Wow... scary encounter with another Cavalier! Do I report this?

Was taking Gracie for early morning walk and met up with a woman who just put her kids on the school bus. She saw Gracie and was so excited. She had heard that someone with a Cavalier pup was in the area. She told me that she had two Cavs herself and they were in her car. Without any warning, she let them out and the female came running to Gracie and immediately attacked her....and I mean rabidly.
I had to scoop her up and we both had teeth and nail scratches (I got most of them). The male Cav ran off somewhere else and hid! No idea where he went.

The woman was horrified... apologized over and over, but then admitted that the female dog has had issues before with other female dogs, but never another Cav. I was furious as any Cavalier should not just be let loose OFF LEASH in the middle of a busy street... period. Much less a dog that has had territorial issues protecting the male or her humans. There was NO consideration that this could be a problem.

My big issue is this... we are supposed to report biting dogs to animal control. I ended up with the biggest scratches from her teeth and Gracie has a small one that I was able to treat. I feel sure the dog was not rabid but she clearly has serious socialization issues. So does the male in his own way but he did not bite anyone. I am really conflicted on this issue. I hope the woman learned a lesson here.... her dog is worse off than she thought and she must keep the dog away from strange dogs until the issue is fixed.

I am thinking that instead of reporting the situation, I will make contact with her and insist that she get training for the dog and ask her to provide a report from the trainer...and that she keep her dog away from other dogs outside her home. I do not want any other dogs in our neighborhood to get attacked this way. I have tears in my eyes now reliving that dog going after Gracie so viciously....Gracie is a good 5 pounds smaller but she held her own after she realized it was not a good situation.

What are your thoughts??? So conflicted on this.

Hi

Very unusual and scary encounter but I feel if you contact the lady and offer advice and guidance you will be doing a brave and wonderful deed .

I'm also conflicted on what you should do. Just glad you and Gracie are OK.

Poor you and poor Gracie,
It's terrifying when another dog attacks yours I know. It's hard to know what to advise. Personally i would contact the lady, if you can and explain how disturbed you were by her dogs behaviour. Sugest as you said that she gets some serious training ASAP and that she doesnt let the dogs out unleashed again.
You could say that you dont intend to report her "this" time.

Good luck and let us know. I hope you and Gracie are feeling better.

Mel

I am glad you and Gracie are ok, this must have been very distressing. I am really suprised you had this reaction from another Cavalier :?

I would talk to the lady, people should be responsible, the owner clearly knows she has a problem and should not allow the dog off the lead even if there is a remote chance there will be a bad reaction.

My feeling is in the first instance to talk to her, perhaps you could point out to her, that you are very understanding but the next person might not be which could lead to devastating consequences.

Oh my gosh, that is so scary !! I can't believe someone would just open their door and let dogs off leash run out like that. It sounds like everyone is ok, which is important. If I were you I would definitely do something, although it would be a hard choice whether or not to report her or contact her personally. Maybe do both?

Thanks all!

I am going to get a contact address for the woman (someone nearby does know exactly where she lives) and I do plan to go to her home and express serious concerns. The dog might attack another dog and a small child as well... any creature perceived as a threat to her family. Someone else in our neighborhood has seen the female dog be aggressive before...but apparently she was leashed then and they were able to control her better. What upsets me most is that she and her husband have had these dogs for 4-5 years since they were puppies and have done something that has made both dogs behave this way. Clearly, they have not been given proper training or care. How could you let this happen to two lovely Cavaliers?? Could they even be turned around at this point? And then to just let them loose knowing that one of them has had aggression issues is beyond me... not even any warning like "my girl can be a bit testy." geesh

I am so thankful both of you are ok. I'm surprised it was a cavalier but one thing is I was told never to have ella off a leash and she definately would run in front of a car. I think what others mentioned is the best thing to do.

Unfortunately I heard when ella was bit that it happens a lot so I don't think reporting would do any good. What you are going to do by talking to her would be much more effective and takes courage.

