Do I need to take Sunny to West Virginia?
:
LEWISBURG, W.Va. (AP) _ A state agency is using a video camera and raw chicken to help determine whether the king of the jungle is prowling the woods in Greenbrier County.
Bow hunter Jim Shortridge swears he saw a full-grown, male African lion weighing between 250 and 300 pounds at the foot of Cold Knob Mountain earlier this month. The state Division of Natural Resources confirmed that at least one other person has reported seeing the lion.
Using a camera normally employed to catch people dumping trash illegally, the state Department of Environmental Protection has joined with Greenbrier County Animal Control Officer Robert McClung and exotic animal expert Jim Forga to see if they can substantiate the sightings.
Twenty pounds of raw chicken left on the site last week were devoured, but McClung said that doesn’t prove the lion’s existence.
“… anything could have eaten that,” he said. “There appeared to be scratch marks on the trees that had been scented with cologne, but I could not identify what made them. It was raining pretty hard and we looked around, but we could not find any signs of anything.”
If officials do spot the lion on videotape, they may set a bear trap for the animal. If caught, it would be turned over to Forga, who runs Tiger Mountain Refuge in Rainelle, a shelter for exotic animals.
Two words, people, two words: Rhodesian. Ridgeback. Also known as the African Lion Hound.
They need to go to a couple of Ridgeback rescue clubs, pick out the strong ones, and set them loose in those woods so they can corral that fucker. :
The breed’s long history dates back to early in the 18th century when the first European settlers found with the Khoisan tribes a domesticated dog with the hair on his spine being turned forward. Later, to fill specific needs of the big game hunters of the late 19th century for a serviceable hunting dog, tough, resistant to disease, intelligent enough to avoid crocodiles and snakes, with tick repellent smooth coat, tight paw pads to protect against thorns and rough terrain, brave and muscular enough to face a lion or any other big game, but fast enough to stay out of harm’s way of horns, claws and teeth.
As hunters, Ridgebacks were sent out in packs of two or more to wear down a lion by taunting and goading it into confusion. Hunters discovered that Ridgebacks would corner or “bay” the lion while the human hunters stepped in for the final kill. (The poor accuracy of the rifles of this time in history required close proximity to the beast.)
The dogs worked in revolving groups to keep the lion occupied until the hunter arrived; the dogs themselves did not usually kill lions, but somehow over the years this fable began and still persists. Female Ridgebacks were often used more than males, as the females tended to be more agile.
I blog about Sunny too much, don’t I? You can handle it. If you recall from The Great Pit Bull Incident, Sunny is one hell of a fierce bitch. She showed her mettle again this past Tuesday as we were walking the dangerous streets of our dangerous loose-dog-filled neighborhood.
There we were, traipsing along innocently, me, Sunny, and Digger. We rounded a corner and up ahead I saw a couple of kids in the middle of the street, playing on their bikes. Then I saw their dog, who then saw me and my dogs, and it was ON.
He was 50 yards away at least, but the moment that dog saw us, he started charging our way at top speed. Which told me we had a Situation on our hands, because you do not sprint aggressively towards Sunny. She will bite a hole through your face.
As soon as I saw the other dog running towards us with intense menacing purpose (he was very obviously NOT coming to play or sniff), I stopped our forward movement and attempted to verbally soothe my beasts. YEAH RIGHT. Who was I trying to kid? You can talk all you want about having “control” over your dogs but I’m not Cesar Fuckin’ Milan, okay? My dogs see a strange dog bolting towards them top speed and barking aggressively, they don’t give one tiny little SHIT what the human thinks about it. They are going to fuck that dog up. And do you know what? I don’t blame them. For all I know, that dog wants to feast on my organs.
Anyway. Both of my dogs were pulling on their leashes with great intensity as the strange dog charged us. I had about 5 seconds to decide whether to let go of the leashes or not. If I let go, I open myself up to liability if anything bad happens to the other dog or the kids (who were chasing their dog by this point). If I don’t, I’ve got 170 pounds of canine fury tethered to my left hand in the middle of a 3-way dog battle. Jesus Christ.
I didn’t let go. I couldn’t turn and try to run, either, as that’s just about THE stupidest thing to do when a dog is after you. Not to mention the fact that there’s no miracle under the sun that could have persuaded my dogs to retreat with me. So I held the leashes and we stood our ground, and do you remember the Battle of Pelennor Fields from the LOTR-Return of the King movie? The part where the Riders of Rohan (and yeah, I still want Eomer’s babies) charge toward the Orc army and when they reach them THEY DO NOT EVEN SLOW DOWN? They just fuckin’ HIT.
