Husband attacked by a Great Dane while jogging

[Kathy Hoppe]

Last night my husband went for a jog like he has been doing for the last 10 years. He listens to his ipod while running. He didn't even see a dog playing in a empty field across the road with his owner. All of a sudden this 19 month old Great Dane starts running across the street and bits into my husbans left arm. My husband tried to get his arm back as the owner came running over yelling to his dog. Long story short my husband ended up with 27 stiches and the bit wound was 9 1/2 inches long 2 inches wide! His whole forearm was open. Went down to the bone... Police say they've never seen a bit that bad. Dog had rabbie shots (thank God) and they were fined 230.00 for not having their dog on a leash. Plus they have to take the dog to a vet 3 times within the next 10 days... That's it!!! Needless to say our whole family is sick over this. They live down the street from us and I've only seen/heard this G.D. bark outsides it's little appartment window while taking our walks. We have NO idea why this dog attacked my husband. Of course the owners say this is the first time anything like this has happened...... They have a 3 year old daughter which I fear for. Will find out more when my husband gives them his medical bills once they start coming in. For now he's doing good. Not much pain just laying low for the weekend. Good thing it wasn't his right arm..... Let all be glad we have good dogs. Kathy & Lauscha

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm so sorry this happened to your husband. It's really a disgrace that people allow dogs who are clearly not 100% under their control to be outdoors offleash.

There is a man in my neighborhood who often has his Doberman Pinscher outside in the front yard off-leash with him; I am a nervous wreck every time we pass the house. We can control our own dogs, but we are powerless when it comes to other people's dogs. I have no idea what level of training the dog has, but it makes me nervous, and your story enforces that. I've honestly thought about carrying something that could be used to ward off an attacking dog.

[shelly]

Karen ~ I frequently see people walking around with huge logs/sticks for that same reason!

[Camilla and Darwin]

pepper spray?

[shelly]

Oh my goodness!  I am s sorry this happened!  How scary for you all!  I'm assuming the 3 day vet trips are to check out the dog to see if anything is wrong with him???  I hope it TRULY IS the first time.  A girl in my class was bit by a friend's German shepherd on her face and only after did the parents find out he has bitten before, THREE times - but not reported to the police!  They asked the girl's parents NOT to report, but they refused!  And the owners  didn't even have to get that dog checked or picked up!  I am hoping for your husband's speedy recovery!  gosh!

[Kathy Hoppe]

Thanks everyone for the speedy recovery wishes. He's sleeping now. Long night. The police did check if the dog had bitten before and nothing showed up in their records. But like you suggest who knows for sure if it's not reported. We're going to start talking to some of the other neighbors and the mailman to try and find out more about the dog. Things like this just don't happen out of the blue. There are signs. I'm guessing right now maybe the dog was just adopted within the last 6 months or so. That would explain allot of things. Maybe the new owners had no idea of the dogs aggressiveness until now. Hopefully we'll find out more in the days to come. Thanks again. Kathy & Lauscha

[Jane Smith]

I am so sorry to hear about this.  It is always my fear to be attacked while out with my girls, but I usually worry about javalinas, bob cats and coyotes, not other people's dogs. 

[Clint]

I am sorry to hear that.  I hope your husband has a speedy recovery and the owners get control over their dog.

 

The family that lives across the street from me has a pittbull.  Very nice dog, I have never even heard the dog bark or get excited.  However, before they got their back yard fenced they used to leave the dog tied out back unattended.  I didn't really mind that much since the dog was in the back yard and in my opinion if you walk into someones back yard you are taking your safety into your own hands.  The only issue I had was that the dog is strong and there is a tiny chance it could somehow get loose.  Now I DO have a problem with them and how they keep their dog.  They have since fenced in the back yard, but they leave the dog unattended tied out in the FRONT yard.  Not only does this neighbor have a little girl that plays with tons of other little kids, but my neighborhood is very busy with people running, walking other dogs, kids riding bikes, and teenagers walking from one house to another.  Since the dog is in the front and the tie out is fairly long the dog could fairly easily get to someone passing by on the sidewalk.  Not to mention when a kid sees a dog the first thing they want to do is walk up to it and play with it.

 

I really wish people would be more responsible for their dogs.  Part of the reason I do not have a dog already is because I refused to bring a dog home until my back yard was completely fenced in.  I didn't want to spend the thousands of dollars on a fence, but I also did not want to be responsible for my dog hurting someone or someone hurting my dog.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I  am so sorry to hear that your husband was bitten.  I hope he heals quickly and that the Dane's owners not only pay the bills but seriously look into training their dog and finding out his 'issues'

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

What a horrible and frightening experience.  I hope his arm heals quickly.  Someone suggested to me that I should always have a walking stick when I'm out with the Doods....problem is I can't figure out how I'd handle the stick AND my two guys.

[Camilla and Darwin]

I'm so sorry that this happened, I hope your husband has a speedy recovery! I get so angry at owners who are so careless with their dogs. You can't even walk with a dog in the neighborhood my parents live in, one of the many aggressive LOOSE dogs are sure to attack. Why can't people be responsible and keep their dogs under control?

[GBK]

What a horrible thing to happen.  Very scary, glad he is doing OK.

[F, Calla & Luca]

So sorry about this scary event. I hope your husband recivers quickly. This has gotten me thinking. I believe if one of my dogs ever did something similar, that is an unprovoked vicious bite like this, I would seriously consider putting it down despite how much I love each of them. I do not believe I could ever trust that dog again. That said I do trust my dogs completely in terms of aggression to humans but I still don't let them run about in public. But we all get into situations , romps for instance, where anything can happen. So knowing your dog and training is vital.