After her dog was attacked during a walk, a woman is now afraid to leave her house. Debbie Buckley, 63, was out walking her miniature dachshund, Delilah, in Gresham Park in Old Woking, Surrey when they were approached by two Staffordshire bull terriers.
Within seconds, the two larger dogs turned on little sausage dog Delilah and threw her into the air. Each grabbing an end of her body, they began to bite down hard on her skin. “I was trying desperately to pry open their jaws and get them off of her, but it was impossible with two of them,” Debbie told the Mirror newspaper.
“After the owner showed up, I was able to get them down.”
“The owner was abusive to me, and my other dog–who was traumatized from seeing these dogs attack–started barking. The man threatened that he would ‘let them go again’ if the dog didn’t stop.”
Since Debbie knew she was against the clock, she rushed her two-year-old dog to the vets. There, the dog underwent a three-hour operation.
Her chest was ripped open, with lumps of muscle hanging loose. She also had a broken rib and bites all over her back and legs.
She said: “I was in total shock and the vets thought I was having a heart attack. They called 111, but it was just the shock. I’m too traumatized to leave my house or walk her again.”
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For two days it was uncertain whether or not Delilah would make it, but she fortunately recovered.
“When we found her, she was barely clinging to life,” said the Protective Services worker. “It’s been a long road but she has made an amazing recovery.”
The dog underwent two operations and if all goes well, her stitches will be removed this week.
“Not only has it traumatised my dog but also me. I haven’t wanted to go on a walk since.”
Debbie, who now has a £5,000 vet bill because of the incident, claims this is the third time since July that the two Staffordshire bull terriers have attacking another dog in the park.
As far as Debbie is concerned, the Staffie owner has not faced any consequences and is continuing to walk her dogs normally.
“The repercussions? Nothing,” she said matter-of-factly.
“The officers said to keep my dogs on a lead and muzzle them. This wasn’t the first time they had attacked something.”
“If they had attacked wildlife, apparently it would have been a different story.”
“It’s unfair that current law does not hold dog owners more accountable. People should have to be responsible for their dogs, and aggressive dogs need to be taken away from their owners who can’t control them.”
The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 (section 3) states that it’s a criminal offence to allow your dog to be ‘dangerously out of control.’ However, it’s up to the owner or person in charge of the dog at the time to prove that they were not at fault.
“I know there are responsible dog owners out there, but I would never want another person or animal to go through what my poor dog did,” Debbie said. “It was a brutal attack.” Debbie
This can be defined as a dog that has injured another person or animal.
We send our well wishes to Debbie and her recovered dog, Delilah. We hope that justice is served in this situation and that irresponsible owners are held accountable for the safety of both people and animals.
(h/t: mirror)