Dog Attacks made my dog depressed?

Question

I was walking my Bichon yesterday on his lead , a staffie came out of his garden and attacked him, I tried to get him off and was digging him on the head but he wouldnt let go , it was awful I have never been so terrified in my life , the owner came out and just trailed it off by the collar,lucky my dog seems to be ok, he has a few little cuts under his jaw and is sore I know I should have taken him to the vets but he's terrified of them, He's been very quiet today and isnt drinking or eating , he's hiding below the table and has to be coaxed out its as if he's done something wrong he seems very depressed ! I will go to the vets as a last resort. I treated him myself bathed him and cleaned out his cuts with saline and made him comfortable I he was a lively little dog before this do you think he's sore and wants to be left alone or should I just keep tending him Dont all say go to the vets because he's had a few horrible times in there due to illness .

Gina

Thanks for the replies, He's sleeping on the sofa now , he isn't crying with pain if he was I would go to the vets .I know I shouldn't have got in the middle but I couldn't let that brute eat my dog !! I have a few bruises myself trying to beat the beast off! I will go to the vets on Monday and get him antibiotics just in case of infection although I think he'll have to have it injected but this will distress him even more He wont even let the vet near him its a real nightmare , he even wets himself he's so terrified but I'm scared he will get an infection so I'll have to grin and bear it and take him.


Gina

Answer 1

Ok since vet is a last resort for you....... any injuries need to be cleaned with something that kills infection and bacteria (instead of just saline). Betadine, bactine, etc or you can be asking for trouble. Next check to see if they are surface/skin wounds or if there is damage to the "meat" underneath. muscle damage will require more treatment. Once the wounds are treated and not showing signs of infection, give him time and space, an attack is a traumatic experience and will take some time to get over. Just give him space and lots of love. He most likely has some sore tendons and muscles after that also(only time will help that), being quiet and not wanting to eat is fairly normal as long as it doesn't last for days on end. He will get back to himself in a little while. DO contact your local dog law enforcement officer or your local police for contact info and report that dog! It is against the law for this kind of behavior to happen. If your dog was under control and leashed and this dog left it's yard to "attack" it is a aggressive and dangerous dog (even if it only acts like that to dogs). The owner should be fined for not controling her animal so it cannot hurt others. It obviously isn't the first time if she just dragged it away like it is a common occurance.Owners have to be made to be responsible pet owners.

Answer 2

Gina, I know you don't want to hear this, but going to the Vet is important to do since your dog was bitten the way you described. Sometimes you cannot tell how deep the wound is and a pressure bite can do more damage than there appears to be.
If you take your dog in a kennel cab or crate of some sort he will be less stressed but a Vet's office is a good place to go.
You need documentation about the bite incident and you may want to report it to animal control because no dog should be on the loose without a leash but especially if it is aggressive towards other dogs which any dog can be. The only way this would be your fault is if your dog was off leash and found a way into the other dogs yard and then it was attacked.
Meanwhile, your dog and other dogs need to be protected. Has the owner of the dog offered to pay for you to see a Vet? He should.

Answer 3

if a buichon was attacked by a staffie it will NOT have got away with some small cuts. Your dog needs to get to a vet ASAP as there may be internal damage or broken bones, crushed windpipe etc. If you know the staffie owner, he has to pay the bill. That is the law. I hope you reported it to the police. I think you are rather silly. If your dog has internal damage or broken bones, you canot just bleat about how he had a bad experience at the vets and use that as an excuse not to take him. Do you WANT him to suffer and maybe bleed internally for a few days until he dies. Get a grip of yourself woman!

Answer 4

He is probable still scared. Don't fuss him too much because he wll start to wonder why you are fussing him and be worried about that. Cuddle him, etc as you would normally and give him a few days to recover.
You say he is terrified of the vets, maybe you could ask your vets to do a home visit. Most are really obliging. Or if your dog is food motivated, then you could try taking some biscuits with you, and use them to distract your dog from the vet, especailly when having shotts. Our old vet allways had a pocket of bisuits and whenever doing an exam or treatment, provided the dog was well enough for bisuits, and our dogs love going to the vet. My moms old dog hadn't been to that vets for a couple of year as we had been using a different vet due to moving, and we went back to get a second opinon on something and she went straight to his pocket. This seemed to be a good way to make the vets somewhere good to go.

