[News] Yorkie Owner Traumatized by Pit Bull Attack
 

BC, Canada - A Port Coquitlam woman is out $1,800 in veterinarian bills after her six-pound Yorkshire terrier was mauled by two pit bulls during an evening walk last week.
Kathy McDonald was finishing her stroll with “Dot” in Blakeburn Park at around 9:20 p.m. last Friday when she ran into a young fellow, his girlfriend and their two unmuzzled pit bulls, which were on extended leashes.

She had spoken with the boy earlier that week about his dog, which had just given birth to 13 puppies.

When they met up again on Friday, McDonald said she scooped up Dot because the male pit bull was getting agitated and Dot was backing off. Just then, McDonald said, the female pit bull flew into a rage and broke from its leash, grabbing Dot from McDonald’s arms.

“Each [pit bull] had her between them, in their mouths, tearing her apart,” an emotional McDonald told The Tri-City News yesterday. “I just started screaming. They wouldn’t let go. It was frantic.”

McDonald said she tried to restrain the male pit bull by twisting its collar. It snarled at McDonald and was about to attack her, but instead dragged her on the concrete pavement in Dot’s direction. As a result, McDonald, a critical care nurse at Royal Columbian Hospital, sustained cuts to her elbows and knees.

McDonald finally got a hold of Dot, who suffered broken ribs and torn muscle and skin. She also asked for the names and addresses of the pit bull owners.

They refused but, the next day, the boy, who is a new neighbour of McDonald, came to her door and offered to pay for the vet costs — when he could, she said.

McDonald is now considering legal action, and has lodged complaints with the RCMP, the city and the SPCA, which handles PoCo’s animal control and care.

Dan Scones, PoCo’s manager of bylaw enforcement, said the city will automatically refer McDonald’s complaint to the SPCA for an investigation as to whether the pit bulls should be deemed dangerous.

If they are classified as dangerous, the licensing fee for the dogs may go up, and they would be required to be enclosed properly and muzzled while in public places, said SPCA’s Lorie Chortyk. In many circumstances, if a dog attacks a second time, it would be destroyed.

McDonald believes the owners should also face a fine.

She can’t shake the image of her pet being attacked. “It was absolutely horrific,” she said. “It makes me cry to think what my dog sounded like... the screaming. There needs to be consequences against the owners.”

“Too many people have these dogs,” McDonald continued. “They’re dangerous. What do they want with them? I don’t understand. You can’t even take your dog for a walk because you have to muzzle it.”

http://www.tricitynews.com/portals-c...d=704239&more=

From the picture, it looks like the baby is healing. Thank God she wasn't killed. That poor little thing....:(

Considering a fine? I would press charges! Those animals are dangerous.
They should be taken into custody and evauluated by professionals and
bill the owners for any costs the evaulation incurres. Also, the owners
do not apperar like the kind who can handle such dogs. If that were a child
the story would be different. When will the authorities get serious about
these kinds of attacks. This was not a dog fight. Those dogs were out
to rip the smaller one apart. Unfortunately they are a danger to society.
That lady was too nice!:mad:

the dogs that attacked that yorkie should be put down and their owners pay vet bills!

What a terrible thing. Hope the Yorkie recovers.

I'm with Peters - they should do put down the dog, regardless of breed, and the owners need to be forced to pay the vet bills.

That poor little sweetheart - here's hoping for a very speedy recovery!:aimeeyork

Maybe those two pits but not all pits. it's not fair to say that. :mad: I know numerous pits who are sweet as day with small dogs.;) I know some who live with them. Two bad dogs should not give the entire breed a horrible name.:thumbdown

I agree with you however, this breed is known for this type of behavior. I also have seen nicer pits but, I would never own one. This breed, as we all know, has been bred for fighting..ANY dog can attack but, when you get one that won't let go this is pretty scary. This breed is banned in some states and when out walking MUST be muzzled. Most insurance agencies will not insure your home if you have a pit and the agencies that will, charge you an arm and a leg...