That’s what it was like on Tuesday evening. The strange dog (which by now I could see was a 100+ pound short-haired Lab of some sort who was several inches taller than Sunny and way, way, way, way more muscular) crashed full-speed into Sunny, who was so very, very ready for it. She caught him right in the throat with her open jaws. He yelped, she let go, but he did not even think about backing down. Digger, elderly though he may be, was pretty fucking pissed off, too, and he tried getting in on the action, which immediately got him knocked down, hard.
Which is when I got absolutely bloodthirstily ENRAGED. There I am, holding two leashes on two big dogs, one of them in a cage match with a 100-pound psycho and the other one laying on his side whimpering and getting stomped on. All because some ASSHOLES think it’s okay to let their huge, aggressive dog run free. Run free! Are you freakin’ KIDDING me?
So do you know what I did? Sunny had the monster under control in a snarling, biting, chaotic-yet-beautiful-in-its-brutal-efficiency way, so I quickly helped Digger up and then I did something I’ve never done before: I physically assaulted an animal. Still holding both leashes in my left hand, I threw my right arm out for balance, pulled my right leg back, and then kicked that shithead as hard as I could right in the ribs. He pulled back from Sunny a little and I did it again, this time in his skull. I WAS SO PISSED. Sunny stopped snarling and biting long enough to look up at me, like, did you just DO that? Holy shit, human! Let’s kill this bastard together!
The lab ran a few yards away to gather his wits. The kids finally got to the battle zone and I yelled at them to get back. The little girl was actually about to try to grab her dog. Fool! She was maybe 5 years old. FINALLY around the corner comes Dad, who races to the scene and seizes his piece of shit dog. Who broke free and came at us again but that was a very bad idea, because by that time, I was between him and Sunny, and she thought he was coming for me, and have you ever seen an obese dog move with the speed of light? It’s really quite remarkable. She literally leapt through the air in front of me to intercept the lab. Her fury was at Defcon 5 level and she hurt that dog. I didn’t see blood but he was whimpering and limping a little. He finally gave up and his owner got control of him.
And that’s that. The dad apologized profusely and yelled at his kids that they were in SERIOUS, SERIOUS TROUBLE! and I think he meant it. As we walked away, I heard him telling the boy that this is why! I told you to never let him out off leash! I TOLD YOU AND THIS IS WHY!! Someone could have gotten hurt! You apologize to the lady! So I was cool with that. At least Dad has a clue and I doubt his kids will ever let the dog out loose again.
I love that Sunny is protective and fierce, but the problem is, now she’s got blood lust again. It took me a few months after the Great Pit Bull Incident to make her stop wanting to murder every dog she laid eyes on. Now we start over once more. Urgh.
Glad you and Sunny and Digger are ok, and those kids, too. Particularly glad that the dad had some sense. I’ve got a feeling that dog may be moving to a farm, soon…
November 1st, 2007 at 12:04 pmESTHOLY SHITE!!! You are freaking so lucky and so freaking awesome. ROFLMAO
I wish there were video cameras in the area and we could watch but you paint a great picture. My little old lady Quinn would have sacrificed herself too but she would have lost against 100# monster like that.
Kids do dumb things. Sounds like the dad knew what was up and took care of his dumb azz kids. I doubt they’ll do that again.
Don’t you carry pepper spray or something? At least a stick!
November 1st, 2007 at 12:11 pmESTWow. I guess that dog only gets aggressive when not on a leash and around other dogs? Because that’s the only reason I can think that they would have kept the dog in the first place, and why the dad would allow the kids with the dog outside in any capacity.
I don’t condone violence against animals when it’s unprovoked. Clearly, however, you had some ass-kicking to do.
Good for you and Sunny - poor Digger tried! It’s good to know that he’s still got some fight in him.
November 1st, 2007 at 12:13 pmESTWhat PatHMV said.
November 1st, 2007 at 12:14 pmESTLabs aren’t normally that aggressive. Must be something else in the mix.
November 1st, 2007 at 12:22 pmESTGood show, Rachel. Clearly both you AND Sunny are tough-as-Goddamn-nails.
Also, props to the dad for doing EXACTLY the right thing. I was all ready for a Rachel Lucas Rant™ about an asshole dad who blamed you because his dog attacked you. But low and behold, my prediction was wrong. The father acted like a truly responsible adult, which means his kids are probably going to grow up to be responsible adults as well.
November 1st, 2007 at 12:30 pmESTSadly, there doesn’t need to be anymore. Labs and Goldens used to deserve their reputation as the world’s friendliest, most tolerant dogs, but it’s no longer true; decades as America’s most popular family dogs has led to a hell of a lot of people breeding very carelessly, and we’re now seeing temperament problems in with the more physical consequences of overbreeding. Goldens in particular are showing nasty strains of aggression, mostly possessive but other kinds as well, that previously were just unheard of in those sweet animals. American Cockers are ravaged to the point where a totally healthy, nice one is almost rare; see “Lady and the Tramp” for what THEY used to be. Looks like the retrievers are headed the same way.
/overbreeding rant
I’m not totally sympathetic to the dad given the leash line; a hundred-pound animal that really wants to do its own thing is tough for many adults to handle, let alone a kid. Kids should never, ever be in charge of handling that large a dog even on a leash, because they’re basically just heavy kite tails if it decides to do something. Oh well. That said, I’ll join everyone else in being happy that he’s not that commonest of beasts, a person who blames everyone else in the world for his own dog’s aggression.
As for kicking the crap out of the dog? You did what you had to. Part of leadership is being willing to step up and defend your dog if there’s a real threat- you probably made a more constructive impression on Sunny than you might think. Many fear-aggressive dogs get worse and worse because they (correctly) believe their owners can’t or won’t protect them from the threats they perceive around them.
November 1st, 2007 at 12:48 pmESTI can’t believe that this happened and you didn’t blog about it sooner.
I am happy to hear that you are safe. That was an extremely dangerous situation, as you clearly appreciated.
However, let me repeat something I said the last time this came up: air horn. They make small ones that you can easily carry in a pocket. Bellowing “NO” and using the air horn makes for a powerful combination. It really startles them.
From dog trainers and our vet, I am given to understand that this works better than pepper spray. For one thing, it has a greater range, so you can deter from a distance. For another, on some dogs pepper spray just doesn’t work, especially with breeds with a high pain threshold.
If you also want to carry pepper spray, a taser, and a walking stick, though, I won’t say don’t. I would probably draw the line at a Ghurka kukri knife, however.
November 1st, 2007 at 12:49 pmESTWow, I was going to watch “300″ this weekend but now I don’t need to any more.
November 1st, 2007 at 1:02 pmESTI have to ask. You always talk about sunny being a ridgeback, but she doesn’t look like any ridgeback i’ve ever seen. Even ridgeback mix’s always seem to be solid brown in color. Is she a mix of something, or is there some strange line of colored ridgebacks that ive never heard of?
Good story either way.
November 1st, 2007 at 1:26 pmESTHey sis!! I hate dogs but I want one anyway. I would’ve poked the eyes outta that one! I thought I was dog treat not too long ago on a walk in my neighborhood. I called the doggie police as soon as I got home and changed my underwear. I was charged full speed across an acre 4 times by a Pit Bull blazing teeth and slobber. I’ve never been so scared in my life.
Check your email. See ya!
November 1st, 2007 at 1:45 pmESTPat, what Labrat said. Also, this dog may have had something else in him, but he just looked exactly like a basic yellow lab but with really short fur. He was kinda weird lookin’ actually.
HT, I was too busy humiliating and shaming Sunny with the costumes to blog about her heroics yesterday. You see where my priorities lie. Also, I swear to God, I was in a store yesterday and saw an air horn, and almost bought it. I should have! I didn’t even think of using it on dogs, I just wanted it. Duh.
Bryan, according to the vet, she’s a pure Ridgeback (based on all her other features - there’s no way to be sure because I got her from a shelter) but she is one of the black-and-tan “mutants”. site says:
Poor Sunny! Oh also, when I got her from the shelter, she was in a cage with her own brother, who was a “perfect” Ridgeback, light wheaten. I wanted him so bad. But we already had Digger and couldn’t have handled 3 dogs at the time so I took Sunny because she was smaller and more timid - everybody in the place was drooling on her brother and I’m sure he got a home pretty quick.
November 1st, 2007 at 1:54 pmESTActually, labs can be very aggressive. Sometimes it is due to neglect or abuse and sometimes due to over-breeding. I had a black lab (dumber than a box of rocks but sweet as anything) which went crazy due to the neglect she suffered when I went away to college. (My parents bought her when I was 10 and foiseted the responsibilty on me until college - if I knew then what I know now, I would have stayed in town to care for her.) One day she got out and ripped the leg off a neighborhood dog. I was told about 2 months later. And my parents wonder why I don’t trust them.
November 1st, 2007 at 2:43 pmESTGood for you. I would like to point out, that while OC spray is great when you’re alone; it sux for when you’re accompanied. OC spray tends to be like a great BIG shotgun: hits the target, and everything else within 10 feet. Plus, with a slight breeze, it is quite easy to get yourself, too. Air Horn is a good idea, too.
Well-trained and -raised dogs are just a blessing. It is a shame there are so few. “Man’s best friend”, indeed; but only when well-trained. As for SUNNY… she is quite the Warrior. Respect her more, and STOP putting her in costumes. Give her props… she has proved the dictum: she looks pretty, AND she CAN fight.
November 1st, 2007 at 3:45 pmESTHow about a “Warrior Princess” costume as a compromise? : )
November 1st, 2007 at 3:52 pmESTDaaaaamn thats just scary,glad you guys are ok (and Sunny rocks!) I’m glad you kicked that dog..normally I’m against such things but not in this case.
November 1st, 2007 at 3:58 pmESTA friend of mine told me a useful trick..water gun filled with ammonia..it helps with nasty dogs and nasty humans..I honestly dont know if it would work better than pepper spray but there you have it.
Also I wanted to comment on the dog costumes but..could find no words to express..just wow..oh and the “losing your soul” bit sounded just about right lol
I think everyone would be happier if Rachel wore the warrior princess costume, and left Sunny as nature intended.
P.S. It doesn’t always work, but some dogs can be stopped by throwing things at them. It’s something they can’t do, and it freaks them out. So add a couple of rocks to the list of things you could carry around with you. Heck, don’t let it be your only defense, but it couldn’t hurt to have it as a backup plan.
November 1st, 2007 at 3:59 pmESTDogs. I love them.
November 1st, 2007 at 4:34 pmESTHoly crap, Rachel Lucas. I’m glad you’re all ok, and I hope Digger got lots of massages after his fall. If you’re attacked in the future and need to kick the dog (Lord willing, you won’t have this problem again), try the spot where the dog’s back thigh meets its body. Terribly sensitive area. When Rowdi (who has absolutely zero neck sensitivity) is completely fixated on anything, if I can’t get her attention, I poke her right there, and she snaps out of it right away.
You’re right, there is something else in the mix. I’d say the most likely breeds are Lack of Exercise (a popular breed in America), Lack of Discipline (even more widespread in America), and Lack of Rules, Boundaries & Limitations (nasty breed, that one).
Rachel Lucas, that’s great that the dad was apologetic and all over his kids about it, but how did they get out of the house with the dog off-leash to begin with? I’m thinking a 100-lb. dog shouldn’t be playing with the kids outside without parental supervision, especially an aggressive dog. Oh, also, we were watching a recent Dog Whisperer, and Cesar said that carrying a big stick when you’re walking gives you even more authority.
November 1st, 2007 at 4:40 pmESTI second that, HT! Heck, I’d be happy if she would wear the pink bikini top…
November 1st, 2007 at 4:40 pmESTBite me. My heart is racing after that.
November 1st, 2007 at 4:58 pmESTI never back down from a charging dog. You do have to stand your ground because the animal has claimed the field of battle, with you in it. A damn pit bull, half grown was with his retrograded owner, OFF THE LEASH AT THE BEACH, right next to kids, came charging at the Pepper Dog. Had he been more than half-grown, had Pepper’s coat been less than its current mattress thickness, it would have been bloody.
The owner never apologized, just kicked and beat his dog. I followed them both back to their car, noted the plates, and notified the police.
Thanks for sharing the moment of Synchronized Ass-Kicking, street-style. Gotta love it!
November 1st, 2007 at 6:04 pmESTMe, I’m thinking hell with the liability. Turn em loose. There’s dogs, and then there’s feral asshole carnivores that are just plain dangerous.
That’s awesome that you got a few licks in. Sad that you had to, but having been attacked on several occasions in almost exactly similar situations, I have to say that you showed more restraint than I would have.
Glad no one got seriously hurt (except the one who had it coming).
November 1st, 2007 at 6:31 pmESTRachel, get a weapon. sooner or later you or your four-leggers are going to get hurt. Really, dog attack by a large breed is no joke.
I was once walking two of my dogs and a loose pack of five jumped us. It sucked. I ripped a board off a guy’s fence and laid about. Two guys down the street swore they didn’t know the dogs. I was mad enough to kill, and they were fairly freaked out - not that the bastards helped me.
Once I was young and was karate man. I was running in Harley Davidson Park when some punk vato’s German Shepherd went after me like a rocket. I had time to stop and get in the stance. I kicked the dog in the head as hard as I could. He rolled over and then got up and looked at me. I thought, “oh, shit”. Strangling a large dog is not easy. His punk owners came running up to give me shit. I offered to kick their heads into low earth orbit.
November 1st, 2007 at 6:31 pmESTAll three of you deserve a pig roast for that one! I’m glad you’re all o.k. I might suggest steel toed sneakers on future walks in your neighborhood. A pair for you wouldn’t be a bad idea either! You’ll be able to kick with some authoriteh. I’m not sure about using a Hooter with two dogs tied to your wrist. It may scare the bad one away, but…
November 1st, 2007 at 6:49 pmEST3 words, carry your gun. forgot kicking. shoot, ask questions later.
Oh, is this your dog?
*grinning*
November 1st, 2007 at 9:29 pmESTWhen I had dogs there was an understanding in the neighbourhood - that if one dog was leashed and another not, there could be trouble.
So what would have happened if you’d let Sunny and Digger off the leash before the lab reached you? In my experience, nothing, the dogs would have sorted it out without much ado.
Is it something to do with US laws - an unleashed dog will always be the culprit?
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:47 amESTProof. Period. Rachel IS the Alpha Bitch. But we all knew that already , didn’t we? ;o)
November 2nd, 2007 at 7:55 amESTThat’s happened to me more than once. The charging dog always lost — even a much bigger one. Didn’t mean I wasn’t pissed-off, though.
November 2nd, 2007 at 8:27 amESTVery pleased you walked away from this incident. I and my wife carry a very powerful pepper -like spray when we run, exactly for situations like this, the spray hurts horribly when it gets to the eyes. Some of these other writers are 100% correct a large dog comes at you and your animals are leashed shoot it and keep shooting it until it stops moving. No matter what some dog lover may say your life and well bneing is worth far more then some dog.
November 2nd, 2007 at 9:13 amESTRachel, you are an extremely good writer. Thanks for your efforts. I enjoy them immensely.
November 2nd, 2007 at 10:18 amESTI love that Sunny is protective and fierce, but the problem is, now she’s got blood lust again. It took me a few months after the Great Pit Bull Incident to make her stop wanting to murder every dog she laid eyes on.
Or maybe everyone who dresses her up funny. I think she’s just practicing on dogs and biding her time.
November 2nd, 2007 at 10:44 amESTMy wife and me were walking our Bouvier, 130+ pounds last Monday when a yellow lab came charging out of a yard at us. The owners were out with her as she ran up to Thor, Dog of Thunder. The lab chickened out at the last moment and stopped, and dipped her head. I was ready to let go of the leash and it was good thing I didn’t. Thor didn’t make a sound, standing erect and alert, he just lunged at the lab with his jaws wide open, trying to swallow the lab whole. Luckily I was able to stop Thor just short. The owner came running over apologizing. I was also apologizing because I didn’t want anyone complaining about my big dog.
It’s funny, Thor will bark at people or dogs approaching our property, but once your within striking distance, he goes silent. A good sized dog is the best security a family can have. Of course, like a gun, you have to be responsible.
November 2nd, 2007 at 11:50 amESTMy Rachel-powerkicked-the-dog reactions:
1) HELL YEAH! Kick its ass Rachel!!
2) Wait, we’re talking about kicking dogs. I’m supposed to feel bad about that.
3) What would I do if something attacked my Rajah? I’d carve it up with a bloody chainsaw, that’s what!! The hell with the feeling bad, MORE than justified.
Of course, regarding 3) . . . Rajah is an indoor cat, so anyone or anything attacking him would need to have broken into my apartment, and therefore earned a beatdown whether aggressive or not
November 2nd, 2007 at 1:05 pmESTBob: OH yeah. I rarely ever worry about a barking dog- it’s trying to scare me, or warn me away without the seriousness of a growl. A dog that’s decided to do something about me is a silent dog.
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:00 pmESTMooch is a Border Collie…smarter than my 2nd son it seems sometimes.
At a river front off-leash park he got charged by a boxer twice his size and just trotted into deep water to doggie paddle.
Once we got attacked when the Mooch was young by two boxers. I let go of his leash to let him get away while I yelled at the loose dogs to “Go Home”. That usually works and worked this time.
Mooch hasn’t had much luck with boxers.
Generally he is bored stiff by other dogs and when loose in our yard chasing frisbee (with supervision), he’ll let them trot by without notice. If they come in the yard he assumes it’s for playtime.
Border Collies are the best…smarter than a 5th grader for sure.
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:26 pmESTYou’ll never be able to hit a charging dog with a pistol; just too fast and a bad angle. Pepper spray will likely make a dog sneeze, but that is about all; their membranes are different from ours. Good situational awareness will help keep you out of trouble.
You might want to do as the Maasai, great lion killers that they are, and get a proper war club; a pal in the Dept. of State gave me one after his assignment to Kenya. It is not as long as this image, only about thigh long, , and this is what the head looks like, . Hold it low, swipe it up into the ribs, and someone or something is gonna be hurtin’ real good!
By the way, I am pretty sure the warrior princess in that image is NOT Rachel.
November 2nd, 2007 at 2:30 pmESTThe gun is a bad idea. Ya’ can’t just go spraying bullets all over hell. You will hit something, or someone, you don’t intend to. Get a stick about four feet long and about as thick as a walking staff, maybe an inch and a half hardwood. A handle off an old hoe, or rake might work and should be cheap.
November 2nd, 2007 at 4:59 pmESTAnyone else after reading this have a mental image of Rachel in the Karate Kid pose? Arms outstretched, one leg curled up ready to strike…
November 2nd, 2007 at 5:25 pmESTA gun on a dog is not the best idea. There are just too many other ways to stop them, and a gun is more likely to not work except for the noise. Like someone said, dogs are moving too fast and unless you’re an expert you’ll miss. Unlike with people, guns don’t work on dogs unless you hit them. Except for the noise to startle them, they don’t know that a gun can hurt them. People are easily influenced by the sight of a gun, dogs aren’t.
Mark, I’ve actually been taught that strangling is a very effective method of stopping a dog, if you’re not the target of the dog. A former girlfriend of mine used to work for a vet. One day a pit bull got loose and jumped a miniature dog of some sort. The small, female vet jumped on the dog, wrapped one arm around its neck and quickly caused it to pass out.
Rachel, I can’t tell very well from the pictures, but even taking nonstandard coloring into account, I don’t think Sunny looks much like a ridgeback. Animal shelters are fond of giving exotic breed designations to mutts to help get them adopted. I was told of a Portuguese Water dog that needed a home one time, and it turned out to be a lab with really bad skin and about 4 years older than claimed. My current dog was adopted by my wife before I met her. It’s some kind of cairn terrior/shih tzu mutt but they told her it’s a Brussels Griffon. In a pig’s eye!
November 2nd, 2007 at 7:29 pmESTSkyler: I thought that too- our local shelter is particularly notorious for trying to pass off obvious pit bulls as something else, among their completely wild other guessing- but then I looked it up, and… she . A significantly overweight Ridgeback, mind you, but the pattern and general bone structure is the same.
Plus I thought I saw a ridge on some of the early photos Rachel put up, the one with her playing with Digger as a pup and pooping to express solidarity about templates. Could have been my mind’s eye making one, though. The ridge is pretty diagnostic.
November 2nd, 2007 at 9:17 pmEST….I forgot the comment filter hates me. *hiss*
Short version: Ridgebacks DO come in black and tan, the pattern matches, the bone structure is the same even though Sunny’s fat, and I’m pretty sure you can see a ridge in the pictures where you can see her back.
November 2nd, 2007 at 9:18 pmESTYou might want to consider carrying pepper spray for dogs. This past Sunday I stopped, well, slowed down, a pit bull attack on my 2 German Shepherds.
