Dog attack in Dulwich Park this afternoon

[BecsBex]

Just a heads up for dog owners... My 7mth old Sprocker pup was attacked by two staffies this afternoon around 3.30pm, while she was walking off the lead (as were the staffs) in the area opposite the bike-hire place where the football pitch is.

Her leg is injured; the bleeding seems to have stopped now but if she still can't walk on it tomorrow morning I'll take her straight to the vet. Thankfully she's come out of it a lot better than she could have which is surprising because at one point one of the dogs was dragging her along the grass by the muzzle and wouldn't let go even as I was kicking it with my wellington boot. I was expecting her to have chunks missing :(

There were two owners who came over and managed to control the dogs, eventually. The woman is haggard-looking, maybe in her 40s with long ginger/grey hair. The guy had short dark blond/light brown hair, I think. Both staffs are a dark grey/brown colour. It all happened very quickly and once the dogs were back on leads, the woman came and prodded Tilly a bit but then both owners just sort of sauntered off and I let them go tbh because I was too busy worrying about my dog. They were absolute idiots though and spoke to me as if I'd done something wrong. It went a bit like this -

Hag: "What's wrong with it?"

Me: "She's just been attacked by your dogs (as you've just seen, you stupid bitch - I didn't say this bit aloud but I should have). I haven't actually had a chance to find out what's injured".

Hag:(sounding put out) "Mmm, I think we'll go home."

Me: "Oh, gosh, yes. Why don't you?"

Hag: "Well, I want to let them off."

And off they went back to the carpark.

Anyway - just a warning for other dog owners who frequent Dulwich Park. Keep an eye out. I walk Tilly there every day and have never had a problem but I've not seen these dogs there before. Would also like to say that there are some very gentle staffies who are walked off the lead at DP and that I have owned a staff x in the past myself who was so loving that if anything had ever attacked HER she'd have just rolled over and taken it. The problem here is not 'all staffies' and the solution is not to muzzle all staffs or all dogs or to enforce some blanket rule where no dogs are allowed off leads at the park. Most dogs are very nice. The problem is owners! The park manager happened to be walking his dog this afternoon and he went to search for the couple in the carpark but I don't know if he was successful. These people should be banned from DP and/or have their dogs taken off them, I think. If you see them, maybe report it to the park warden.

One last thing, thank you so much to the many lovely people who came over to check that we were all right, especially Daniel and also the guys who were playing football. It was v reassuring having you all come to the rescue.

xx

[first mate]

Becsbex,

I am so sorry to hear about Tilly and thank you for letting us all know about this incident in such a measured and responsible way.

I hope you don't mind me saying but if I were you I'd get her checked over by the vet anyway. Long fur can hide puncture wounds which look innocuous if you see them at all, but can obviously cause a lot of damage as well as cause bad infections. No doubt all will be well with Tilly but it's probably better to be safe than sorry. Her leg wounds could probably do with a proper clean up too.

I hope that since the dog owners whose dogs did this now know what their charges are capable of that they will keep them on lead and monitor them carefully around other dogs. It is possible that someone here will know who they are.

[aquarius moon]

So glad Tilly is ok.

Staffs are great people dogs, but dreadful with other dogs.

As everyone on here probably knows, I love all animals.

However, I do have a problem with staffs.

After one of my small dogs was attacked by one 2 years ago, I'm too scared to take them to any park.

If I'm out walking & see one off-lead, I instinctively pick mine up.

If you look at every dog/cat attack, it nearly always involves a staff.

Yet nothing is being done.

[BecsBex]

Thanks first mate, I agree - I'm going to take her to the vet tomorrow morning anyway. I don't have a car so as it was starting to get dark and she didn't seem to need **urgent** attention, I thought I'd clean her up a bit myself and let her rest for tonight. She's wrapped up warm and seems okay but yes I'll definitely take her down to the vet tomorrow. :)

The guys playing football said they'd seen the same dogs go after somebody else's not long before this incident took place. Apparently the owners put the staff back on leads at first but then let them off again just before Tilly and I were there... This plus the reaction of the couple when we spoke makes me think this has probably happened before and they're just d***heads.

