I almost had the worst day ever... well it's still pretty bad.
 

I went to visit family over the weekend on Sat morning the kids want to go to the park.. my husband takes it upon himself to take Toby:aimeeyork too... which normally would be ok..... A man from that neighborhood was walking his German Sheppard, so of course my husband tightened up on the leash (as I have told him when he crosses path with a strange, or large dog). well this German Sheppard was not even on his leash the owner simply had it in his hand :mad: and attacks Toby. I wasn't there, but my husband says his entire body was in his mouth. Luckily he didn't shake or try to tear him up, my husband reacted quickly and pressed the German Sheppard down to the ground and pulled his jaw open enough to get Toby out. When he let go Toby just collapsed and didn't move. He came running home to take Toby to the emergency Vet. I washed the wound and gave him nutrical. He didn't need stitches and only had a minor gash not even half and inch, and thankfully wasn't deep. I completely broke down started to panic. I got so angry at my husband, at the vet because I thought he was taking this too lightly but I know he knows what he's doing.

Talking about right now is making me sick to my stomach.
What I'm worried about is the side effects, he seemed traumatized and didn't want to be near me or anyone. He kept hiding. It's been a couple of days but he's still soar and very skittish. He'll hear a noise and start pacing trying to find somewhere to hide like he's losing his mind. I go get him wrap him in a blanket and hold him close so I can help comfort him and make him feel safe.

Sorry this is so long it's just I needed to let it out and maybe see if any one has advice on how to deal with the trauma ( for him) and avoid this creating behavioral problems. I know he's really scared now, but I want him to be the same Toby he was before, not so skittish.

Well thank you for reading, again sorry it's so long.

did the owner of the shepherd not do anything? am glad to hear your baby is okay, I'm sure you were quite shaken, I'm so sorry

Aw poor Toby! I hope he begins to trust you again. I'm sure the trauma will be temporary. I think I'll learn from your story and simply pick up my Yorkie if there is a large dog around, leashed or unleashed.

What ever happened to that German Shepherd? Did the owner at least say sorry or anything?! Did he even help your husband take Toby away from the German Shepherd?

OMG!!!!! I cannot imagine how scared you must of been when your DH told you!!!! Dang it....these people out with their big dogs with NO leash just pissess me off!!!!! What did the owner of the dog say? Is he going to pay your vet bill? Grrrrrrrrr!!!!!
Poor baby....it must of been horrible for him!!! Just give him lots & lots of love....I bet he will come around!!!
Keep us posted!!!

Oh I'm so sorry! Poor little Toby. This is the dread of all of us isn't it?
I just hate it that an incident like this has made Toby nervous when he robably was not before. The owner should at least have paid your vet bill (quite apart from having his dog under control)...hugs to Toby.

Oh my gosh, how very scarey for you and Toby! Poor little guy! I think with time and love he'll get back to his old self though. It might be awhile before he wants to go for a walk. I feel so bad for him, thank God he wasn't hurt even worse, he got really lucky there.

I am sorry that happened. I am sure he wont be so nervous with time. That iis exactly why I dont want my dogs around bigger dogs no matter how friendly the owner says they are.

Oh, that is absolutely horrific! I bet you're glad you weren't there when it happened or you'd probably be traumatized too! I am so so sorry this happened :( I agree that those with big and/or uncontrollable dogs need to be leashed 24/7. There is absolutely NO excuse for that!

But I do want to say that there is a bigger dog (australian shepherd possibly?) in my apt. complex that Kobi loves, and the AS is NEVER on a leash. His owner has COMPLETE control over him at all times, and frankly he couldn't care less about dogs, so I think he's okay off. It really does depend on the dog, and I would NEVER trust someone with an off-leash dog if I didn't know them!

Again, so sorry this happened to you, and I hope you and Toby can heal :)

The owner of the shepard steped in when he saw my husband practically tackling his dog to the ground. He told his dog to drop it and thankfully he let go. When my husband finally had Toby in his arms, the man asked if our dog was ok......WTF??? Yeah buddy he almost got eaten by your beast but don't worry hes ok. My husband did tell him off because his dog wasn't on a leash.

That is horrable, but I''m glad to hear your little guy is okay.
When I got my first dog, this same situation happened to her. I was walking my dog near a elementary school, while my sisters played on the playground. A big dog ran from across the street, tried to bit me and my dog tried to nip at it...well the dog ended up with my dogs mid section in its mouth. I ended up grabbing the dogs neck and shoving it into a fence, and the owner had the nerve to get mad at me. Thank goodness my dog was okay, but she did act scared for a while, I just made sure to continue walking her and having people play with her. After that she was always aware of what was around her, but eventually she stopped being so scared.

I'd send that buttwipe your vet bill. Ticks me off. I'm always on the look out for other dogs when I take mine out. Abby's getting older and she's very protective of Alphy when he's with us. I have to grab her tight just in case. People with big dogs need to be courteous of others because you just never know how they are going to react or what will set them off. Even the most gentle dogs, case in point, my Abby. Mellowest dog I've ever seen unless she is surprised by another dog or feels threatened.

Big hugs to Toby. Poor baby, but I agree. Try and keep him socialized in order to overcome it.

Hi, I'm really, really sorry to hear about your baby. I dread this happening to my 2 when I walk them, we have had some incidents, dogs off leash, but nothing as terrible as what happened to your Toby. May I suggest when he gets skittish, call him, distract him, perhaps with a favorite toy, a game of fetch. My female fears the garbage truck and I have started to apply distraction and she seems to be better, at least she does not start shaking like she used to. Call someone who does dog training, ask them what they recommend, or the vet or search online.

Lots of luck to you, love & patience can conquer much.

Id definitely send him your vet bill. That dog should have been on a leash

omg! That's horrible. Your poor poor baby. Maybe you could take him out in the yard on his leash. Or somewhere you know there will be no other dogs around, and show him it's ok. It's probably going to take some time but just keep working with him and reassuring his safety :hug:

omg! That's horrible. Your poor poor baby. Maybe you could take him out in the yard on his leash. Or somewhere you know there will be no other dogs around, and show him it's ok. It's probably going to take some time but just keep working with him and reassuring his safety :hug: