Vicious Dog Attack at Landsdowne Valley Park

280special

Sorry to hear about the loss of your pup. These fools must be prosecuted, as much as the loss of a pet is bad who is to say that the next time it wont be a child?

Does anyone know if it is still the case that if you have a complaint about a dog you must hand it in writing to the owner before anything else can be done ?...We were told this a few years ago when we had a thug living near us who didnt control his dogs and wouldnt do anything about their attacking people walking down the road.

easyeason3

pH wrote: »

And yet I'm 100% sure that even with these "Irresponsible owners" if they'd been out with their 3 cavalier spaniels off lead today, his dog would be alive and well this evening.

I had the same (not fatal) experience on the canal with a pair of Staffies a few years back, they tore a huge gash in the back leg of my spaniel and also did a fair bit of damage to neck and ears. At the end of the day "tracksuit man" knew we could do nothing to him, we had to get our bleeding dog to a vet, so a vicious an unprovoked dog attack went unpunished.

It's well known that the Gardai hardly even consider dog on dog violence a crime (they're not much more interested in dog on human), at some stage something has to be done about this type of thing, if there's no way of stopping these dogs being in the wrong hands then maybe the time has come for a total ban.

Well it's quite obvious that a Rottie or a Staffy will do more damage than a King Charles. But a dog that shows aggression & isn't properly trained will do damage regardless of size.
I know of a Jack Russell that would tear my lab x apart given half the chance because the JR is extremely vicious & my guy is a complete push over.

Certain breeds will of course be more vicious than others but there's plenty of people that own restricted breeds & don't have issues with them. A friend of mine has a German Sheppard & he's the most harmless dog I have ever come across. I know another person that has a Staffy & again she is completely harmless & has never shown the bad traits that they are so famed for in the media.

I see it in my own town. There's complete & utter scumbags that get these dogs purely for their image & encourage the dogs to be vicious.

And I don't believe that the Guards don't consider it a crime. But it can be very hard to prove that the dog is in fact theirs. Who's to say it wasn't a stray that just happened to follow them? Believe me the people the OP described would have a million & one ways to dodge admitting ownership so how can you prosecute them then?

lrushe

This story breaks my heart for 2 reasons:

1. OP I can only imagine the pain you and your girlfriend are going through, I don't have any words that will make much difference to you right now but I hope in time your pain will lessen.
2. This story is just another nail in the coffin of Restricted Breeds, they are already skating on thin ice but incidents such as this will eventually be the straw that breaks the camels back and see an all out ban on the already restricted breeds. Will this effect the idiots who use these dog as a status symbol, no, they will move onto something new, the only ones who will be effected will be those who would never allow our dogs to inflict such an awful tragedy in the first place

TaraR

The bigger the head , stronger the bite! So if you where to ban , you would be banning every dog with a bigger head than a god damn poodle!
:mad:
Banning will do nothing! But make things worse. People need education about how to handle certain breeds. How to handle a circumstance like the OP'S.
How to stop a dog fight if it occurs.
Its not the dogs fault, its how to was brought up. No training, no obidence!
I am very sorry OP about your dog, its a very scary thing to see, and when it happens to you its even worse.

Dyr

TaraR wrote: »

The bigger the head , stronger the bite! So if you where to ban , you would be banning every dog with a bigger head than a god damn poodle!
:mad:

Standard poodle is not a small dog, interestingly the most viscious dog we owned was a poodle. The most placid one was a poodle too.

Bullseye1

What do you do about people who don't care what their dog does like the people in the OP. What do you do about the brigade of scumbags who keep pitbulls to intimidate people and their pets?

It's not just about training and informing people who would take onboard advice and training it's also about removing these dogs from people who have no interest in dogs other than for what damage they can produce. It's the same people who make people's lives a misery.

TaraR

Statsicly a dog with a bigger head , will have a stronger bite. I was just using a poodle as a example of a smaller dog

jandm

So sorry OP to read what happened..... poor pup

Another fine example of irresponsible ownership :mad: Any type of dog can be vicious, some breeds can do more damage due to the power and size of their weapons.

pokertalk

sorry to hear about your dog op hope you will feelbetter soon.its a huge problem we have with this trend of hard man hard dog bull****. unfortunately its perception that has ruined these dogs names as they are commonly used by little scumbags who have no interest in dogs but more of the stigma attached to the breeds that the uneducated public see as a threat

ppink

very sorry to see this OP. It must have been a crazy traumatic day on all of you.:mad:
Any chance cctv in the area you were in?
best of luck finding these scumbags

tesslab

So sorry for you and your family Op. I walk in Brickfield so will ask around for ya and put the warning out.

