How-to-Survive a Dog Attack
Imagine, it's a cool spring-like day. The warmer spring weather is just starting to break. The clouds & drizzle that loomed in the early afternoon start to break as the sun finally comes out to play.
You slip on your walking shoes, comfy your casual jean shorts & warm yet cool sweatshirt top--hey, it's spring, the weather can be finicky.
You set out for your walk, down the driveway, up the street, keeping a good pace. As you're walking to the street's intersection, the sun's rays are out & you can just sense that spring-feeling. Before exhaling in the spring air, a thud is felt against your back. An awful biting sensation is felt behind your right calf. There's the eeriest sound of an animal's growl.
It feels like an odd combination of years as well as nanoseconds before you can calculate what is happening. You are being attacked. Attacked by a dog in your neighborhood on your routine walk.
Scary right? This was the situation last April for my mother who was viciously attacked by the neighbor's Upper-Mid-Content Wolf-Siberian Husky Shepard Talemaskin Mix dog on her routine walk in her neighborhood.
While I am not going to get into the details of her case, she was mauled by the neighbor's careless efforts not to control their animal. This resulted in my mother's close-to-fatal attack as well as everlasting mental trauma.
While her scars are forever, it's the mental wounds that'll be the most permanent. Her attack has had a prolific & lasting effect on my life too. As someone who shares content about living a healthy & active lifestyle, exercising outdoors for me will never be the same. I want to share tips with you that you can have in the back of your mind if you ever find yourself being attacked by a dog.
According to an article I found on MKPlawgroup.com, it is estimated that 4.5-4.7 million people {a year} suffer an injury to a dog bite/dog attack. It went to say that 885,000 of those bitten by a dog went on to seek medical attention. In my mom's case, she was rushed to the ER {in the midst of COVID} to seek medical care for her injuries. Her wounds, knick-named 'dirty-wounds' were so jagged that they couldn't stitch her up.
Dog attacks like anything else can come out of the blue. No one expects to be attacked by a dog {or anything} when enjoying time outdoors. However, these are modern times, people can be forgetful as well as careless when it comes to securing their pets. Here are tips to know if you're ever in the situation of a dog attack.
Be Aware of Your Surroundings
So often, we are hidden in our phones, immersed in our podcasts, music, & phone calls that we neglect to take in our surroundings. When walking, pay attention to what's surrounding you, what's potentially behind you & what is coming around the corner. Whether this means lowering the volume of your ears buds or putting your sound on speaker sound can be a determining factor if you hear {or don't hear} something coming up behind you.
Walk Prepared
Think about it, you wouldn't go for a jog or walk in the dark without a flashlight &/or neon reflective gear. So, why would you leave the house without something to protect yourself against an attack-animal or human? Caring mace, bear mace, a whistle, or something to help ward off an attack as well as to call out for help is better than not having anything on hand. When jogging, I carry mace. When walking, I have a club. Some say, mace or a club would only warrant an attack more, but it's better than nothing. This way, I would have a barrier to put between me & the dog's mouth as opposed to an arm or leg.
It is important to note, my mother was unarmed on her walk when she was attacked by the dog.
Stay Calm
In an article titled, Why Dogs Attack & What to Do if a Dangerous Canine Approaches You appearing on Wbur.org, gave several tips on what {& what not} to do if you are in a situation where you are being aggressively attacked by a stray dog.
The article suggested if you're being attacked by a vicious dog do not beat the dog back, find an object to put between you & the dog {like a club}. Grabbing onto the dog's collar or fighting back can only increase the chances of you getting bitten more.
While screaming & crying in a natural instinct, this will more-than-likely provoke the attack further. This was the case in my mom's attack, she learned after the first so many bites, screaming was only making it worse.
It is human nature to pull away from an attacker, but with a dog attack, don't pull limbs from the dog's mouth {it'll increase skin tearing}, instead, push limbs forward into the dog's mouth. In a situation where a dog is attacking you, curl your hands & fingers inward to keep safe from the dog's biting jaws.
As often as we do, we walk with our pets, if you are being attacked on a walk alongside your dog, pick your dog up {if possible}.
Finding some sort of shelter, object to hide behind during an attack can be your saving grace in-the-midst of a dog attack. Sadly, my mom was on a street corner in a ditch with no place to hide behind. It was one of the dog's owners who came running dog the road, calling the attack off.
Seek Medical Attention
Whether you suffer major injuries or a few scratches, seeking medical attention for dog bites is important. After an attack, the article above recommends you leaving the scene at once, don't stay & look for the owner or where the dog ran off to. Get to safety & seek medical care.
While I know this is a scary topic to cover, the weather is starting to break & we'll all be migrating outdoors. Keep safe & keep aware of your surroundings.
As for my mom's attack, we are seeking swift justice.
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| How to survive a dog attack |
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