Need prayers for my Ollie.
 

I took Ollie to the park today. He was put in a death grip by a pit bull. It took five people to get him off of Ollie. A wonderful man and his wife helped me out, by driving me 20 minutes to the next town. None of the emergency numbers from various local vets were answered. He luckily had his vet on speed dial. His wife stayed behind to get the info from the pit bulls owner.

Right now he is at the vet overnight. The vet said he is a lucky boy and should make a full physical recovery. However he will never be the same mentally. Neither will I for that matter.

I contacted the owner and he never even said he was sorry. He tried to blame my dog for the attack. Saying that he started it by barking at him. He did say that he would pay the vet bill. He does not want his dog to be put down.

I asked if he would please refrain from taking his dog back to the park, he said that his dog is fine,and he will keep taking the dog back.

I will never take Ollie back there. Now I am worried that his dog will attack again.

I will try to get in touch with the people that run the park....see what they have to say.

My boyfriend says that I should sue him. And try to get the court to ban his dog at least.

Any advice or prayers are much needed. I am totally traumatized. And Ollie will never be the same.

This is EXACTLY why I do not utilize these areas. I am praying your little man survives this attack without too many residual problems, issues, physical or psychological, etc.....

Do you live in a home with a yard? If not, I would be walking my dog for exercise and staying away from dog parks, where "survival of the fittest" is often the rule of thumb......When I walk my dog, I would carry either bear repellent which you can get at a hunting store, or a good, sturdy ax handle to beat off attacking dogs allowed to run wild and unsupervised.

What this owner wants for HIS dog is of no concern to me, if I were in YOUR shoes. I would report this attack to Animal Control, as you have no idea how many times this has not happened in the past....to other dogs, to humans, etc. I can promise you, if this dog is running freely with other dogs, yes, he will attack another dog. I am not a fan of suing....everyone sues for everything, and unless it is a matter of life and death, it makes little difference and your objectives can more easily be achieved by contacting animal control. If this dog has a history of biting, he will be put down, which he should be, before he attacks some old person or a child or another dog encountered on the street.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Ollie . I hope he makes a full recovery .

I will keep you and Ollie in my thoughts.

Yes, call your local animal control and report the dog.

The only park I have ever taken Mario to has an under 30lb area and an over 30lb area. Maybe see if you can find one of those close to you.

So sorry for your little Ollie being attacked and I understand the trauma that you and he experienced. It's terrible to go out for a fun day and have such as this happen. The OP must not have been able to control his dog which is not a good situation to begin with. Dogs do get excited at times and bark at other dogs, that should not have provoked this pit bull to such behavior. If this was in a dog park then OP was responsible for having control over his dog. If it took 5 people to rescue Ollie then he for sure could not control his dog. If this was at a community park where families go then this dog could have easily bit a child. Because children love to scream and run chase each other.
Seems like OP needed his dog on leash if the dog wasn't trained to behave in public and around other dogs. I have nothing against Pit Bulls I think they can be excellent pets and well trained. But people who choose these dogs need to train them just as any dog needs Training. This could prevent many bad out comes. Thank goodness your Ollie will heal physically and in time maybe he will overcome this bad experience. Maybe you too will overcome this experience and as you said bring this to the attention of whom ever is responsible for maintaining this park!

Thank you yorkiemom. Sage advice. I think that there is where I will start tomorrow.

It makes me physically ill that the owner had no remorse whatsoever.

Just to clarify...I am the least likely person to sue anyone. I have been the victim of several car accidents (I was not at fault) and have never sued once.

I just do not think I could live with myself, if someone else gets hurt by this dog...and I stood by and did nothing.

My family is trying to figure out something nice to do for the couple who helped to save our fuzzy son.

Deepest thanks to you all. I really needed the support from my forum family...even though I have not been here very long. You are all top notch, exceptional people.

My poor darling boyfriend is not taking this well at all. We have been together for 9 years....this is the only breakdown I have ever witnessed from my big tough mountain man. God love him and his mighty heart.

When I got Ollie, 7 months ago. He hated him. Now he has stolen him away from me. He just told me that he IS one of his kids now, never JUST a dog.

This will work out for you....patience and due diligence and a reasonable, feasable goal in mind, and then chart your course in that direction. I am just thrilled and thankful your baby survived an attack by a pit bull....a lot of dogs do not.

".............I just do not think I could live with myself, if someone else gets hurt by this dog...and I stood by and did nothing........"

I dont blame you and going after THAT dog is the best thing I believe you can do to protect everyone else.

What a horrific ordeal you little Ollie and you. Prayers going out for a full recovery for Ollie. I agree with above members, this person should be reported, dog parks are for dogs that are not aggressive, one dog barking at another is no reason any dog should go into attack mode. If it happened once, it WILL happen again.

Once you turn him into animal control, it is unlikely he will still willingly pay the vet bills (without suing him, and btw many people do not collect judgments awarded to them), so keep that in mind. Ask the vet about payment plans and be aware of how much everything costs. Do not have the procedure done if it is not necessary and you are not able to pay for it.

Expect to have to pay for this yourself, that way if he does pay, you can be pleasantly surprised rather than expecting him to pay, and being despondent when he does not.

DITTO! Give little Ollie hugs and kisses. Wishing you both a complete recovery.

Luckily my mother has care credit, it has veterinary financing. I am broke this week.

