog, and there is a section of our fence shared with one neighbour that will forever show the marks of many an attempted altercation, when neighbour dog was out - but the fence was solid, for a short ‘scrabble’ and we have a large yard, so it was easy to intervene. This is a great caveat for me, a wannabe future dog sitter!
I totally agree about the prey drive and you're right, if the owner knew about it he should've made damn sure there was no risk factor for an ill-equipped dog sitter. It really burned me that he reacted so nonchalantly, even his voice on the phone was not one of concern. Just matter of fact.
This is absolutely terrifying. I’m so glad you are okay. I hope the owners of the pittie got a privacy fence to replace the chain link so that triggers were minimalized.
I have been the owner of the small dog. Twice. Once at a state park. My Shiba Inu (on leash by law) was attacked by a mastiff sized mixed breed mutt who was off leash. His owners had no voice control and were far behind the dog. I managed to get my Shiba in ny arms but their dog had a grip and was not letting go, until his owners got to me and wrestled him away. I went back to the same park (without my dog) the next day to try to find my sunglasses that were shaken off my head in the raucous. They were there! Walking their dog off leash again as if nothing had happened! I reported them to the park ranger and he caught them and fined them the next day.
The other time is the reason I don’t go to dog parks anymore. My Shiba got attacked by a mixed breed that was much larger than her. I managed to get on top of my Shiba holding her under me between my knees. The other dog kept lurching at me while his owner stood over me yelling that my dog started it and I had no right being a dog owner. I just kept saying to him “go away”. I couldn’t get any other words out of my mouth. He refused to leave until another couple walked up. The husband got his dog on leash and stayed back while the wife approached us. The guy started yelling at them that I was a horrible dog owner while I just kept crying and saying “go away”. His dog ran off and he followed behind muttering and yelling some more. I was so traumatized all I could do was scoop my Shiba into my arms and scurry back to the car where I cried and quivered for another half hour.
Both times my Shiba was not injured. But both of us were emotionally scarred for life. I have flashbacks every time I see a larger dog off leash.
Omg Teri, I am SO sorry this happened to both of you! It is terrifying 😳 Some dog owners need to be euthanized, I swear.
I feel like all owners have some sense of what their dogs are capable of and they should be ON leash if they're not reliable. I know when and when not to trust Dezi. She's great with all dogs but NOT with kids, bikes, scooters, etc. I'm always alert and put her leash on when a potential trigger is in sight.
Again, I'm so sorry. The lifelong trauma is what bothers me.
On the positive side. It made Sukha and me bond in ways we couldn’t have otherwise. She trusted me 💯 no matter what because I did save her in both those instances.
Wow. If I was the dogs owner, I would definitely have returned home. I too would have been shaking in my shoes after that incident. Given the propensity for the pit to react aggressively towards other dogs, I would have hoped the owner would a. Hire a trainer to help correct the behavior and/or b. Put a privacy fence up so there was less opportunity for the reactive behavior. I love PITBULLS and Paroles.
I suspect that the owner was being economical with the truth, and that the pitbull had shown evidence of this type of behaviour before. This would explain the owners lack of urgency to return home, as it wasn’t a new occurrence.
Maureen, you're probably right. And it's completely irresponsible to put that kind of burden on an oblivious dog sitter.
"I can’t even imagine what the couple with the little dog felt like." Scared, no doubt. But, on the other hand, many of them have Napoleon complexes that make them unsuccessfully provoke larger dogs into fights...
Yes David, I agree. And although I felt terribly for them, THEY were the ones approaching the fence when they could clearly see two huge, riled up dogs in the yard. I felt kind of angry over their stupidity. But still, the whole attack shouold not have happened.
Their behavior can be as capricious as any human being's- which is why they are ideal subjects for anthropomorphic fiction.
My teeth and jaw are still clinched after reading. My Alvin , sweet, gentle English black lab plays with pitts on beach and park. Thus far no prob. I actually like them and find some extremely great looking and well behaved BUT as you keep a watchful antenna. What a scene and terrifying experience. Dog fights are brutal and instantaneous. A few years ago I was at an off leash dog beach swimming with Alvin. A young man with 2 un neutered 9 month old Great Danes was mean to Alvin and me. The dogs on those silly (my opinion) plastic leashes that with adjustable cords. They left.. walked way up to leave. Alvin ran like a locomotive. Attacked both dogs. I was right behind . A young huge guy got Alvin off. Blood all over Alvie but he was ok. Lots of screaming and drama. I calmed. Walked away asap. I’m sure Alvin sensed the guy was mean and protected me. My vet actually shocked. “Alvin??? !!! He attacked 2 Danes ?? “ The owner of your house sit ? I’d have been on first plane, car or bicycle.
