READER REPORT: Dog attacked

| Pets | West Seattle news

11:16 AM: From Jennie, who says this happened near 48th/Walker (map) and hopes someone can help:

I’m writing to you ask for help as our 11-year-old basset hound was viciously attacked by another dog when we were out walking this morning. This was completely unprovoked so I put this out as a warning to the neighborhood as well.

It was a black with white pit bull mix of medium size being walked by a white woman in her 20s wearing glasses. She was walking it in the other side of the street and it got loose from its choker chain from her and came running across the street and immediately went for our dog’s neck and bit and wouldn’t let go. After wrestling with it and pulling its tail and prying its mouth open, our dog was very lucky and got away. He is in surgery now.

We do not have this woman’s name, but she said she was walking it for someone else. As it was an emergency situation and my husband ran home to get our car, we did not get her details. She asked if she could help, but I didn’t want her coming back near my dog with her dog so i told her to leave. I had both my hands pressing on my dog’s wound so there wasn’t much I could do anyway.

(We hope) that someone might call us to help connect us with the dog’s owner.

My name is Jennie – 206.949.2374. We are lucky it missed the jugular, but our dog is in surgery right now so we are still concerned. Who knows if this dog has attacked before or might again.

Please do NOT attempt to post IDs or guesses in comments – please contact Jennie *directly*. Thank you.

2:44 PM: Update from Jennie – not long after we published her report, she got a call that enabled them to find the dog/owner. Meanwhile, her dog is home from the hospital and recovering.

Jennie November 22, 2018 (11:56 am)

Thank you for posting this for us. I wanted to let know that our dog is waking up out of surgery now that went well and we’ll be picking him up this afternoon. So very thankful that that the South Seattle Animal hospital was open today.

M November 22, 2018 (12:46 pm)

So glad the surgery went well. So sorry your dog got attacked. I hope your dog fully recovers.
Kristen November 22, 2018 (5:17 pm)

So incredibly sorry you and your pup had to go through this. Glad to know he is home and recovering. Take care and hopefully you can get some resolution

Beckyjo November 22, 2018 (12:03 pm)

I hope your dog will be ok, and I hope the owner of the other dog comes forward.

Mike November 22, 2018 (12:13 pm)

Hoping your dog has a full recovery. Sorry your dog and you had to endure this situation. The owner of the dog that attacked your dog needs to be held responsible for the actions of their dog and pay all vet bills you are paying to make sure your dog recovers from this attack. Hopefully a new home can be found for the dog that attacked your dog, it does not belong in any urban environment near any human or other animal.

Brenda November 22, 2018 (12:22 pm)

I’m happy your pup is okay Owner do right and contact these poor people. Eveyone will be on the lookout for your dog now.

ACG November 22, 2018 (12:50 pm)

Hoping for a smooth recovery for your doggie. So sorry this happened to your pup.

Michelle November 22, 2018 (12:56 pm)

Jennie, so sorry this happened to you and your dog. Thanks for posting that your pup is doing ok and I hope he is back with you by now. This could have happened to so many other dogs. I hope the owner is very clear about what they need to do to be sure no other dogs or kids for that matter are hurt.

Casey November 22, 2018 (1:26 pm)

I hope you make a police report if you haven’t already.

WSB November 22, 2018 (1:28 pm)

I asked Jennie that and she said they were working on it.

Jennie November 22, 2018 (5:31 pm)

Thank you everyone. He is home and resting, even had a small amount of food, but this is going to take some time to heal. 6 puncture wounds, with 4 inch internal tears. He is lucky that he’s a basset hound with a lot of neck skin to protect him. We do not want this to happen to anyone again. It sounds like the mail carrier in the area is also aware of this dog. We are taking the appropriate steps so this won’t happen again to an animal or a human. My husband and I have some minor wounds as well from breaking this up. If you live in this area watch out for this dog. If they have not got a muzzle after this incident, then they have not learned from it. The stores will be open tomorrow.

Brenda November 23, 2018 (7:15 am)

Please post pic of dog if you have one.
- Jennie November 23, 2018 (10:16 am)
  
  We don’t have a pic of their dog. I’m not sure if the image of our dog attached properly.
- Jennie November 23, 2018 (10:22 am)
  
  Here is a generic version of the mix of dog. Its chest may have been a bit less white, but this is essentially like it. The scary thing with this dog is that it looked cute and healthy and even almost playful from across the street, until it slipped out of its leash and ran straight to our dog and attacked it. There was no play when it got to us, just straight for our dog’s neck. https://www.google.com/search?q=black+and+white+pitbull+mix&client=ms-android-motorola&prmd=isvn&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiq9sXsj-veAhVfGDQIHSkcD00Q_AUIEigB&biw=360&bih=512#imgrc=TzhoYoSehGYmoM