THE CARE BEAR

AH you poor thing

ianmalone

Thanks Tesslab. I went back to the park today to speak to anyone that might have seen the dogs yesterday or anytime before. I was shock to hear so many people telling me that they see this sort of thing all the time. Alot of these status dogs allow to run free and uncontrolled. My sad story is not a rare occurence.

tesslab

No worries OP. Have said it to the park rangers in Brickfield and asked them to pass on the message to all dog walkers. Am so sorry you had to lose your dog like that.

ianmalone

I just want to thank you all for your messages. There was some great advice in them. My girlfriend has visited some of the free vet clinics in the Drimnagh area to warn pet owners and to try and get some more information to help us catch these guys. These dogs were physically well looked after and I reckon the owner might have used these facilities in the past or future. We have heard reports of them leaving the park by the Drimnagh Road exit near the Bank of Ireland and Elenora Pub. If any forum readers have any information or ideas please let me know, next time it could be a young child attacked.

Pinklady11

I'm so sorry to hear about your poor dog. Here's some information about control of dogs. It might be an idea to report the incident to the dog warden. I really hope these guys get caught and the dogs get taken off them.

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/environment/animal_welfare_and_control/control_of_dogs.html

Hope this helps

username123

You could leaflet/stick up posters in the area offering a reward for information leading to the identification of the owners of these dogs? You could use the local Garda station number instead of your own on the posters/leaflets obviously.

Other than that I would post about this incident in every Irish/Dublin forum you can find online - someone from the area is going to have seen these animals (and by that I mean the owners) and you might get a lucky break with a poster online who wouldnt be afraid to anonymously tell you who they are.

Post about it on your FB status and ask everyone to share it and keep sharing it.

ianmalone

Thanks Pinklady for the info. I read the Act and section 22 speaks about the management of dangerous dogs. Not much can be done until I find them. Username123 do you know of any other forums that would be worth writing this up on. I'm new to forums like these. The most obvious one was boards.ie that why i posted this story.

username123

boards would probably be one of the biggest but theres also:

www.politics.ie - they have a culture and community section.

www.neighbours.ie - post in the relevant neighbourhood section - not sure how well used it is but you will definitely be posting in a place where people from the area will see it.

www.thepropertypin.com - not sure if there is a relevant section but its a very well used site and if you could post in a district section it would be useful.
Edit - I just checked out thepropertypin and I cant seem to find a forum that would suit - so maybe nix that suggestion.

www.askaboutmoney.com - quite strict forum rules, but may let you post it as a warning in the non financial section.

If you have no objection I will link to this thread on my FB status and ask people to share.

Whispered

westies4ever wrote: »

I now carry a blackthorn stick when out walking which has a sharpened tip. The next dog who looks side ways at us will get it in the eye as will their owner!!

There is always some idiot who is going to ruin it for the the responsible people who bother to train their dog.

If a dog looks at you you intend on jabbing it and its owner in the eye? I have sympathy for you and the OP but that makes you every bit as bad as someone who can't/ won't control their dog. Ridiculous - and to then go on about being a responsible person!

EDIT: I'm sure the OP had no intention of this thread becoming a place to discuss the harming of other animals - especially after their traumatic experience.

westies4ever

Whispered wrote: »

If a dog looks at you you intend on jabbing it and its owner in the eye? I have sympathy for you and the OP but that makes you every bit as bad as someone who can't/ won't control their dog. Ridiculous - and to then go on about being a responsible person!

EDIT: I'm sure the OP had no intention of this thread becoming a place to discuss the harming of other animals - especially after their traumatic experience.

i apologise - post deleted but its just something i feel strongly on - i dont mean that i will be randomly swinging a stick at any dog - i love dogs, i have a rescue dog and donate regularly to dog charities but i will never forget the day my poor dog was nearly torn in half - it cost a lot of money at the vet and she had a long recovery. if it happens again, i would like to be able to defend us - i would not want to hurt another dog but just to remove my dog from it jaws!

its a bit hurtful to say i'm as bad a the people whose dog attacked the op's.