Keep a really close eye on the cuts. If they are cuts, then keep them clean and watch them, you will be able to see if they are infected, but if they are puncture wounds then there is a risk of them abbsecing which you wouldn't be able to see. If you go to a saddlery or tack shop, you can get something called hibi-scrub. Dilute this and wash the wounds with, making sure you rinse them well after as this shouldn't be allowed to soak on the skin. Do this twice a day for a few days and that should prevent infection in cuts and scrapes (don't know how well it would work for deep punctures, as it wouldn't get inside). This stuff is anti-microbial, which means it kills bacteria, viruses and anyother living organism that could cause and infection.
I hope your dog feels better in a day or two.

Answer 5

Your dog could have an infection due to the bites so you would be best to go to the vets even though you dont want to...secondly I hope you have reported the other dog involved as it could kill a dog next time.Please get your dog checked asap.It must have been very frightening and I understand that you dont want to cause any more stress for your dog but an infection can cause all sorts of complications if not treated (and the vet will give your poor pooch some pain relief also)he must be bruised and battered.

Answer 6

Most dogs although calm and even tempered normally can become annoyed and snap. Much like humans do. With a mixture of Male and Female dogs in the house the likelihood of fighting decreases. When there are only Females in the house together, the chance that at some point they will fight is nearly 100%. Some Great Dane's can have unexplained reactions; I know of a case where a family raised one from the time it was 8 weeks old, One day the oldest daughter went to pour food into the Dogs bowl (then he was about 6 years old). He unexpectedly bit her on the head and nearly killed her. The police had to sedate the dog to get him to release her. The dog normally slept with this girl and was ALWAYS fed by her. It sounds like your dogs developed an intolerance for the older dog and decided to not let you intervene and disturb their "pack".

Answer 7

Sorry Gina, but I have to advice to take him to a vet There may be internal injuries that you are not aware of, plus he may need antibiotics. You also need to report this attack to the local humane society. The staffie, I hope, has been vaccinated.

Your dog could be in real trouble. I hope you change your mind before it's too late. I don't care how bad of an experience your dog has had at any vet office, this could be life threatening to him now and the vet can help, especially with the pain.

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Answer 8

it sounds as though your dog may be in shock its a massive thing for a dog to cope with and I think a vet visit may be the only answer as the dog may have inuries that you cant see or just to make sure that its ok, have you always dealt with the same vets is the vets that you dont want to take him too because he has been there before and had bad experiences or would it be any vets as all I can say is maybe take him to a different vet and explain the situation - he may come out of this himself but for your own piece of mind a vet is the only one that can tell you for sure that he has no other injuries, I feel for you I do I own two staffs myself and if this staff was allowed to freely approach your dog and wasnt on the lead and your dog was I would tell you to contact the rspca or the police to log the incident.

Answer 9

I am so so sorry and YES your dog is prob horrified from the event. If he/she doesnt like the vet..I would atleast call and see if there is anything you can do.....as for the eating and not drinking....you can put some babyfood on his/her dry food but not alot...it will coax him/her into eating because it smells good but only chicken or meat..nothing else or it will make it sick. And if that doesnt work..you can put some wet food or baby food and put it in the microwave...it will make the food smell sooooo good. and just understand that the dog need ALOT of time and rehab to get him/her back to normal....Hold him and love him/her. he/she will NOT be ok prob for a couple of weeks. so dont expect it to go away over night. Imagine if it was something like that that happened to you...like being rapped or mugged...you wouldnt be ok right after..so give him/her time and just love it and DO NOT pressure him/her to be around other dogs yet. you could do more harm then good :) Hope that helped. Also make sure you keep the cuts clean because of infection..Neosporin is OK to put in the cuts :) Oh and DO NOT EVER GET IN THE MIDDLE OF A DOG FIGHT! thats just plain STUPIDITY!!!!!!!!! you all the dog will do is redirect on YOU..tust me I have seen it plenty of times

Answer 10

you could be right. I read in the paper, earlier this week, that a cat was given antidepresants after being bullied by another cat for months. Your dog might not be depressed, just still in shock, or coping with the pain. I think for now he's showing normal behaviour, after all he WAS attacked, but if this persists any longer, or gets worst contact your vet.