Getting Bitten
The article I wrote two weeks ago in The Weekly Sun about Fake Service Dogs has been shared on Facebook almost 10,000 times. I have been contacted by many breed clubs from around the country and various other publications, and websites wanting to print the article, as well. I have no idea what the readership has now mounted to. Frankly, I am astounded.
My intent here is not to blow my own horn but to share with you the blur of stories I have now heard regarding dog aggression, not only locally but, around the country.
While the story of Onyx is heartbreaking and egregious, other tales of folks getting bitten are just as heartbreaking. One woman told me that she had been bitten last week and her young son was bitten just yesterday right here in the valley. I have another friend who has not been bitten yet, but was surrounded by three loose dogs while out on a walk near her home, that came charging out from the yard into the street, growling, showed their teeth threatening her if she moved. She stood helpless waiting to get bitten, terrified and crying until a car came by and scared the dogs back into their yard allowing her to escape.
The stories of dogs and people being terrorized by aggressive dogs flooded to me from everywhere. When someone says, “Please call your dog!” and the dog owner replies, “He’s friendly!” but the dog continues forward, this is gross disrespect of another human being. It doesn’t matter if the dog is friendly. If someone is afraid of your dog and asks you to please not allow your dog to approach, the proper thing to do is to restrain your dog. Be kind. If you cannot restrain your dog, then you have no business with your dog off leash and you need to train your dog.
If someone has a dog on a leash and asks you to call your dog, it may be that the other dog has been traumatized, as Onyx was or is aggressive. Allowing your dog to approach, even if YOUR dog is friendly is irresponsible and incredibly unfair to your own dog, the other person and the other dog.
I am not sure what makes people think their dog is so special that manners do not apply. All I know is that somewhere along the line lack of training, lack of control, and lack of concern for others has become the norm, dreadfully hurting people, children and other dogs. A dog’s freedom has become a right, not a privilege given only to well-behaved dogs. This is not only extremely irresponsible, it is dangerous for everyone.
If a dog bites you, or injures your dog, you need to call the police or Sheriff. File a complaint. Pull out your cell phone immediately and take a photo of the dog and the owner of the aggressive dog. Note the time and exactly where you were. If you were bitten, take a photo of the bite immediately for records.
If you own an aggressive dog and insist upon walking him, muzzle your dog and teach him a 100% “come” command. Better yet, walk him on a leash, too.
Together, with kindness and caring for others, aggression prevention training, and reporting biting incidents, we can make a difference and make our community safe again.