I carry Muzzle pepper spray when I walk my 200 pounds of German Shepherd. I don’t want to risk injury or have them become any more animal-aggressive. The spray didn’t stop the damn pit, but it did blind it. I was then able to pull my dogs away, while the freak-show owners finally corralled their mutt. They got there a bit too soon, as I was winding up for some hot size 11.5 justice, a la Rachel.
The animal control officer officer said we were damn lucky to get away with only a small puncture wound and some abrasions. Some pits are very aggressive, powerful, crazy dogs.
In a similar situation, a retired minister slit the throat of an attacking pit bull. All right, Rev! That’s a church I could get into to!
November 2nd, 2007 at 10:29 pmESTFinally! A parent parenting their children!!! And responsible dog owner! Yah, the kids f-ed up but I’ll bet they have learned because their dad actually blamed them for fucking up instead of you.
I’m glad you made it out of this unscathed…fairly, anyway. And it is a wonderful feeling to know that if necessary, your dogs will protect you in any way they possibly can.
November 3rd, 2007 at 4:23 amESTLabrat - thank you for that link to the black Ridgeback! Argh! I had seen that a few years ago but even after Googling for it this week, couldn’t find it again. I never realized how few pics of Sunny show her ridge. I have some very clear ones of it but didn’t post them cuz they’re boring pics. But now I will so her ridge can be appreciated in all its glory.
Everybody - these tips are great! Every time I post about this you guys tell me more stories and advice and I love it. I really have been unprepared for serious dog attacks and I need to get my shit together. I don’t think a gun’s a good idea as I live in a crowded suburban neighborhood, even if it IS Texas. Can’t go shooting a moving dog in the middle of the street with kids everywhere. I do have “Dog Mace” but I’m worried it’ll get on MY dogs. I’m going to get an air horn for sure, and a small metal baseball bat. Anyway. Now I post pics of Sunny’s ridge.
November 3rd, 2007 at 11:35 amESTI have a Golden and a Black Lab, they are both working bird dogs. After being attacked several times by Staffies, and Pits in my neighborhood, I walk them with their training collars on and no leash. If attacked they can run etc. They are still occasionally rushed by other peoples “loose dogs” but have yet to be attacked. Likewise they have only approached one dog that was on a leash. A few weeks back some girl was walking her dog down the same side of the street towards me, so I crossed the street. A neighborhood dog was following my dogs, but I did not know it at the time, it did not cross the street with my dogs, and started barking at the girl and her dog. I told my dogs to stay. (they did) and I walked across the street stood in between the girl and the barking dog. Explaining that it was not my dog, but has been a friendly dog and follows me home about twice a week. I then proceeded to calm down the barking dog, and grab its collar.
Unfortunately I forgot that when I release my dogs I say “it is ok”
I then told the girl, “it is ok”
November 3rd, 2007 at 11:53 amESTAs you can guess MY dogs that had been “staying” patiently on the other side of the street thought I was releasing them from “stay”
Nothing bad happened, except my embarrassment of MY dogs running across the road to meet their “new friend”. I quickly grabbed them and ran across the street explaining the “ok” thing.
I have not seen her again…
V, I have a friend who trains guide dog puppies the first year. Her solution is that you train the dog not to respond to any command that doesn’t start with their name. “Fuzzy, sit.” “Sunny, come.” etc.
November 3rd, 2007 at 2:33 pmESTMy dog, an Aussie Shepherd, and I had a similar problem with a black Lab-like dog. We were walking at the track around the local park - for people & dog walkers. Rules are dogs are leashed & pick up yr dog’s poop - not very hard to do. Jimi & I were almost back to the car when the lab came charging from about 150 yds across the park - no noise, just boring in. I didn’t realize his presense until he was about 40 yds away. Reeled in Jimi and bellowed like a bull elephant at the dog. He stopped & while he delayed I hustled my dog to the car. Almost had him in when the other dog started to charge, I bellowed again, it stopped & I got my dog in the car. By this time, the dog’s owner finally got there after his saunter across the 150 yds. I bellowed some more at him about leashing his f**king dog and left.
November 3rd, 2007 at 3:32 pmESTI have noticed at the track now that when they see us out on the track, the man & his wife leash their dog until my guy & I are gone. Most pet owners are not dog people, just owners and this town has more than its share affluent a**holes who think the rules don’t apply to them. One of these days I’ll take it up with the resident town trooper.
SDN,
November 3rd, 2007 at 4:08 pmESTThat is the obvious solution, that I never thought of! I had a german shepherd that I did not train, but all his commands were in german. I thought it was some kind of snob thing, but I never had any similar problems. My dogs are very well trained, but there are several things I would do differently now that I have trained a few.