Kristi. Yup un neutered males can can cause some serious problems with “boys” who want to be top
Dog.
Oh wow, how awful. I bet it's because the males were un-neutered. I've seen plenty of altercations at dog parks because of this. Even the sweetest of dogs can have huge problems with unfixed males.
Years ago I owned an Anatolian Shepherd that in adulthood became quite aggressive to anything she deemed a threat. And I mean ANY thing: even a car slowing down to turn a corner. I think there was a genetic factor as I was aware of a few issues with some litter mates. But there was also the attack from two dogs who had escaped their tethers (chain -ugh!) and evidence that humans, probably kids, were antagonizing her in the yard while I was at work. At the time my job was taking me hours away from home during the day and I couldn’t be home to protect her.
I walked her daily but we kept running into off leash dogs and it got very stressful. Eventually, even after months of working to desensitize her, I made the difficult decision to euthanize her for the safety of the community I lived in. It was incredibly painful and I still grieve her 7 years later.
Ouch Jean, I can't imagine having to make that decision. Especially since she loved you and allowed you into her life 😪 I have heard of rare cases like yours where the dog just can't live a quality life because of ingrained aggression and it is heartbreaking. I'm so sorry your poor girl had to live with that.
Thanks for that honest recounting, Kristi -- it sends chills up my spine, and I suspect there was a part of you that didn't want to share it because we dog fans don't want to cast aspersions on an entire breed. And we all nurture the illusion that if we just treat a dog — any dog — with enough love and skill, things will be okay. YES, the owner should have immediately abandoned their trip and come home to deal with the outfall. What if it had been a little kid instead of a little dog their pittie went after? I don't want to tar all pitbulls with the same brush either, but it's a breed that was engineered for certain characteristics (because people, dammit) — and in some individual pitties, those characteristics get switched on by certain stimuli and shit happens fast. I even see traces of this in our sweet, usually chill lab/pit mix Nora — which is why I'll never entirely trust her around little kids or small animals.
It still sends chills through me as well. It could've been SO much worse all around. I'll never forget those two people screaming at me to grab "my dogs" not knowing they weren't my dogs! I felt so helpless.
Owners need to be so much smarter.
I have things to say, unsurprisingly.
First of all, Kristi, bless you for handling the whole experience. It is nothing less than traumatic for everyone involved. I won't get into my thoughts about who did what and why they should or shouldn't have. Everyone does what they can in any situation. I think where we go wrong is when we're so traumatized by it, we just want to forget and tell ourselves it was just a one-time occurrence that won't happen again. I know I've been guilty of this in the past. After an incident is exactly the time to start addressing the behavior and work on preventing it from happening again.
A personal story: I visited a shelter years ago, interested in adopting a dog. There weren't any that seemed suitable for my household at the time and I left. While walking back to my car, a volunteer walking a dog was heading my way. I made eye contact with her and we smiled and said hi. I looked at the dog and in that nanosecond, the dog leaped toward my face. She got me under the eye with her paw. I headed right to my car and waited until I stopped shaking and crying. Finally, I went back in and told the staff at the desk what had happened. Yes, the dog was a pit mix. No, I do not harbor any ill will toward the breed. I adore them.
FACT: Any breed can be aggressive. Period.
My pug is reactive and thankfully not aggressive. I'm working hard on her reactivity now. It is a slow process that takes an abundance of patience and consistency. I am optimistic I can work with her because I'm making the effort to see her and her reactivity from her perspective and learning to keep calm and be mindful in each situation.
@TeriLeigh, you have perfectly expressed why I stopped bringing my dogs to dog parks years ago. It's not the dogs. It's the owners. I'm so sorry you had those experiences and grateful you and your Shiba are physically okay.
For anyone who is interested in more information or perspective, I highly recommend Patricia McConnell's books, specifically The Other End of the Leash and The Education of Will, which is a story of personal trauma and recovery as well as one about her dog, Will.
I'm currently working through a reactivity video training by Spirit Dog Academy. I appreciate their methods and techniques, as well as their willingness to help, even long distance. I recommend checking them out for anyone who is interested.
And FWIW, I would have come home.