Even my new place I found a neighbor with a cavalier that was also missing an eye! Ella still has hers but her dog was bit by her brothers dog over food. Ella was unfortunately bit by a dog I believe was real sick. my parents lab was pts at an old but was told that scout could become confused and agressive because of the cancer they found out. He wasn't acting like himself.

So I don't know why but it does happen and I am so thankful both of you are ok.


Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk

GraciesMom said:

I am going to get a contact address for the woman (someone nearby does know exactly where she lives) and I do plan to go to her home and express serious concerns. The dog might attack another dog and a small child as well... any creature perceived as a threat to her family. Someone else in our neighborhood has seen the female dog be aggressive before...but apparently she was leashed then and they were able to control her better. What upsets me most is that she and her husband have had these dogs for 4-5 years since they were puppies and have done something that has made both dogs behave this way. Clearly, they have not been given proper training or care. How could you let this happen to two lovely Cavaliers?? Could they even be turned around at this point? And then to just let them loose knowing that one of them has had aggression issues is beyond me... not even any warning like "my girl can be a bit testy." geesh

Click to expand...

It must have been a very frightening few miutes for you and Gracie.

What concerns me most is the fact as you say that these dogs are adults and have been allowed to behave in this way for a long time.

I do wish you well going to see the lady, but TBH I think you might be banging your head against a brick wall.:bang: She clearly hasn't got a clue how to look after dogs - and hasn't bothered over the years to rectify that! (Letting them out of a car off the leash!! My God! what sane person would do that?)

I do hope you can make her and her family see sense though. Very good luck.

GraciesMom said:

I had to scoop her up and we both had teeth and nail scratches (I got most of them).

Click to expand...

Do you know any lawyers? Here in the U.S., the rule of thumb is "the first bite is free." The best thing you can do is document the experience with photos of your injuries and writing down what happened. Then, send her a letter telling her of this and that her dog bit you. The reason you do this is that if the dog attacks anyone else, and they should learn that the woman has been warned once already, the subsequent victim has grounds on which to sue the woman for damages, etc.

If the letter arrives on attorney letterhead (why I asked if you have any lawyer/paralegal friends), that often gets a person's attention more than a personal letter. Either way, you need to do this for the benefit of the next victim in case (heaven forbid) there is one and hopefully NOT a child or toddler.

And ... if this was me doing the letter, I would send it certified return receipt to make sure she received it.

Oh my goodness, I am stunned! Okay, so obviously this has been an issue in the past, and like you said, what in the world would EVER make her let them out of the car off leash is beyond me. What, she thinks because they are all 'Cavaliers' that the female dog would know?

Did the bite to Grace penetrate the skin? I'd ask for copies of her vaccination records.

She needs some serious talking to, but I doubt, as someone else here said, that she will take it seriously. She either needs to make the commitment to ALWAYS keep her female on leash (which she SHOULD anyways) and under control, or you will have to report this. I don't know how you can get that across.

We have leashes in both our cars even if we're just going for a ride should the need arise that Claire needs to be let out. I would NEVER let her off leash anywhere except at home. Unbelieveable!

Did the lady act embarrassed at all? Probably not .

Let us know how the 'talking' to her goes. Poor Grace, sure hope you are both fine.

Cindy and Claire

Well, I had a visit with the hubby

The wife was not home. I did tell him that I came out of concern for both their dogs and mine. I showed photos of her scratches and showed him the bite & scratches I got from their dog. He was somewhat chilly and defensive at first, but I told him that I had documented this issue thoroughly with a vet and that I was there to make sure that they took actions to protect everyone's pets, including theirs. I gave him the name of the most recommended trainer in the area as clearly they are not going to one that is good or they are just not following the trainer's advice. I did say that if I saw that dog off leash again, I would file a report with animal control and that I had one witness to the incident in the house across from where it happened (and I do).

