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Good morning, Rusty!
A beautiful day here - blue sky and bright sunshine.
A temperature of only 0C though! Brrrh!
I had a very distressing walk this morning.........
My dog is long-haired but does not have an undercoat, so, in the extreme chill of the early morning, I had put her coat on her.
Very fortuitously ...as it turned out!
She was attacked in the park by this huge very vicious dog.....I think it was some sort of bull mastiff cross from its appearance ( altho bull mastiffs are usually even tempered)
This dog came from nowhere, grabbed my dog - considerably smaller than he - by her coat and shook her like a rat.
Fortunately, the owner rushed up and had to hurl himself on top of his dog in an attempt to control him.....
Owner and dog were rolling on the ground!
But the dog still had hold of mine in his jaws.
My friend and I did eventually manage to get her away from him.....
Luckily she appears unhurt...her coat saved her, but that is literally savaged!
The teeth marks did go through but haven't pierced her skin.
The owner was mortified, explaining that it was a rescue dog......he offered to pay any vet bills, but fortunately that will not be necessary.
It seems the dog has previously attacked other dogs, so will need to be muzzled in future.
A very fraught morning!
Yes, I agree ...daughter's visit is more important than going out for a romantic meal....but we shall have two meals.....
Go out with daughter...... and then later next week......go out again!
A good idea?
I'm still shaking...I need another coffee.....




Hello, Ros.
I think I have previously read books by Rosie Thomas ...the name sounds familiar?
I shall look into those suggestions.
Thank you!

Hello, Elle!
Yes, it is cold!
We are not so bad, though.
I'm hearing from the High Court in Aberdeen that trials are held up, because the snow has held up jurors, witnesses, and legal folk, getting there on time!
Let us hope the snow stays up in Aberdeen, and we can keep the frost!
That was an awful experience for your dog and you, Elle!
I wonder what set off the attack?
At least the owner sounded like a very reasonable person.
Yes, your daughter comes first, I agree!
Yes, and later in the week you can invite your husband out for a meal.
Makes good sense, to me!

Hello Elle and Rusty,

It is snowing, and sticking to the ground - it's also bitterly cold,
I don't think cats will want to go out!


Oh, Elle, I have just read your preceding post - What a horrific
experience for you, but also for your poor dog! How did she
behave after her ordeal? This dangerous dog should be kept on
the lead, not only have a muzzle!!!

Hello, Pigale!
You have snow!
Yes, it is quite cold.
Think it will last until next week anyway!
Be careful when you are out walking!

Oh elle that's terrifying. Poor dog (yours), poor you.
At risk of bringing all dog lovers in the world down on my shoulders, should the attacking dog not be destroyed? What is to stop it being a child next time? It has history, a muzzle might not be enough. Do dogs wear them all the time? Indoors? In the garden?
Please don't tell me it's the (previous) owner. Whatever the reason, it is just too dangerous to keep such a dog, imho.
Wherever the man got it from has behaved extrely irresponsibly if the dog's history was known to them.

Ducking well down

Rosalind, I am a dog (and all sorts of animals) lover, but I tend
to agree with you on this occasion. This (big) dog should be
considered a very dangerous animal, and as you say, it could
also have attacked a small child. Even if muzzled, his sheer weight
might be dangerous!

Good afternoon, Rusty!
We have had a few snow flurries, but nothing is sticking!
It is strange that it should have attempted to snow here, yet not with you!
I have just been speaking to Ian, the owner of the "dangerous" dog!
He left me his number in case of problems.
I wanted to check that he is going to take appropriate steps to deal with his dog's violence.
Ian and dog are new to us, and to the park, but I have now discovered that the dog had had five previous owners, and what looks like a rather chequered history.
This was certainly not the first attack.....anyway, we have established that Ian will seek "help", and meanwhile will muzzle the dog and keep him on a lead.
He seems a genuine person, so I think he will do his best for his own dog and will also endeavour to ensure the safety of other dogs.
So all hopefully dealt with!
Right, dog seems fine...snow has stopped...so we are off out for a short walk!



Hello, Pigale!
Luckily I think the dog is okay, apart from a literal shake-up!
She was crying though, which was awful, and we were powerless to get the other dog to loosen his hold on her.
Had she not be wearing a coat - which took the brunt of the attack - she would have been seriously injured.
A smaller dog would probably have been killed.
I couldn't stop shaking afterwards!

A long time ago we had a family Jack Russell. It attacked chickens more than once. The vet said when a dog started behaving like that it could not be made to stop and next time it could be a child. Yes, that was the end of the dog to my great relief (no teenage girl should have to put up with a dog trying to mate with her arm, leg or anything else around! and it had been castrated, though presumably imperfectly. Anyway, at least the aggressive dog's owner seems very responsible, but I am concerned about the charity he got it from. Maybe it was the one that says it never destroys a healthy animal. Perhaps it should, in cases like this, to avoid heartache. I wouldn't care to muzzle a bull mastiff!! (or a toy dog, come to that)

Thank you pigale. I'm sure by now you have my measure. I've seen my sons and husband bitten by dogs (in one case badly) for no reason , and have been attacked by a horse twice, once terrifyingly (bruises on my back for weeks!) I was on a public footpath in my aunt's field on that occasion. No way will I ever have a pet and give them a wide berth as I can in the street and local woods. And I have a dog dazer, though have only used it a very few times when frightened.

Hello, Elle!
Snow flurries here, too, but as yet, not lying!
Wonder why the dog has had so many owners?
A bit worrying, that?
Hopefully you would not meet with the dog again.
Time for me to attempt my puzzle!

Hi, Rusty!
We are just back from our walk.
It was bitter cold out- probably even more so than this morning.
I do hope it does not snow!
I seem to have started a heated discussion about vicious dogs!
But without knowing the full history, I would hate to judge........
I feel sure that the guy will try to sort out the situation.
He seems very keen to do his best for his dog.
And he did offer to pay for any vet bills that might have been incurred.
I think that shows a sense of responsibility?
I have only done about a third of my crossword....easier than yesterday's puzzle, though, don't you think?
Your son will be visiting you later......




Hello, Ros!
I'm sorry...I did not see your post earlier- I have only just come across it now, on my return from the park
I do not know the history of the aggressive dog.
But a dog that will attack another dog will not necessarily attack a child.
Some dogs are great with children but not with other animals.
Indeed, the viciousness may only be directed at one particular breed of dog.
These things can vary.
I think the owner seems responsible and will seek the necessary help to deal with this.
Dogs may be muzzled for a number of reasons - aggressive to humans/ dogs / chasing squirrels/ eating rubbish/ but it is an effective way of controlling such tendencies- although in the case of heavier dogs, they would need to be on a lead too.
But I have known dogs muzzled and leashed, who have subsequently learned, through limited and controlled contact, to mix and behave well.
I know you have had an unhappy history with dogs, and will see this differently.