Scared for Angel during an Altercation

I think I screamed when...

It has been a couple of months since my last post because there has not been any travel topics or photos to share. Until yesterday, life has been full of normal park activities, including games of bingo and pokeno, people coming and going, rainy and sunny weather, walking Angel, and life, in general.

Angel has been loving his walks. He also likes to join us on warmer days when we are outside enjoying our screen room. We always keep him on a leash when he is outside. He seems to really love it when the park manager calls him over from his golf cart to offer Angel a milk bone treat. Angel has been making friends with people. He has been allowing people we talk with to pet him, and some occasionally have a milk bone treat to give him.

Tuesday, March 13, started out normal, but soon turned into a nightmare. As usual, from our RV, we headed left on the park street for our morning walk. We passed four sites on our left to get to the curve that leads us to the grassy area on both sides of the park street. This has been a great area where Angel can select a place to do his business, after which we collect it in a poop bag and throw it in the dumpster.

The Altercation

Emerging from a dead-end grassy area on the other side of the building housing the park water supply a man with two dogs came into view from behind a small pine tree. I recognized him and the big dog as ones who were at the last trailer in the row across from the row we are in. In that instant the big dog broke free and was literally racing toward Angel and me. It happened really fast.

I immediately started to retract Angel's leash to get him closer to me. I know I screamed and yelled "An-gel!, An-gel!" multiple times. Before we started full-timing, Angel had been attacked in our yard by a neighbor's large German Shepard, and he got a piece of that dog and drew blood on him, but was unscathed himself. I feared this latest action was going to turn into a dogfight right in front of my eyes, and I was scared for my Angel!

The dog racing toward us has a reputation, and it is not good! The lady in that trailer, when we first met her, said she asked for that last site and would put a muzzle on the dog when taking him for a walk. We were told by others that he attacked another dog in the park last year. If her door were open so the dog could see through the screen when we walked Angel, it was not uncommon to hear the dog barking and carrying on and her yelling at him in a large gruff voice to shut him up. We always held back if she was out walking him to give her a chance to get him on the opposite end of her trailer out of sight of Angel. The muzzle was not always on him.

Out of Control

Totally out of control, the big dog, Milo, raced up to and began to poke at Angel. I saw him poke Angel three times in Angel's right side. Later I realized he did have a muzzle on, thank goodness. I have always said Angel is "my protector", and yesterday was no exception. The big dog pushed up against Angel's right side with his left, and stayed there, as Angel kept me on his left side. Angel stayed between me and the big dog, and circled in front of me and to my left. He did not growl as he continued to move around me to get headed in the direction we had come from.

Next, Milo's owner jumped on top of his dog. He said later that jumping on top of his dog was the only way he knew how to get his dog under control. And honestly, I never heard him utter a command of any kind to the dog, probably because he would not respond due to lack of training. When he jumped on his dog, he also knocked Angel to the ground still next to his dog and pinned Angel's leash. I could not get it loose until he got off of it.  When the man and his dog got up, I still had Angel's leash in my hand, but no Angel.

In an emergency, Angel has learned to free himself from his collar, which he did. I saw him and called to him, but he was running down the street at full speed in the direction of our RV; as I watched him, I saw the man's second dog, a small one, also out of control. He was chasing behind Angel all the way to our RV, within a foot off of Angel's tail.  When I got to the RV, Angel had two hind feet on the ground, two front feet on the step, his head at the door waiting to be let inside, and was safe, in spite of the second mutt setting an arm's length behind Angel.

"What-ifs"

Tuesday night, I awoke in the middle of the night crying. The "what-ifs" of this altercation were racing through my mind. Angel could have been killed or hurt seriously. As it was, he did yelp a little that night making us think his back was in pain, but he seems to be okay now. Angel could have attacked Milo, the muzzled dog. Angel could have done an about-face and attacked the mutt who was barely a foot off of his tail. Or what if he had met a barking dog on his way back to the RV? So many "what-ifs"! Not to mention, what if he and Angel had started fighting, I could have gotten caught up in the leash, been knocked to the ground, and pinned, or even killed, in the middle of the fight!

Stupid People...

do not have a clue!! They just do not think!! Yes, they admitted to the park managers that it was a mistake, an accident, but do people really realize the horrible tragedy this could have caused? It was an accident. They, however, have no regard for what a dog under attack might do. If people have a dog they cannot control, why on God's green earth would they go into an alcove off of the street where any one walking a dog would not be able to see them until they emerge from behind a tree? I am always watching for other people walking their dog and have no problem backing off, turning the other way, or waiting to give them space. However, it is impossible to back away fast enough in this type of situation. I am so thankful that Angel is safe, but this entire ordeal infuriates me! I am not happy about the ordeal, nor the people who take it so lightly!!! Angel and I are extremely lucky, and the people who do not have a clue are very, very fortunate!

The man and woman came over to the RV before I ever got back inside. I told them right up front "I don't even want to talk to you!" The man seemed to want me to understand that he did the only thing he knew what to do to get his dog under control when he jumped on top of him. He showed no regard when I tried to explain to them that this would affect my dog and future walks because of the trauma brought on by this altercation. I told them twice that they need to keep their dog under control at all times! I literally threw my hands straight up in the air! Is life worth taking a chance having a dog they cannot control except by jumping on top of them? What are these people thinking?

The lady in the trailer asked if it would help if she texted us so we would know when they take Milo out. What? !!! - as if I should jump on that!! I looked at her and said "No". The gall of people coming up with the very idea that I should set in my RV wondering if they have sent a text about being out with their dog! That could create another altercation waiting to happen.

Now that I have had more time to process this traumatic experience, I wish I had countered the lady's idea to text with the thought that it would be better if they put a red flag up along the main drive behind their trailer when they walk their dog, as a sign to people walking a dog on the park street that danger ahead is possible.

A lady in the Fifth Wheel across the street from them said Milo is friendly to people; he just does not like dogs. I said to her, "You know what? This dog will never have the opportunity to be a friend of mine."

Who Changes?

I do. The people and dog are still in the park. The manager told me he would just as soon not have any dogs in the park, but to do that would take two years to be profitable.

The walking route we take is now revised to hopefully avoid any further altercation. We no longer turn to walk left down the street where this altercation occurred. They wanted the last spot at the back end of the park so they could walk their beast with a muzzle at the far end of the park. We now walk to the right up to the front end of the park and over to the dumpster. We no longer walk the shady lane either because it leads to the section of street past the water building. We continue to watch for other owners and their dogs to allow needed space for both them and us.

Angel is a smart dog, and we are very proud of him. He is a good boy and tries very hard to listen to our commands, but even Angel may change because of dogs whose owners cannot control them. The more we can do to keep altercations from happening are in his best interest.

Thank you for visiting my blog.



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