[bonniebird]

Poor Tilly and poor you, if your taking her to the vet tomorrow, just take a peek at her gums. If they are a healthy pink thats good, white not good, hope she's ok xx

[NorthcrossJo]

Gosh, BecsBex, how awful. I'm so sorry to hear that Tilly was attacked and hurt, and that the owners seemed so careless about the whole incident. I hope Tilly's ok now, and that you're not feeling too shaken.

I agree that Staffs can be lovely, gentle and loyal, but any dog in the wrong hands can be aggressive. I hope that something can be done, without spoiling the park for all the responsible dog owners.

[73jem]

So sorry about your dog; could anyone let me know about this off-lead area? I thought that it used to be on the far side of the park near the Court Lane gate, and now the route to the car park from the cafe is often full of dogs without leads --- quite legitimate but a hazard if you have a small child and are trying to rejoin your car.

I know that most dogs are safe, but it only takes one etc.

Has the area in which dogs can run without a lead been changed?

[tiddles]

Gosh how horrendous for you, and made worse by the idiotic reaction of the owners!!! Sounds to me like they know exactly what the problem is but won't address it. Really hope Tilly is ok and I reiterate what first mate says.

Re the off lead area, I thought that the main tarmac ring was ok, as is the outer wild footpath, but the inner areas around the ponds were on lead (there are usually notices on the entrance to paths where a dog has to be on lead)

interested to know if this is correct or not!

[fuzzyboots]

So sorry to hear about your experience today. I had a similar experience in March this year walking my friend's dog (Staffies again - but a different one from those you describe) - and sadly the incident was fatal for the dog :(

PLEASE report this incident to the Park Warden/Community Wardens. They need at the very least to catalogue these incidents and to keep an eye out for these irresponsible dog owners/walkers. In the case of the owner of the blue staffy who attacked my friend's dog, he was a council tenant and therefore the council can come down quite hard on the owner/tenant if they don't take proper care of and with their dog when out in public spaces.

Whilst I'm here, I am going to take the opportunity to lodge a complaint about the number of people who allow their dogs to jump into the dog free picnic area (is the park not big enough?!!) and also who take their dogs NOT on short leads into the Japanese Garden. If you can't read english, it's ok - there is a sign indicating that dogs are only permitted in the area on short leads.

And I speak as a dog lover who is in the process of finding a rescue dog to adopt. Please have some consideration for other park users, so that the rest of the responsible dog walkers can continue to enjoy and use the beautiful park for our dogs.

[vicki08]

aquarius moon staffs are not terrible with other dogs... getting a little fed up of peoplee betraying staffies like they are the devils dog.....

IF THE DOG (ANY BREED) has been brought up the wrong way they will attack!!

i really would love for you to come round and see how my staff behaves......

BecsBex soory to hear of the attack to your dog i hope she makes a full recovery.

[vicki08]

aquarius moon also what would you like to be done about staffs put them all down??

great idea would be to shoot all the owners who treat and bring up thier staffs badley....

STAFFS are not bad dogs.. in actull fact i find jack rusells more spitefull

[first mate]

Becsbex,

How is Tilly this morning? Even if she seems absolutely fine please do make sure she goes to the vet.

I'd also be careful about which dogs you let her interact with- you want it all to be positive, so soon after an experience like that. She may be understandably wary of pairs of dogs or of staff type dogs for a while, or she may be fine- it depends on how sensitive she is. Watch her reactions around other dogs and if you see any slight signs of discomfort ensure she is not overwhelmed by getting space from the other dog/s. However, you don't want to worry her by worrying yourself so you need to monitor the environment without being anxious.

Most dogs will bouce back from one bad experience but it would be understandable if she was a bit wary for a while.

