Mocha and I were attached by big dog yesterday
 

Mocha and I walk about 2 miles per day. Yesterday we walked by a house with garage door partially open (with gap at the bottom). That is very common since people do that to keep the garage cooler. Anyway, a big dog (I'm not sure the breed) managed to get out and came straight at Mocha. I freaked and picked him up and tried to shield him with my arms. I ended up with lots of scratches on my legs and thighs. One particular scratch was bleeding pretty bad. The owner finally came out and kept on apologizing. She said she used to live in Colorado and that her dog is used to getting rabbits bigger than Mocha. That was not comforting at all. That means had I not shield him he would have been killed by that dog!!! The lady offered to patch me up but I was not going to get inside a stranger's house so I told her it was okay. Today I found some serious bruises underneath some of the scratches. That's enough force to seriously injure my baby, even if he was lucky enough not to be bitten. I'm just happy that Mocha did not suffer any injury whatsoever. Guess I did okay shielding him. Those scratches on me is painful but manageable with first aid kit. On him, that would guarantee a trip to emergency vet plus long recovery.

What can I do about this dog? I'm not seriously injured so not going to sue the owner or anything. But can I report the dog to animal control (do they handle things like this)? At least give them a warning about keeping their dog away from little dogs?

First thing you have to do is call the police for a dog attack on a person for public safety issues, then Animal Control. Dog has to be quarantined for possible rabies, etc.

1. Police 2. Trip to ER or your Doctor. 3. Good Lawyer. 4. Buy a Cane Corso to walk with you and your dog. 5. CCW

Glad you a Mocha are OK that had to be terrifying for you

Especially the CCW.

At the very least I would call animal control- I would want a copy of that dogs records to make sure they are UTD on shots- make sure you are keeping the scratches very, very clean. Are you 100% certain none of them are bites? If any look too bad I would at least have a doctor look at them- don't risk infection. And if you do tie a bow around the bill and send it directly to irresponsible owner. I can't believe she had the audacity to say her dog killed rabbits bigger then Mocha, seriously?! Maybe aggressive dog needs to be contained inside the home or behind a fence.

i would do all of the things mentioned above. no way in heck i'd let it go with something like that and legally any dog that attacks a person or dog must be kept at a local vet's rabies ward to quarantine for any signs of rabies for a certain number of days. it's the law. good luck and i hope you feel better soon.

I would have called 911 immediately, here in my county animal control is part of the police dept. and not left until they arrived. They take dog attacks very serious here, we have so many pitbull attacks. Si happy to hear you were able to save your Mocha's life and sorry to hear you are injured. My prayers are with you.

Okay I agree getchecked out by an MD and also you do need to know if this dog is UTD on rabies in particular.

I truly don't understand why anyone keeps a dog in the garage in this heat, and if the door was up a bit, I guess this garage wasn't air conditioned.

This dog obviously has a high prey drive and as such should be secured in an area whereby they can't get out to chase whatever they want.

I am wondering if in the panic of the moment did you firmly and loudly stay STOP. or NO? I have stopped aggressive dogs in this manner.

One other thing you can do is if you see a dog rushing you, be prepared to lift your knee and push that knee into their chest.

I'm so sorry that you experienced this and hope you both recover from your fright.

I would be thoroughly upset at this.

I've been chased by big dogs whose owners let them run loose - but I've never been attacked to where I had bruises and scratches. That would be so scary; I can't even imagine.

I do believe I would take the advice of the other posters and get checked out. IF they have homeowners insurance - this should take care of any medical treatment you require. You do need to confirm that the dog is UTD on his rabies.

I try to be nice about it when it happens - but that is over the top. Your dog could have been killed and you seriously injured. Those people need a wake-up call before something really bad happens and they have to put the dog down due to their own ignorance.

I am so sorry. This is so frighting. I carry pepper spray and a walking stick. That happened so quick they probably wouldn't have helped. For your own peace of mind you may need to know if the dogs shots are up to date and how the owners plan to keep their dog secured. I am so glad that you saved your Yorkie. I know laws are different from state to state. Only you can decide what is right for your situation.

Thank you all for the information. Boy, I really messed up by not calling the cops. Now I don't know if it's too late. I will go into the Animal Shelter tomorrow to see if I can at least file an incident report. My scratches do not show any sign of infection, guess that is good. I will take pictures of my injuries just in case.

I hope this will never happen again but if it does, I now know what to do. Thanks again.

Sorry to say that I completely panicked and did try to say STOP or NO, or even be on the offensive. I was mostly on the defensive and I believe I screamed when the dog jumped me. I was busy trying to shield my baby that I even forgot I have pepper spray in my pocket. I'm mad at myself for blanking out like this.

I'm glad you and Mocha are ok. But it's never late to call the cops to make a report.

Oh my goodness. I'm sorry to hear about you and Mocha.:( I would really not know what to do. And I still don't but I just want to wish you luck, and hope those scratches and bruises get better soon:)