She has no problem helping out. She is Ollie's daycare,and loves him so.

If it comes down to either getting reparations from this guy, or keeping other people and animals safe in my community, I will always pick the latter.

What is $400 compared to the life of a human or a beloved pet.

I agree. I am thrilled to hear about the care credit and mom willing to help. I started an in our house savings account for Mario for medical emergencies. Every month, I am putting 20.00 into it so we can have something set back to offset an unexpected medical blow.

I am not sure how old you are, so you may not have dealt with someone who reneges on their word for no reason or for revenge, so I wanted you to be prepared, just in case. The first time you get lied to or let down like this can be heartbreaking if it completely catches you off guard.

Praying for a speedy and full recovery for you both.

Mayzoo, thanks.I have been burned before unfortunately. I have no delusions. After talking to him on the phone, it was clear as to the kind of person he is. His dog is a reflection of him. I will be so surprised if I get a dime out of him.

You keep every cent you spend on this unfortunate event, and then when it is all over with, take him to small claims court and sue for the amount you are out....not only dog medical bills, but also any fees for prteparing the case against him, and punitive damages too....I am not a lawyer, so I am not sure that you can collect punitive damages, but find that out and go for it........You will have a much better success rate in small claims court, it will not cost you near as much, and you may actually collect a goodly portion of the amount you are going to be out!

Yeah, sad. We are landlords, so we have twice had to evict people. We unfortunately, in my area, have to sue them to evict them. Currently, we have two judgments against these two people who owe us around 5-6 thousand. We will never see any of that. A judgment, sadly, does not mean you get paid. But, they moved out and we all got to move on with our lives.

So very sorry to hear of Ollie's very unfortunate incident at the dog park. That must have been just horrible to witness, am so sorry that happened to you both. How awful that the owner did not even apologize. Best wishes for a very speedy recovery for him, and for you!

My mom was a landlord for 25 years. I know exactly what you mean. You take a chance every single time. Some people are rotten to the core.

Just wish I could get the images out of my head. Can't stop crying. I have 4 kids and they are devastated. Trying to figure out if I should send them to school tomorrow. I can't see them being able to concentrate. They are sensitive kids. They will probably cry all day.

I am so sorry to hear about Ollies attack today, that is horrible and I can't imagine how scary that must have been! I am so glad he is going to be okay, prayers for a restful nights sleep and a very speedy recovery!

Fell asleep,had a horrid nightmare. Get to pick him up after 10am. The puncture wound on the back of his neck has 3" of damage under the skin. The vet put a drainage tube in. The other really deep puncture mark went all the way through to his trachea.the vet said she found a scratch on it, but no puncture.

I am so sorry...I hope Ollie is okay. How horrible...!

So Sad to hear about Ollie. Please keep us posted on his recovery and yours.

Oh Ollie
 

Oh my friend, what a horrible story. I am happy Ollie will be physically okay, and he is lucky to have you in his life. I know you will offer the love and mental support to bring him back to knowing he is loved. Blessing to you both, you are in my prayers. Have you reported the Pit Bull?

Got a call from the vet. She said that she was greeted with kisses and a wagging tail. Going to pick him up in just a bit here.

I have to call animal control yet. Make no mistake,I definitely will.

This is just terrible! I do hope that you pursue this owner! He really needs an awakening of the responsibilty he choose with this dog. If the dog attacks at will then He the owner has NO control of the dog. Also 5 strangers have to pull his dog back that's a DANGER at anytime for everybody.
This has caused you and your family such destress it just needs to be adressed before a real tragedy occurs! Thank goodness it wasn't a little child and I am so sorry it was your sweet Ollie. I do hope he heals quickily. Lots of Cuddles and kisses for your little Ollie too!

Oh no! I feel badly for Ollie and you/bf! Thankfully you were able to get immediate attention. What great folks driving you to a vet:)
I for one, will never take my Yorkie to a dog park; for the exact reason that I would not be able to trust another dog. If I had a bigger dog (more than 15 lbs) it may be another story. One bite on my 8lber could be deadly. I sure am glad that your Ollie survived and is showing signs of being back to himself. Agreed to phone Animal Control. Not sure about court though, as it may take more energy/money w/out the results you should get. Getting legal advice may be good idea before going forward, should you wish to go that way. Is $400 worth your precious energy on someone that may not pay in the end, or is it better spent with Ollie and your loving family? Being a part of a trial/court recently, I found it to take SO much energy and created a lot of stress. I would hope that Animal Control would look after the owner and his dog; especially if this dog has bitten before, which I suspect has happened. Makes me angry that some dog owners, no matter what the breed of dog it is, do not take other dog's safety into consideration. Nasty people!!

Poor little Ollie, I am so sorry to hear that this happened but am so glad you were able to get him medical attention and that he is safe and healing.

Home.... we both need some sleep. I will update you all soon. He is doing well.

So glad Ollie is home a safe with his family after such a horrific ordeal. I am with the other members in pursuing this dog owner. A dog barking is no justification for an attack. He knows his dog is bad heck he couldn't control him himself and needed 5 people to help plus the first he is worried about is HIS DOG being put down with no real concern for Ollie's injuries. I am so sorry that this happened to poor Ollie and your family. I hope he recovers both physically and mentally. Sending prayers and best wishes to Ollie and his family.