If only these rotten/irresponsible dog owners could grasp the consequences of their lack of managemant of their own dogs and the possible knock-on effect of just one bad experience on another dog.

I'd just like to say that even though the dogs that attacked Tilly may look like Staffs they might easily be crossbreeds. I do think certain bullbreeds have a propensity to play very roughly and that this can easily roll over into something else. Additionally, it is possible for certain types of dog, especially if they live together, to 'pack' and gang up on another dog.

The final responsibility is downn to the owner. The people who own these 'staffie-type' dogs are obviously not responsible dog owners and totally at fault. They had the ability to keep those dogs on a lead and chose not to.

[Jeremy]

I'm sure some bull breed dogs are well socialised and good with other dogs, but the point is that when you get a bad one, they are much more capable of causing serious injury than most other dogs. And unfortunately you do get a lot of bad ones, due to the disproportionate number of moronic owners.

[fuzzyboots]

I have to say, despite my experience with morph and the killer staffy earlier this year in Peckham rye park, the dog that I'm looking at adopting is an eight year old staff/lab cross.

I agree with the previous poster that WHEN a dog with high prey drive kicks off, the consequences can be more serious, but i also believe it is down to the owners to give a damn, act responsibly and not feel that they above the law, should their dog cause injury to anyone or any other animal.

Thank goodness Akitas, etc, aren't so numerous round here! They are notoriously prey driven. Although having said that, greyhounds are highly prey driven too and I don't recall reading of a greyhound attacking another dog here?

[fuzzyboots]

Hope I don't fit into the moronic category. ;)

I really believe it's the owners, not the dogs, who are to blame. Perhaps dog training (which is owner training as much as anything) should be compulsory - that should deter quite a few of the morons who think that dog ownership is their right rather than a privilege and a responsibility?

[aquarius moon]

vicki08 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> aquarius moon also what would you like to be done

> about staffs put them all down??

>

> great idea would be to shoot all the owners who

> treat and bring up thier staffs badley....

>

> STAFFS are not bad dogs.. in actull fact i find

> jack rusells more spitefull

Of course all staffs shouldn't be put down.

They should be kept on LEADS!

If their owners want them to run free in the park & they are under control, fine.

But it's not fine for them to be loose in the street & on pavements.

I should be able to walk my dogs safely around my roads, without having to worry about them being attacked.

I agree it is the owners who are at fault, but when you sadly hear about poor dogs/cats attacked or killed,

it is nearly always done by a staff or other bull breed.

[Jeremy]

fuzzyboots Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Hope I don't fit into the moronic category. ;)

Hopefully not! You don't sound like it.

I do really think that if owners are unable to stop their dogs chasing after dogs (and other animals) and potentially hurting them, then they should on a muzzle or lead at all times.

[the-e-dealer]

Bring Back the Dog License!

[fuzzyboots]

Or make an owner licence. Or both. Rather like the gun laws. That way perhaps both dog AND owner could be tracked better?

[the-e-dealer]

Well although it WAS called a dog license the owner had to buy it and keep it not the dog! :-)

[fuzzyboots]

Good point! I was reading that they are very strict in Switzerland. But then again, they are about lots of things, I believe.

[the-e-dealer]

and Norway if BB is to be believed.

[womanofdulwich]

If only dog owners could give their love to a lonely / isolated person instead of a dog.

[first mate]

womanofdulwich,

I'm sorry but that is a bit below the belt and irrelevant. By your logic any pastime or hobby should instantly be jettisoned and the requisite spare time/money devoted to lonely/isolated people. Why should dog owners be singled out?

[womanofdulwich]

I know I know its just that some dog owners are So virtuous after their dog walking they could spend their time with a human being. I've been badly bruised by dogs running at me chasing something/ another dog, had to change trousers , had trousers slathered over by clients labradors -and trod on their poo.

I do walk friends dogs occasionally and keep them on the lead/ pick up the poo, and I wish them no harm. You have me on a bad day first mate.

Still I do think some people could benefit from treating others as well as they treat dogs.