How To Handle A Dog Attacking Yours
Photo by Miquel Rosselló Calafell: https://www.pexels.com/photo/energetic-jack-russell-terrier-at-the-park-33033517/
Caring for your lovely dog within your household, and keeping them safe out of it, is no doubt one of your main priorities. Perhaps they have a perfect and lovely home environment, and you cherish your memories being built with them. However, it’s also true that even as the most wonderful owners with disciplined and patience for their furry friend, unfortunately, we cannot eliminate every threat.
Sometimes other dogs haven't been trained, treated or handled correctly, and they may attack yours. It’s rare, but it does happen. These circumstances can feel traumatic, and it’s not entirely clear what to do. Depending on the nature of your dog they may fight, flee, or, unfortunately, suffer the harm.
We don’t mean to say this to distress you or make you fearful on your morning walk, but we believe some of the following advice can help during such a stressful incident, if one were to ever occur.
If they have experienced this, you may need to resocialize your dog through training to let them move past the understandable insecurity it can provoke, or talk to your dog walking service about your dog’s extra needs and shyness.
However, there are many ways to prevent this in advance. Let’s discuss that below:
Make A Lot Of Noise
Sometimes, a sudden, loud noise can startle an attacking dog enough to make it pause or even back off. This isn't necessarily yelling at the dogs in anger, though that’s understandable, but creating a sharp, unexpected sound to break their focus. Think about what you have with you that could make some noise.
You could stomp your feet hard, clap your hands loudly, or use something like a whistle if you carry one. Some people even suggest carrying a small air horn for this exact purpose, though that's a bit extreme for a regular walk. The idea is to create a loud distraction that makes the aggressive dog think twice about what it's doing, call for help from others (more on that later), and try to make a barrier. If you have time, call the authorities.
Never Put Your Hands In A Fight
This is a really essential one, and it's easy to forget in the heat of the moment because your first instinct might be to grab your dog. However, putting your hands into a dog fight is incredibly dangerous. Even your own dog, when stressed and in a defensive mode, might accidentally bite you without meaning to.
The attacking dog will likely be focused on the fight, and could easily redirect its bite onto you. People often end up with serious injuries like broken bones or deep lacerations trying to separate fighting dogs directly with their hands. It’s better to use other methods to break up the fight, like water or noise, or grabbing a stick (though don’t beat the dogs outside of trying to separate them) rather than risking a bite yourself. Your safety is important too.
Get Help From Others
If you find yourself in this kind of situation, definitely look around for anyone else who might be nearby and able to help. Two people working together can often be much more effective at separating dogs than just one. Don't be shy about calling out loudly for assistance.
Someone else might be able to grab one of the dogs, or create a distraction, or just help keep onlookers away. Having another person there can also help you feel more confident and provide an extra set of eyes on the situation. If you press a legal issue, they can even be a witness. Then use Veteris emergency services to have your dog checked over and any injuries properly managed.