Interestingly, My last GF had a Ridgeback. I had her (the dog) trained in less than a week. They are very smart dogs. The only thing I could not stop was she was a counter surfer, any food on the counter, stove, or the trash, was HERS!
“Mark, I’ve actually been taught that strangling is a very effective method of stopping a dog, if you’re not the target of the dog.”
Skyler, what you are describing is a chokehold, which will work if you can apply it and are strong enough to hold on. I would be about the last thing I would try on a 100+ dog that was pressing a serious attack. No way am I letting an animal like that near my throat. I saw an interview with some good ole boy who was 50′ish and present when a large male Pit attacked a child. He got the dog to go after him, fed it his guard arm, grabbed it by the throat, walked into a nearby pond and drowned it.
Another weapon to consider, Rachel, are Cali, or Arnis sticks. There are some affordable domestic hickory ones available. They are about an inch by up to 36″, if I remember. They are lethal. You can both strike and stab with them, though they are blunt.
Another fight/attack interrupter is the common chain collar. I was at a school where police dogs, Rotts and German Shepherds, were trained. When there was agression one, or several, of the trainers would throw a chain collar at the offenders. It might make sense to carry 2-3 cheap ones to wing at attackers. I never saw it fail, but would not bet my life on it.
November 3rd, 2007 at 5:27 pmESTI’m fortunate enough to have a voice like a drill sergeant, so any time a dog comes after me, I can make them stop. I’ve stopped Dobermans, Rottweilers, German Shepherds, etc. Haven’t had occasion to try a Police-trained dog, but I think I could even make one of them pause. I recently saw a younger guy throwing a box at a guy in a wheelchair in a parking lot and hollered at him to cut it out. He did, then I found out they were just playing around, but the guy coming out of the store behind me said I had scared the crap out of him.
I’ll agree with others on carrying a stick, though. Something long enough to give you some reach, should weigh about a pound or so, and you can get it in the way of another dog’s jaws without endangering your own skin.
November 3rd, 2007 at 11:52 pmESTGlad to hear that everyone is okay…and I’m with you 1000%. I love animals, but I will kill another dog or person that even tries to mess with my puppies. If its between you or them…you’re the weakest link, good-bye.
November 4th, 2007 at 2:16 pmESTOK…my next dog is DEFINITELY going to be a Ridgeback. Loving and playful, but tough as nails when they need to be. Glad you and the pups are OK.
November 5th, 2007 at 12:24 pmESTWhat you need is an asp, or collapsable baton like cops carry. Mine is extra long, but collapses to about 10 inches long, you can actually carry it in your back pocket or up your sleeve, let it slide out into your hand and snap it out to it’s extended postition. It’s metal so no dog is going to bite thru it, and you can break bones if you have to, and it gives you some reach but is not so obnoxious or heavy as a baseball bat. Available at galls.com.
November 6th, 2007 at 10:34 pmESTYou might try getting one of those small bats that semi drivers use to check their tires. I’m 5 ft nothing and handicapped, but I can handle one easily, and they will deliver a serious headache to any head they hit. I love your dogs!
November 9th, 2007 at 2:18 amESTGreat Story.
I have a 135 # German Shepherd that was specially bred to be that big. Because of his bloodline and the 1 1/2 walks he gets through the woods everyday, he looks like a canine version of post-HGH Barry Bonds.
The other day we were walking at 5:00 AM in the pitch dark due West and he stopped on a dime and glared to our Northwest. Much to my suprise came Springer Spaniel dragging his owner towards us at full speed. My dog let out the largest, most grizzly-bear growl ever unleashed in Ohio. The dog charging us and his owner (about 100 ft away now) stopped so quickly they fell over each other. I think the owner crapped his pants. Since we were in the dark, I am not sure he saw us. They both high tailed it out of there. We continued on our walk.
He did even better when he was 4 months old. He fought off a 100 lb psycho lab that attacked us and my 11 year old other dog. My GS was only about 35 lbs at the time. The only thing that saved the psycho lab’s life was that I did not let go of the lease. He does all of this and allows my 4 year old and her friends to climb all over him all day. When you look into his eyes, you can see how much he loves my family and would stop at nothing to protect us.
January 2nd, 2008 at 11:19 amEST