Have you ever been attacked by a dog?

Question

Something happened today that freaked me out. I went to the convenient store and parked next to a van. I paid no attention to it. As I got out of my car, I heard a noise. I turned my head to the side...a HUGE dog stuck its head out of the van window, about 2 feet out the window, BIG TEETH, and what I perceived to be in an aggressive state (perhaps trying to protect the van?). He was inches from my face. I almost wet myself and ran into the store. When I left the store, the van and dog were still there. I had to enter my car from the passenger side. I'm not a dog owner (see my picture), but isn't there a way to stop this from happening? I do not know if he would have attacked, but showing his teeth and growling, to me, was not a good sign. He could have easily bitten me in the face had I not seen him in time. Because of his size, he could not have gotten through the window, but his head & neck could. I'm not being a woos, but it bothers me. It's just an accident waiting to happen.

Answer 1

I work in an animal shelter so I get to see plenty of aggressive dogs. Irresponible dog owners usually get away with things because people are too afraid to speak up for their rights. What you could have done, most people dont know, is take down the license plate number, type of vehicle, description of the dog and call your local animal control facility to file a complaint/affidavit under failure for citizens right to the freedom of movement. Or you could simply call the police as soon as the incident happened.

Answer 2

You are right, that could be dangerous.
Most dogs, even generally good-natured ones, will protect what they perceive to be their property, especially when their master is away. Which is what this dog was probably doing.
This dogs owner was remiss in allowing the window to be open enough for the dog to get its head and shoulders out, and you were wise to get in from the other side.
He might just have been warning you and done nothing more ... but one never knows. Even if he had never attacked anyone before, there is always a first time, and dogs can be unpredictable.

Answer 3

You are right. Some dog owners are really careless. They don't realize that their sweet little baby at home could go into Mr. Terror mode. He was more than likely just guarding is property. The owner's should have made sure that his head could not have fit out of the window.
I'm sure that from this day forward you will look at the car parked next to you before you get out.
This dog is an accident waiting to happen

Answer 4

I've been attacked many times. I work with animals a lot, so it's just a numbers game. The worst bite ever was a pomeranian, who managed to actually rip my thumb nail off. Very painful. There were also cockers, labs, chihuahuas, and some pugs that never could puncture the skin, cute and pathetic more than anything. People need to get a grip and start taking responsibility for their pets, or our rights as pet owners could be at stake.

Answer 5

I've never actually gottne bitten or scratched or anything , but i can tell you, i've gotten chased by dogs more times tha nanyone should ! People really need to hold their dogs down and train them or some thing because it was soooo SCARY ! There was this one day when i got chased by three( ! ) dogs !! I was walking home from school ( this was in a good neighborhood by the way ) with my two sisters and we heard a growl ... we saw a black lab standing not more than a few feet away from us , it growled and we ran. It chased after us , but after a while , lost interest . then some kid was walking her dog , we walk by and she ask us " do you want to pet him ? " Oh my gosh NOooo !!! he rowled and started rushing towards us in an angry manner ( we're good kids why us ..? ) then we decided to walk on another street then we see a golden retriever juts walking around , and it starts to follow us. So we just snuck behind some trees and waited till it lost interest . Whew ! Talk about a bad day !!

Answer 6

That would not have been an accident. That would have been planned by the owner, whom probably thought the dog was cute !
250,000 Americans are savagely bitten by dogs each year. Most of these are children.
Dogs are largely responsible for the high cost of home owners insurance. It is my opinion that dog owners should be held more liable for their animals behaviors. I feel that a substantial; tax on dogs and better animal control would help bring dog populations down.
Dogs kill many wild animals every year. Dogs kill more deer than hunting and automobile accidents combined. They also will kill anything that they can, such as rabbits, fox, young bear , etc.

Answer 7

I have an AKITA dog and a black lab they are big dogs.They would bark but I doughty they would bite. Some people train their dogs to be aggressive and 75% of the time they live to regret it.
My sister has two rottweilers (each dog over 120 pounds) and they are the most docile animals ever! She has a 5year old kid that rides the dogs like a pony!!!!!! The dogs are very gentle but protective over her child.....They are part of the family.....we call them the elders....since they are older than her kid!!!!!smile

Answer 8

Yes. when i was 10-years old. my so-called "friend" told me to follow him to the basement of his old house so see something {i can't remember what it was.}., when i walked further inside, recently pregnant dog was under the stairs and he didn't told me about her, so i follow him and she jump at me and bite me on the right thigh. I got scare and ran away, confuse by the attack, i hit my head with a pillar and the dog was still following me upstairs and he didn't do anything to restrain her. He was an asshole., His parent mostly his mother assume all responsibility for the incident. His family thought playing with that sort of thing is funny. Not so i end up in bed and missed half of the summer.

Answer 9

The owner should keep its dog at home if it is very aggressive and it sounds like it is. If you had been a child, you might be dead by now.

I have never been bit but I love dogs and I think they can sense that. I have been told by dog owners(after I peeted the dog) that I better get away from the dog because he will bite.

Answer 10

No, I've never been attacked by a dog. You can't allow yourself to show any fear in the presence of an aggressive dog, which means that you must have absolute inner calm, and move very slowly.