The lasting emotional toll of a vicious dog attack

KANSAS -- Laid across the table at a local animal shelter are graphic photos of a 3-year-old little girl with a severe facial injury and various old newspaper clippings.

"It was hard growing up," Audrey Vanderhyde said.. "Recovering from the surgeries was nothing. The emotional scars..."

Thirty years ago in Kansas, a stray Husky made its way into the backyard of her childhood home.

"Apparently I loved dogs even when I was that young. I was eating an apple and tried to offer a piece to her, and she took a little bit more than an apple," Vanderhyde said.

At age 33, Vanderhyde's scar on her cheek is barely noticeable. She tells 9NEWS the dog mauling resulted in 200 stitches and three reconstructive surgeries. The lasting effects continue, but the incident hasn't stopped her passion for dogs.

Vanderhyde works as a volunteer coordinator at the MaxFund Dog Shelter. She felt compelled to share her personal story after watching the K9 Confidential series.

Here's what we asked her about her recovery and how she has learned to cope with her physical and emotional scars:

JJ: What was it like growing up as a little girl?

"It was very hard growing up. Kids are not as accepting of different physical appearances."

JJ: Our faces are very much our identity. It's the first thing that people see.

"[I spent] years trying to hide it. Cover my face with my hair. It's taken a long time to accept it."

JJ: Do people ask you about it?

"When I was growing up, all the time. In my 30's it's a different crowd. Not so much now. People don't see it. Don't notice it. But it is embarrassing when a stranger comes up and asks you 'What happened to your face?" It's so embarrassing. It was embarrassing."

JJ: How long has it taken for you to come to terms with your scar?

"I'm still working on it. It's nothing like it used to be. It's a part of me and I'm okay with it. But I still try to sit on certain sides of people. Pick my seat on the bus or the plane."

JJ: You have every reason to be afraid of dogs. But you're not. Why?

"A lot of it I owe to my parents. They could have taken that incident and sheltered me, and made me afraid of dogs. They made it a point to learn why you approach a dog slowly. Why you don't go up to a dog, to any dog. Just those kind of things that any parent should teach their child."

JJ: What do you think about dogs today?

"They're my passion. They're not born mean. They're made mean. Just like a child. A dog is a product of their environment. They will become what you make them."

(9NEWS.com - Nov 14, 2014)