I agree with the comments about Pit Bulls. My wife sees the results of Pits every day at the Vet hospital she works at. Pits can be fine most of the time but when that "switch" goes off in their heads, its over and they are on autopilot.

As for larger dogs, I think most breeds get a bad rap. We have a 120 lb doberman pincher that is retired show. He is the sweetest dog ever. He lets the Yorkie puppies climb on him, pull his ears and toes. They use him as a ramp to get up and down the furniture, and even jump in his mouth when he yawns. For most canines, its all about the breeding. Get a poorly bred canine and you're asking for problems.

The only two breeds I would never own (just my opinion here) are Pits and Chows. They are just too dangerous. I'm not comfortable with them being around my babies.

Terrance Ferragame

That picture is hearbreaking. Poor baby :(

i cant read the article.


i had a pit bull come in my yard attack and kill my pomeranian mason right before christmas. Its a very very tragic story. I was in the yard and I still have nightmares about it.

i just wanted to say that from my toes all the way up I feel for this person!!!:cry:

I'm so sorry about your little Mason. :( And it looks like this poor Yorkie was literally torn OPEN! :eek: Poor little angel. :(

Wow...how this little yorkie lived through an attack of not one, but two pits, is beyond me, but I am very happy that Dot survived, but truly amazed that she did! I also believe the attack dogs should be put down and, of course, the pit's owners should pay the medical bills!

Please read my post again. I did not refer to "ALL PITS" I was referring
to the two that brutally attacked the Yorkie.
Buddy's best friend is a female pit bull named Ashley.

Any time we walk my 2 dogs, we pick em up any time we walk past bigger dog. I'm too paranoid and dont wanna see anything like that.

Poor Dot and her mommy.. that must have been so horrible but it looks like they are both doing better. As far as the pits, it wasn't their faults. Pitbulls make some of the very best pets and are only 'capable' of such brutality. Remember to judge the DEED not the BREED because it was the owners who are at fault. No dog is born this way, they are raised that way.

omg this is so sad. I am so sorry. I hear stories like this all the time. It breaks my heart.

Bloody evil swines. I wont take Oscar out unless im with my ex husband as you always get some smart Alec shouting "ooh look its a mop or a rat" so i say come over here and see how he bites kids like you and they soon bugger off. How the hell can people hurt these precious babes ?
Oscar stands 6 inches high to top of head and about 12 inches long and his tail is intact and sprays out like a fan. He barks at Alsations and the run off scared lol.
Thats my boy :D

I hope the woman sues the pants off the owners.
These types of dogs are dangerous.
They should be required to be enclosed properly and muzzled while in public places.
If a dog like this attacks the first time, it should be destroyed.
Because it will do it again and the next time it could be a child it attacks.
I have seen first hand what these dogs can do.
I also had a friend attacked by a pit/mix while walking her grand baby in the park.
The couple next door who has 2 small kids are talking about getting a pit.
I told him these dogs are a time bomb waiting to go off.
They won't insure you here if you own one of these dogs either.
If he get one of these dogs he had better keep it pinned up....away from my yard and my Yorkies.
Or he will have a dead dog.

It's definately not fair to judge the pitbull breed like this. Not in any way is this the fault of the pits. The fault soley lies in the hands of the horrible owners who probably purposefully invoke this behavior. Pits are NOT natuarally aggressive dogs. Just like no dog is. You only hear horror stories like these about pits because of the bad rap they get. We have 8 pit mix puppies where I work that were dumped in a garbage bag and tossed into a dumpster at 5 days old. We've had them and been raising them for the past 5-6 months and they don't have a mean bone in their body. And that's because how they were raised with kindess, vigrorous training, and patience. It's never the dog, only the owner.