At that point, he actually was more receptive to a conversation. I think that Gracie got only nail scratches, while I actually was bitten and scratched. The fact that I was truly bitten is what would trigger animal control to require a quarantine for examination of behavior and an order to keep the dog in their yard. The town we live in is pretty tough on this stuff.

I doubt that this will truly help as my sense is that they have let this situation get pretty out of control and have not taken the right actions.

Good idea.....waldor

waldor said:

Do you know any lawyers? Here in the U.S., the rule of thumb is "the first bite is free." The best thing you can do is document the experience with photos of your injuries and writing down what happened. Then, send her a letter telling her of this and that her dog bit you. The reason you do this is that if the dog attacks anyone else, and they should learn that the woman has been warned once already, the subsequent victim has grounds on which to sue the woman for damages, etc.

If the letter arrives on attorney letterhead (why I asked if you have any lawyer/paralegal friends), that often gets a person's attention more than a personal letter. Either way, you need to do this for the benefit of the next victim in case (heaven forbid) there is one and hopefully NOT a child or toddler.

And ... if this was me doing the letter, I would send it certified return receipt to make sure she received it.

Click to expand...

I think I will do that for sure if I find out this dog has been off leash out of their yard again! Good idea

Don't forget to take a pic of your injuries.

The problem is if the dog is left as is and not trained etc it could attack a child or another dog. Even though cav's are small and have a lovely nature as child could easily hurt one and the dog will react, if this dog is already reacting it could do some serious damage to a child.

In the mid 1980s I bred a litter of six, one of which was quite a strapping bitch, but she had a lovely temperament, so I had no worries about selling her to a pet home. The husband in the couple who took her was in the Royal Navy, expecting to go abroad without his wife in a couple of months. She wanted the puppy to keep her company and thought the training involved would keep her occupied instead of lonely. I thought that was a perfect match.

I had checked out the home and that was fine, especially as the wife had always wanted a Cavalier and the puppy quickly bonded with both of them. A few weeks later I visited the puppy at home, the wife now missing her husband because he was at sea. Again everything was fine.

A year or so later I was out walking the parents of the pups on Plymouth Hoe when I saw a dog who looked quite like a Cavalier in the distance, then as I drew closer there was something familiar about it, so I went over to the young couple walking it, who were smiling and waiting for me to reach them.

I asked where they got the dog. Ooooooops. Don't you recognise little Susie? Little Susie was now a strapping lass, overfed and snapping and snarling at me and both her parents every time one of us got within her reach. 'Oh yes, I thought it was her, but then thought it couldn't be' I lied.

Then the conversation took another turn, with the husband telling me how glad he had got this little bitch as a guard dog for his wife, 'because look what a good job she does. She only likes us and that's great':sl*p:.

Deciding that it would be better to discuss the dog's training over the 'phone in the first instance I took their number, as they had moved and not told me. There was no way I could deal with giving appropriate advice while the bitch was snapping and snarling, upsetting both me and her parents, which she had obviously forgotten.

Armed with the contact details of trainers and clubs I rang them a few days later, only to find that the number I had been given was as false as the address I tried to find the next day.

I often wonder how that poor little bitch ended up. That was the only time that I know of that one of my pups did not go to a life as good as the one I had started them off on - pampered pets extraordinaire, which is of course just how it should be.

I wonder if the dog we are discussing here could have been subjected to similar 'training' as Little Susie unfortunately got?:lpy:

How frightening! Good to know you both are ok. These things happen more than you think, it happened to myself and my dogs just last year, talking to the people didn't help though. Now we avoid walking past their house (they're live across the street from us). You've gotten some good advice here, tiz good you talked and they were receptive.

ByFlo Sin.... your story breaks my heart!!

That is just awful! To have a dog that you have bred end up like that is even more sickening. People are just nuts sometimes. Who ever would have thought of a Cavalier as a guard dog!!! For it to get that way is just heart-breaking!