Whispered

westies4ever wrote: »

i apologise - post deleted but its just something i feel strongly on - i dont mean that i will be randomly swinging a stick at any dog - i love dogs, i have a rescue dog and donate regularly to dog charities but i will never forget the day my poor dog was nearly torn in half - it cost a lot of money at the vet and she had a long recovery. if it happens again, i would like to be able to defend us - i would not want to hurt another dog but just to remove my dog from it jaws!

its a bit hurtful to say i'm as bad a the people whose dog attacked the op's.

You're not, however if you jabbed a dog in the eye with your sharpened stick for "looking sideways" at you, you would be.

I'm not for a minute suggesting that you, or other owners, shouldn't defend your dogs. I know I would do whatever necessary to protect mine. But it's easy for an incident like this to cause owners everywhere to be hysterical about their dogs interactions. Like the recent thread where a dog was smacked in the head with a hurl for trying to play with another dog. It's such a horrific thing for you and the OP to see, I do understand that, it must be a very hard thing to move on from. But allowing socialisation, (or calmly not allowing it when you're not comfortable) is so important imo. If you panic every time a dog looks at yours you could very well end up with a slightly neurotic, under-socialised dog who feels the need to go into defence mode for no reason.

Easy for me to say, I know, because I have a very friendly and submissive medium sized dog so would be confident enough that should something happen, I could stop the problem before it got too much. This of course would be harder for you and the OP with smaller dogs.

westies4ever

It's such a horrific thing for you and the OP to see, I do understand that, it must be a very hard thing to move on from. But allowing socialisation, (or calmly not allowing it when you're not comfortable) is so important imo. If you panic every time a dog looks at yours you could very well end up with a slightly neurotic, under-socialised dog who feels the need to go into defence mode for no reason.

Easy for me to say, I know, because I have a very friendly and submissive medium sized dog so would be confident enough that should something happen, I could stop the problem before it got too much. This of course would be harder for you and the OP with smaller dogs.[/QUOTE]


I think you're judging me and my dogs a little here and you are coming across a bit righteous - firstly my dogs (i have two now, but only one at the time of the attack) are both friendly and submissive (they have NEVER showed any aggression to a person or another dog. in fact my poor pup didnt even try to defend herself when being attacked - its just not in her.

they are well socialised, and we talk to other dogs and owners everyday on our walks. just yesterday two staffies came bounding up to us (one a teeny pup mind you); it was obvious they were friendly and the four dogs had great fun together. we have two large retrievers next door to us who my dogs are firm friends with. i am not nervous or paranoid but i am aware.

what i am saying is that the next time a dog approaches us and it is clear it is going to attack i will get between that dog and mine and i will defend us if needbe - or perhaps i should ask it politely to stop what it is doing? i got absolutely no help from the other owner, the guards or the dog warden. i also heard that the dogs who attacked my dog, killed another dog in the same walking area. i have no children and i love my dogs more than 99% of people.

i do not wish to harm any animal and like i said it is never the dogs fault always the owner but these events do happen regularly and alot of the time they come just of nowhere so its hard to stop them happening. I never want to see my dog go through what she went through again and if that means carrying a stick then so be it.

Whispered

westies4ever wrote: »

firstly my dogs (i have two now, but only one at the time of the attack) are both friendly and submissive

What I meant by saying my boy is medium sized and submissive is - he is large enough that it would take a sustained attack from a large dog to seriously harm him. He is also submissive enough that should a smaller dog attack him, he will not retaliate. Meaning if approached by another dog, I can afford to be relaxed about it. I also said how I can see the fact that his size means this might be easier for me than for a person with smaller dogs. However if you wish to take offence to my saying that then please feel free.

Carrying a sharpened stick and saying that you will stick it in the eye of dog and owner if a dog looks sideways at you comes across as a bit more than aware. Like I said, of course you should defend your dog. If you prefer to "ask it politely to stop" then go ahead although I don't see where you read that suggestion in my post, but again feel free to take offence and be sarcastic if you like.

EDIT: I don't think this is the thread for this discussion, so if you respond I wont be replying again here, although a thread about how people react when their dog is approached by another dog might be very interesting actually.

westies4ever

Whispered wrote: »

What I meant by saying my boy is medium sized and submissive is - he is large enough that it would take a sustained attack from a large dog to seriously harm him. He is also submissive enough that should a smaller dog attack him, he will not retaliate. Meaning if approached by another dog, I can afford to be relaxed about it. I also said how I can see the fact that his size means this might be easier for me than for a person with smaller dogs. However if you wish to take offence to my saying that then please feel free.

