A few days ago, while I was out walking my dog (a 12-year-old Parson Jack Russell) on her lead, she was attacked by a Staffy (Staffordshire Bull Terrier).
Before I even had time to realise what was going on, the Staffy—which was off its lead—attacked us from behind. The violence of it was just horrific. The Staffy clamped onto my dog's neck for what felt like an absolute eternity. It was clearly trying to kill her.
The owner finally arrived and tried to get it to let go by shouting at it and kicking it.
By some miracle, the Staffy let go, which allowed my dog to get free. She’s alive, but she is absolutely terrified.
The owner didn't even apologise. When he saw me starting to call the police, he took his dog back home and then came back to talk to me.
In the meantime, I’d taken refuge with a neighbour who had heard the shouting and let me in.
What followed was a completely surreal conversation with the owner. He’s an 18-year-old lad who doesn't even seem to know the breed of his own dog. At first, he told me it was a 'Staff' (implying a banned or restricted breed), that he hadn't had the dog for long, and that the animal had been bred for dog fighting...
Translated from French
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Aggie19, what's bothering me here is that some things just don't add up. These days, a dog attack—even involving a Staffy (the police rarely distinguish between a Staffy, a Staff, a Rottie, and so on)—never just results in a slap on the wrist for the owner. So, like I said, it’s either a case of serious incompetence from the police or there’s something else going on. @Matou, I can really imagine how terrifying that must have been for you. But if you’ve got all the facts on your side, keep pushing. File a formal report (I believe you have the right to insist it's logged, even if it's just as an incident report).
That’s exactly why I came here for help. If the police had done their job properly, I wouldn't be here talking about it. Thanks for the advice.
I don’t agree with the people saying "it’s no big deal; after all, if the Staffy had wanted to kill the little dog, he’d have done it easily." So that means it’s totally normal and fine for our dog to be attacked from behind by a "gentle" Staffy that "wouldn’t hurt a fly"... it’s the world gone mad, honestly!
EXACTLY!!! Actually, I’m the one to blame here!!!!! I’m the one with a small dog—unforgivable! Maybe we should all just own Staffies, then there wouldn't be any more problems, would there?
Thanks for your support. I thought I’d come here to find some answers, but all I’ve had is criticism, people calling me a liar and saying I’m just after money. It’s completely backwards. I’ve definitely come to the wrong site.
I think kikirififi that the response to this kind of issue isn't necessarily the same at every police station... We've already had some very different examples shared on this forum regarding this.
@Aggie19, what’s bothering me here is that a few things just don’t add up. These days, if a dog attacks—even a Staffy (and the police rarely tell the difference between a Staffy, an AmStaff, or a Rottie...)—it never ends with just a slap on the wrist for the owner. So, as I said, it’s either a serious case of incompetence on the part of the police, or there’s something else to it.
@Matou, I can imagine how much that must have shaken you up. But if you’ve got a solid case, stick to your guns. File a formal complaint (I believe you have the right to insist it’s officially recorded, even if it’s just logged as an incident report).
That is simply not true. Having dealt with this kind of situation myself, I can tell you that even with a dog-on-dog bite supported by a vet's report, the police do intervene—they don't just check the dog's papers. Either they’re incompetent or you’re not giving us the full story. I saw a Chihuahua have its skull crushed by a Staffy-cross; I’m telling you, it only took a second. A crunch, a yelp, and the dog let go. That Chihuahua miraculously survived, but the police got involved and were very effective.
Unfortunately, that hasn't been my experience with my local station. I really felt like I was being a nuisance. Actually, it's not just the incident itself (which was horrifying and traumatic, seeing your dog dying), it's more the owner's arrogant attitude that makes it even worse.
You know, it depends on the area, but some police forces just don't want to deal with these cases because they have "more important" things to do.
Anyway, I’ve spoken to some friends in the police in another part of the country and they don't understand why my report wasn't accepted. They’ve suggested I file it online.
Once again—and no one seems to have understood this—I want that dog to be assessed by a veterinary behaviourist, but only the local council has the power to make the owner do it, and they won't.
I think they’re waiting for a proper tragedy to happen, but there we go... Also, it wasn't the police who asked for the dog's papers, it was the council wardens.
I don’t agree with the people saying "it’s no big deal, the proof is that if the Staffy had wanted to kill the little dog, he would’ve done it without any trouble."
So, does that mean it’s perfectly normal and fine for our dog to be attacked from behind by a "friendly" Staffy who "wouldn't hurt a fly"... it’s completely backwards!
Actually, that’s simply not true. From my own experience, I can tell you that even with a bite and a vet’s report to back it up, the police do get involved—they don't just ask for the dog's paperwork. So, either they’re completely useless or you aren’t telling us the full story. I’ve seen a Staffy-type crush a Chihuahua’s skull; I can tell you it only took a second. A crunch, a yelp, and the dog let go. The Chihuahua miraculously survived in that case, but the police stepped in and were very efficient. And again, this lad you’re calling a delinquent came back to see you, gave you his contact details, and went to the station with all his dog’s paperwork in order. That’s a far cry from my idea of a delinquent. Yes, there's no excuse for the attack and you and your dog were clearly frightened, but I’m wondering if this is more of a vendetta than anything else.
Some people on here really overuse and misuse the term 'correction'. A correction is when a dog puts another dog that's pestering it back in its place... but it's absolutely not attacking from behind without any provocation or prior interaction whatsoever! There is a massive difference!
Thank you! Finally, someone who gets it. Hallelujah!
Some people on here really overuse the term 'putting them in their place'. Putting a dog in their place is when they tell off another dog that's pestering them... but it's absolutely not attacking from behind without any provocation or prior interaction, whatever the case may be! There’s a massive difference!