I know of Spirit Dog and even purchased some of their stuff in Dezi's beginnings. She was reactive for her first 2 years. She WAS the dog that lunged at random humans while walking on leash. I always had to remain vigilant. Thankfully, after about 2 years we have worked out most of her reactivity. But she's still not bulletproof.
I agree with you on so many points here. Humans often completely fail their dogs.
Spirit Dog is wonderful!
As Nana & Papa to five grand dogs, my wife and I frequently board the dogs of our 3 sons. One of those was a Jack Russel Terrier. In the house with us he was sweet and gentle. We would take him on our 3 mile morning walk, and he was just fine - unless another dog of any size came into view. At that point he would go full Cujo, biting the leash, leash holder, and anything between him and that other dog. This persisted after endless obedience classes, and even a canine shrink. There was just a switch in his little brain that set him off, and he had no control over it. He passed away at 10, felled by a weird virus, in spite of heroic attempts to save him. Remembering him is still a mix of good and bad.
Ugh Jim, it's so difficult when they're sweet dogs behind closed doors. I feel like life with a dog like that would be so stressful.
So sad. They do have whack-a-do prey drive, and this is a prime example - I’m not sure how you can work with that, other than by REALLY good fences. I think the fact that the owner did not come home says something, as does the fact that the gate was easily stormed by the pair. I have had an extremely reactive dog, and there is a section of our fence shared with one neighbour that will forever show the marks of many an attempted altercation, when neighbour dog was out - but the fence was solid, for a short ‘scrabble’ and we have a large yard, so it was easy to intervene. This is a great caveat for me, a wannabe future dog sitter!
I totally agree about the prey drive and you're right, if the owner knew about it he should've made damn sure there was no risk factor for an ill-equipped dog sitter. It really burned me that he reacted so nonchalantly, even his voice on the phone was not one of concern. Just matter of fact.
It was terrible.
This is absolutely terrifying. I’m so glad you are okay. I hope the owners of the pittie got a privacy fence to replace the chain link so that triggers were minimalized.
I have been the owner of the small dog. Twice. Once at a state park. My Shiba Inu (on leash by law) was attacked by a mastiff sized mixed breed mutt who was off leash. His owners had no voice control and were far behind the dog. I managed to get my Shiba in ny arms but their dog had a grip and was not letting go, until his owners got to me and wrestled him away. I went back to the same park (without my dog) the next day to try to find my sunglasses that were shaken off my head in the raucous. They were there! Walking their dog off leash again as if nothing had happened! I reported them to the park ranger and he caught them and fined them the next day.
The other time is the reason I don’t go to dog parks anymore. My Shiba got attacked by a mixed breed that was much larger than her. I managed to get on top of my Shiba holding her under me between my knees. The other dog kept lurching at me while his owner stood over me yelling that my dog started it and I had no right being a dog owner. I just kept saying to him “go away”. I couldn’t get any other words out of my mouth. He refused to leave until another couple walked up. The husband got his dog on leash and stayed back while the wife approached us. The guy started yelling at them that I was a horrible dog owner while I just kept crying and saying “go away”. His dog ran off and he followed behind muttering and yelling some more. I was so traumatized all I could do was scoop my Shiba into my arms and scurry back to the car where I cried and quivered for another half hour.
Both times my Shiba was not injured. But both of us were emotionally scarred for life. I have flashbacks every time I see a larger dog off leash.
Omg Teri, I am SO sorry this happened to both of you! It is terrifying 😳 Some dog owners need to be euthanized, I swear.
I feel like all owners have some sense of what their dogs are capable of and they should be ON leash if they're not reliable. I know when and when not to trust Dezi. She's great with all dogs but NOT with kids, bikes, scooters, etc. I'm always alert and put her leash on when a potential trigger is in sight.
Again, I'm so sorry. The lifelong trauma is what bothers me.
On the positive side. It made Sukha and me bond in ways we couldn’t have otherwise. She trusted me 💯 no matter what because I did save her in both those instances.
Wow. If I was the dogs owner, I would definitely have returned home. I too would have been shaking in my shoes after that incident. Given the propensity for the pit to react aggressively towards other dogs, I would have hoped the owner would a. Hire a trainer to help correct the behavior and/or b. Put a privacy fence up so there was less opportunity for the reactive behavior. I love PITBULLS and Paroles.
Yeah this was pretty shocking. I remember totally dreading the rest of my weekend there.
And yeah, isn't that show amazing? And somehow it NEVER got old even after 19 seasons.