Carrying a sharpened stick and saying that you will stick it in the eye of dog and owner if a dog looks sideways at you comes across as a bit more than aware. Like I said, of course you should defend your dog. If you prefer to "ask it politely to stop" then go ahead although I don't see where you read that suggestion in my post, but again feel free to take offence and be sarcastic if you like.

EDIT: I don't think this is the thread for this discussion, so if you respond I wont be replying again here, although a thread about how people react when their dog is approached by another dog might be very interesting actually.

i'm not looking for a row but i did delete the post - i didnt mean what i said literally (as i already explained) - and you keep throwing it up at me but you're coming across as righteous and judgemental. apologies for the sarcasm - its just something i feel strongly about. its been 18 months since the attack and i havent had to use it - and by the way a blackthorn is like a walking stick - its not like i'm carrying a stake around with me. no need to reply - i'm done here too.

ianmalone

Thanks All for the great suggestions. We are checking out the reward idea and working on posters and flyers. We noticed this evening that there is a Luas CCTV right across from where the dogs and their owners entered the park. We are going to contact Luas tomorrow to get access to the footage. We visited a few vets local vets today and in the process of contacting more. Our other puppy is still sad but managed to play with some of his doggy buddies today. We'll keep you posted as we make progress.

Whispered

Do you think LUAS will give it to you? Have the police been helpful?

Your story is doing the rounds on some rescues FB pages so people are being made aware of what is happening. With this awareness you're creating I hope you have a pretty good chance of finding the people responsible.

Your other puppy will come around. Would love to see some pics.

DaveM-sport

Knew opening the thread was going to be upsetting...

Very sorry to hear about the Terrier
Total disgrace that dogs are left behave as they want and attack others.

As some of the posts on boards have said though, Anoter blow for restricted breeds even though out of the 10 dogs classed as dangerous, I see no harm at all from them if brought up well and to be honest would be more wary of a collie or yapping jack russel.

My last dog was a dobberman/German Shepard cross and he was probably the best natured dog I've ever known especially as he was originally bred to be a visous gaurd dog but was useless in their eyes so discarded but luckily enough then taken by a zoologist who trained him amazingly before he had to go abroad and I took him. He still was a brilliant guard dog when he had to be but was far from dangerous and never needed a muzzle.


My current dog, a Rhodesian ridgeback is ranked number 7 or something on the list and although is pretty strong minded and tries to get his own way he still is very obedient and very friendly.
Yes, he's incredibly strong and if he did decide something needs to be done away with (usually a rabit on the farm when I point them out to him and tell him to get them) they wouldn't stand a chance as he's about the same pace as a greyhound as well as having huge stamina.
He likes to play-fight with me rough enough alright but don't mind as long its just with me or somebody else that knows him well and doesn't mind it.

But... Present him with a dog, no matter how small or young child he hasn't even seen before and he's as gentle as a cavalier spaniel pup we had years ago. For feck sake, he even got a fright and hadnt a clue what was going on one day when he was about 6 months old out in the park playing with a few dogs when a spaniel started to have a fight with him.

Know plenty of rottwielers and staffies belong to friends of mine too and they are all purr pets and wouldn't harm a fly and only danger may be thatthey could lick you to death.

It's all down to the owners responsibility and putting in the time and effort to train the dog properly. A well trained dog that has been properly socialised as a pup and knows his owner is boss won't even have a question about having a dog under control. If the dog knows his place, he'll do exactly what the owner asks him immediately with one or two firm words on a lead or not.


It's just a shame alot of breeds now, staffies in particular are falling into the hands of "spottie youths", "track-suit brigade" and any other stereotypical names I can think of as they are seen as a "tough" or "hard-man" dog.

ianmalone

Just to update everyone. the gardai have managed to get a hold of the Luas CCTV. We just have to hope that it captured an image of the dogs and their owners. Whispered you were looking for some photos. Herohounds who do some dog minding for us have some great pictures of our pups, Enzo and Dino. Dino was the one that was attacked. Check out the facebook link below. http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/herohoundsdublin

westies4ever

beautiful pics - thats just too sad for words