Oh my Buddy... yesterday in Hinton, Alberta I was walking him on leash on the sidewalk on Collinge Road. A pit bill without a collar, leash or person controlling him came up onto the street from the trail.
Without a growl or a bark or any hesitation he lunged at Buddy's throat. And remained locked there for 10-15 minutes, no matter that I kicked him, hit him repeatedly with a 2x4 I found in the yard of a nearby house, no matter that three other adults tried to help me fight him off.
Only when the owner arrived was the pit bull pulled off my 22 pound shih tzu / bichon cross. I rushed Buddy to the vet and his vitals were okay but he was unable to walk, just dragging his hind leg behind him.
Buddy died of his injuries this morning.
My kind neighbors who tried to help are traumatized after witnessing the attack. And I will be forever haunted by Buddy's increasingly weaker cries for help that I was unable to deliver.
I share this story, as I am sure you have heard other such stories, because if you have a pit bull or know someone who has a pit bull, please please please make sure the dog is always in a secure spot.
I cannot understand your motivation for owning such a dangerous breed. But surely when you hear my story, you can understand my pain.
Imagine if this dog had encountered a child, or the woman with a baby carriage I had seen a few minutes earlier.
Yesterday, I was afraid to take my other elderly dog into the yard. And I had to force myself to walk around the block again, to not allow my fear to settle in.
Thank you to the RCMP who responded, the compassionate staff at the Town of Hinton bylaw and fire departments, Dr Gary Gulash and his staff who opened the office door to my panicked knocking.
My Buddy is gone. Will you please spread my story and perhaps save someone else's Buddy?
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Diane Watson posted on Facebook August 31, 2017 at 2:07pm ·
It has been three nights since my dog Buddy was killed by a pit bull. Three nights where both my dog beds have sat empty, because my other old boy, Prince, has been pacing and crying. He too has lost his Buddy.
It has been two days since I made my story public by posting it on Facebook. This wasn’t an easy decision, because I knew there would be some backlash from pit bull owners. Knowing that, I still felt it was the responsible thing to do.
You see, I seem to have become the reluctant poster child for a club I didn’t want to join.
This story must be told in the first person, to be told as fact, not changed as the story was retold many times in town. My goal was to remind all dog owners, of any breed, that our enjoyment of our pets should NEVER endanger or even frighten another person or animal.
This is a public safety issue and I wanted to know if this was a random, isolated event. You would be shocked to hear the stories that have been shared the last few days. People relating frightening and damaging experiences. Who have buried them and haven’t made complaints or felt empowered to act. Who are still hurt and haunted.
As anticipated, I heard from pit bull owners. Their pets are lovely, not aggressive at all, have never had a problem with them, they trust them with their children, and have sent me pictures of their dogs in cuddle positions. As though they think their words or images can convince me that the kill machine that I encountered this week must have been an anomaly, or a freakish accident. As though they think that hearing their dog is charming will calm my new terror at the thought of seeing another pit bull. Who view my telling my story as an attack on them and on their choice to be pit bull owners, instead of respecting that it was ME who was attacked. Attacked by the same jaws of death that every single pit bull is equipped with.
Another response has been to caution me that all breeds can attack and inflict damage and that it is unfair of me to pick on pit bulls. The only thing I am an expert on is what happened to me. If the conversation needs to be expanded to other people’s experiences with other aggressive dogs, I invite them to tell their own stories.
Many people have told me it is the owner that is at fault not the pit bull. The owner has not found a way to send me an apology or offered to cover vet bills.
To the best of my knowledge, the owner has not voluntarily surrendered the dog or put him down. When I tried to fight off the pit bull without letting the attack move on to the people trying to help me, when I carried my limp dog’s body home, or when I had to tell family members what had happened, it didn’t matter to me whether it was the owner’s fault or the dog’s fault.
All that mattered was Buddy was dead.
If you have had an incident where you have felt threatened by an animal, please make a report to the Town of Hinton bylaw department at bylaw@hinton.ca. If you are in an emergency situation please call 911. If you read the town’s current dangerous animal bylaws and think they need to be strengthened, please contact Town Council.
My contact with all of these agencies has been very positive and I am confident these authorities are doing all they can.
To those hundreds of people who have reached out to offer support and sympathy, thank you. I will heal and walk the streets of my neighbourhood again. Just maybe not quite yet.
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