hey hun my heart goes out to you both..i recently watched a pit bull attack a medium sized dog and i still see the fight and hear the screams that happened it was the saddest thing ever...it took 15 ppl to take the pit bull off this poor dog...he wasnt hurt bc he had soo much fur..just a little cut on his ear...but i cant imagine how bad it was to have a little yorkie pulled by two pitulls...thank god your baby seems to do b doing oki we send our love and care to you and your little baby

How sad!!! :(

The same thing happened to a neighbor\'s yorkie just the other day. He was attacked by a pit bull and he ended up in the hospital. It\'s just horrifying to think about these kind of attacks. I\'m sorry, but I for one believe that all pit bulls are potentially dangerous. You never hear about a collie or a shepherd or a similar dog doing something like this. I think all pit bulls should be muzzled whenever they\'re outside. Individual pits may possibly be nice, but it\'s too much of a risk.

oh my hows the yorkie is it oki? this is really rediculous

I think your Dot is adorable and it makes me so sad to think of what she went through that day.....I do not like pit bulls and I don\'t think they can be trusted...I just heard on the news last week that a pit bull turned on it\'s owner and she had to be hospitalized....and this happened in my hometown. I wish Dot a fast recovery:animal-pa

There is a boy who walks his pit down our road, and every time he would come by, my girls would bark and he would start pulling the boy towards our back yard. He wasn\'t growling, but he was showing agressive signs, hair standing, tail erect, etc. I was mowing the yard and walked to the edge where he was trying to get control of the dog. He was literally being dragged. We live behind our police chief, so I complained, and I told him if that dog shows agressive signs towards me, my girls or my kids...I would not hesitate to shoot it. I am talking a boy that probably weighs, 170, 180, and couldn\'t hold him. He uses a chain to walk him. I guess the Chief warned him, b/c he hasn\'t been back by our place. Don\'t get me wrong, 2 of my best friends own Pit Bulls, but we don\'t have playdates, just for the reasons of...You never know. Several years back a lady was walking her poodle down town and there used to be a service station, the guy had pits as guard dogs, anyhow, she was walking and 2 of the pits Broke their chains and literally destroyed her dog, that is nicely putting it. They were put down, I man, what if it had been a baby walking with her??? It is the same at my place, I teach my girls NEVER pet a dog unles I am there, and we ask first, but sometimes the kindest dog can have a bad day. I won\'t take my chances, on any dog, small or large. We keep the girls on short leashes b/c Lola, our Chihuahua, has been know to think she is a Rottie, so we steer clear of big dog houses:p :p .


Any dog can be agressive, from a Pit to a Lab...could be genetic, could be a bad day...we with little babies should always be prepared. I carry mase, not only for myself, but to ward off dogs. Sticks just don\'t cut it sometimes.


Thankfully, the Pit hasn\'t been back by. Hopefully he doesn\'t, cause I just don\'t trust him:mad:

WOW.... I cant believe she survived. How terrible that must have been for both Dot and her owner. The sad truth is although they both will probably heal. They will both be scarred for life over this. I\'m sure that little Dot will never be the same. I would think this attack would make her scared and timid after all she went through. This is just heart breaking. I dont really understand the need for people to own these dogs. A guy at my hubbys works just got one and he has a 2 yr old kid. My hubby told him how stupid he was to bring a bomb like this into the house. He said that this is just what this dog is. A bomb waiting to explode and you will never forgive yourself when its on your baby. He hasnt talked to my hubby since. Its terrible. These poor dogs have been raised and imbred so much that I\'m sure its totally change the breed into a bad one.

I\'m sorry I have to disagree with you. I\'m sure there are some out there who are nice.... But people imbreed these dogs so much that they are being born messed up and with aggressive sign and behaviors. I watched a special on this and it said the pit bulls breed have changed due to people and the breeding of these poor babies. I understand its dog not doggies fault, but it is a fault in the breed that is showing up time after time. They said they may also show no signs of aggression, but change and turn on you. They said that is what happened to the Regular Doberman Pincher breed. You dont see them like you use to cause of poor breeding and them being know to turn on their owners.