JST November 23, 2018 (10:18 am)

I am so very sorry to hear about what this family has gone through-so scary and maddening! As a dog owner and resident of the admiral neighborhood, I too have experienced attacks on my dogs from other dogs (twice, though nowhere near as terrible as Jennie’s experience). One time an unleashed pug ran at one of my dog’s and bit him on the cheek repeatedly. The second time another unleashed mixed small breed dog ran out of a yard growling and snapping at both of my dogs, bit both my dogs on the legs, and followed us for several houses doing this before the owner was able to catch it and pull it away. My dogs were clearly upset and sustained minor injuries in both situations. It was frightening for my dogs and and I, and I was angry, but I also want to say that both of my dogs are pit bull mixes (one of them is black and white like the one Jennie and her dog were brutally attacked by) and neither of them is aggressive to other dogs-even when attacked by them. My hope here in adding my comment is that Jennie receives the best compensation/responsibility-taking/apologies possible from the owner (though nothing can make up for what they went through). I am also hoping that we all realize that this awful incident is not an invitation to generalize well-meaning, but unwarranted judgements or efforts to help Jennie on uninvolved dogs /owners that fit the general description and may be seen in the area (or anywhere). My very best wishes for a smooth recovery to Jennie, her dog, and husband, and my very sincerest hopes for neighbors maintaining compassion and not falling into a trap of making unhelpful assumptions.

Skeptical November 26, 2018 (12:22 am)

@JST- whatever you’re selling, I’m not buying. Stats don’t lie, and it will happen again and again- regardless of your anecdotes. I guess you can own one of those dogs, and no thanks- I’ll do my best to avoid them.
Really November 26, 2018 (2:52 pm)

@JST- if you were so concerned about Jennie and her dog, I don’t think you’d be spinning the situation so hard..?

Jennie November 23, 2018 (11:04 am)

I forgot to say that the dog’s name is LUNA. That is what the young woman walking it was calling it. Please call if you have any information what so ever. Thanks!

T November 23, 2018 (2:58 pm)

Seems like Animal Control could find the dog easily if it’s registered. If they query their system for Luna in 98116 and narrow down an address close to 48th and Walker. I was really sorry to hear this happened to your family. I feel like people need to walk around with bear spray or mace because I hear and read about this often enough.Good luck!

Seattlite November 23, 2018 (7:23 pm)

Jennie — That is a horrible attack that your dog had to endure and that you had to witness. I’m glad your dog will be okay. I hope that the dog walker learned that it’s important that the leash is secure around the dog’s neck. Pit bulls are powerful dogs and need to be handled with a lot of control.I would like to make an appeal to all of the dog owners that don’t obey Seattle’s leash law when walking their dogs in Lincoln Park and Lowman Park. Lincoln Park and Lowman Park are on-leash parks period. I’ve mentioned this on WSBlog before…I was charged by two off-leash pit bulls in the interior of Lincoln Park two or three years ago. The owner was able to control them before they got to me.

Jennie November 24, 2018 (11:11 am)

I wanted to let you know that I came across the dog walking again in the same general area this morning. Animal control is handling it now. Our basset continues to heal.

Hurt November 26, 2018 (2:53 am)

Wow- so bold! These people and their dog- not missing a beat, back on the street. Help

CA November 26, 2018 (9:26 am)

wow and they took it out again with no extra restraint and same area??? the dog most likely get quarantined and pts. hope your dog recovers quickly so sorry

Carol Wagener November 28, 2018 (4:59 pm)

This dog needs to be put down. Once a dog attacks like that, it will continue to do it, and it’s only a matter of time before it kills another person’s pet, or a person. I’m not cold hearted; our family had to put down a dog (Pumpkin) who we had grown to love because the dog began acting aggressively. It took off from my mom one day and when she chased it down, it was in a stalking posture towards a young mother who was pushing her baby in a stroller…. the mother had placed herself between Pumpkin and her baby and was terrified…. as was my aged mother. But, mother jumped out of her car, grabbed up the leash Pumpkin was trailing and with all her might pulled the dog away. She strove straight to the vet, who, upon hearing what had just transpired advised putting her down. The vet suspected that dog had a brain tumor that was causing the change in this dog’s behavior who initially had been very loving and “normal”, to this dog who we all noticed was becoming more aggressive…. but that culminated in that terrifying situation. Mom said she wouldn’t have been able to live with herself had Pumpkin harmed that mother and/or baby. Mom loved Pumpkin to the moon and back…. but she was also a responsible dog owner. If those owners won’t be responsible, I hope the City of Seattle will step in for everyone’s sake.

Norskgirl November 29, 2018 (12:23 pm)

Jennie,Thank you for the update on your pet. Very glad of the healing (to you all). Can you tell me the look (hair, skin, height, etc) of the person walking the being walked in the Genesee area.