my puppy Charlie

[Mlyn]

Hi remember me the one with my puppy is biting "charlie" yellow lab "21/2 months old now" I just wanted to share that things have changed with him he has been a great dog for us. how ever we have had a new and horrible experience. I and my boy friend decided to go camping and take charlie with we had met his friends at a camp sight. " it was dark" just has we got out of the truck we had charlie on his leash and out of the blue came this pitbull and attacked charlie it had taken several people to get him off charlie. he had him by the leg and hip. it had taken us that night and the next day to find a vet because it was on fathersday weekend. we had finally located a vet an hours drive from where we live. we had met him at his home from there the vet took him the rest of the way to his clinic another hours drive. it was just awful!! he ended up having two fractures one in the hip and one in the leg it is costing me $1000.00. money I do not have, though the vet is willing to take payments. what has made me so angry about all of this is the owner of the pit had the gall to tell me he is not paying a dime and that Iam liable for for my dog biting him when he was trying to get his dog off from charlie. he says because we came onto his campsite. and his dog was chained up. but when we approached we did not see him. I would like to here some oppinions on this.

[cutelittlemako]

From a legal standpoint, being "on somebody's property" does not justify getting hurt. Wether it be slipping on ice or being attacked by a dog. Even if the dog is chained. This man has a civil responsibility towards you and your "property" (your puppy). You can and should take action.

[Lucky Rescue]

I am so sorry this happened to you and your poor little puppy!

Did you get this person's name? The only recourse you have is to take him to small claims court. I doubt he would have to pay the full amount, since his dog was tied up, and this was an accident, but he may have to pay half!

It's certainly worth a try.

As for him being bitten by your dog - anyone who sticks his hands into a dogfight does so at his own risk.

[Mlyn]

Iam planning on fighting him on this . however i have a question. even though he was on his campsight and other people were there also. this was also a crowded campsite with children. there was no beware of dog warning to let people no the dog was there. the camp fire was in the back and the dog was in the front so to reach the fire you have to pass the dog if I would have known that dog was there we would not have proceeded there was no bark or growl or any other type of warning. and would if this would have been a child running by? and with this being a vicious
attack should he even had this gog on a public camp ground? would that make him full liable. we are not even sure if he is going to need more surgery from this. if he does not get any feeling in that leg or hip he might end up loosing it.

[Luba]

You need to find out the camp grounds requirements first before you do anything.

Their dog was being controlled by a lead. Your dog got too close and thats what happened. If the lead / chain broke and that dog got free it would be a different situation.


I am so very sorry to hear that this happened to Charlie, ofcourse he is getting all the love and attention his mom *you* can give him and I hope he recovers fully (hugs to Charlie boy)

[Lucky Rescue]

I certainly understand your anger and frustration, but:

and would if this would have been a child running by?

Dog aggression has NOTHING to do with human aggression!!! Many breeds of dogs are aggressive towards other dogs, and towards other animals but that does not mean they will attack a child.

This dog probably can easily tell the difference between a child and a dog, I'm sure.

Yes, this incident was mostly the dog owner's fault. If he knows his dog is aggressive to other dogs, he must watch him closely.

[cutelittlemako]

Was this dog (the attacker) on a leash or chained to an inanimate object? If the dog was chained to a tree or something then the owner is liable. Even with beware of dog signs, a person can still be held accountable. It's a very relative matter. The owner must have done everything humanly possible to PREVENT the attack for him not to be responsible. And a campground is not like a private house with a tall gate surrounding it, it's reasonable to think that people trespass on other's sites, this is a common thing in campgrounds.

Write everything that happened that night down in very explicit detail. Don't write your feelings or emotions down. Include your demeanor, the other dog's owner's demeanor -what was said between you two... Take pictures of your dogs injury's before they heal. Describe how the dog was, how he was being restrained, how the owner reacted when he saw the attack. Don't exagerate, there is no need for it. This way, if you write everything down with vivid words and explanations, you can remember it in a month from now. Do it like a police report would be, include as much detail as possible, colors, shapes, sizes of the dogs, lengths of leashes, chains, ropes, include the surroundings - how was the camp site shaped, were there obstacles that prevented the dog to be seen by passers by...

That way if you decide to take action, you will have a detailed account, because if you try to recall it a month or two from now, the details won't be as fresh in your mind and distances or time might be warped. Go back to the campsite and take pictures if possible. Have as much written and visual aids as possible.

Good Luck.

[Mlyn]

I need some advice on what I can do. he has been doing real good up until last night , his leg is real swollen and its hot to the touch. i know he has been running a temp. though he acts fine. his hip and leg is red and purple. his next appt with the vet is monday and i don't know what to do because its a holiday weekend and I cant get a hold of his vet or any other vet. there is no such thing has emergency vet here or any where near i have been giving him his meds. i also gave him an asprin for his fever i would like to put him in a luke warm bath but i'm not sure about his insision's he has a drainage tube but it wasn't draining so i pulled it out but it didn't change much what can I do until i am able to get a hold of a vet.

[Luba]

I responded on your other thread

http://www.pets.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=5308