Many dog owners have probably been in this situation: you are walking with your dog and suddenly you dive a strange dog appears and pounces on its own four-legged friend. How do you react in such a situation?
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“Attack is the best defense”
If you see the other dog beforehand, you may be able to stop the other dog from lunging at your own dog by shouting loudly (in a firm and threatening voice!) and/or by throwing objects that rattle as much as possible. If this doesn't help, or if you haven't seen the dog before, you should Always give your own dog the opportunity to escape. If he is on a leash, immediately drop the leash.
Show fight or real serious fight?
As a dog owner, it's really bad to see when both of them Dogs fight each other. Nevertheless, you should always keep a cool head in order to be able to assess the situation. Two dogs carry a so-called Exhibition fight off, it is loud and with a lot of noise.
It helps if both dog owners move away in the opposite direction Call or whistle for your own dog from a distance away. Especially when the “backing” of the master or mistress is no longer what it is, such a fight quickly ends.
Is it a Serious fight, there is dead silence. The fighting dogs don't use their strength for growling or barking, but for what's important: seriously injuring or even killing the other person.
In this situation you should keep calm yourself. If I become hysterical, I can make the situation worse by making mistakes, or even put myself in danger or endanger my life. The top priority in such a situation:
Keep calm, act carefully and never put yourself in danger!
There are now various options to separate two dogs, which cannot be applied to everyone and not always. In any case, it is an advantage if you have repeatedly visualized such a situation yourself and gone through a wide variety of scenarios in your head.
Because our brain does not differentiate between reality and imagination. In this way, these ideas can be used automatically in the appropriate situations.
What defense options are there?
Kicking or hitting
A small dog can possibly be made to flee by kicking or hitting it if a targeted attack can be made. Things get more difficult with a large dog. This could even feel incited and attack its own dog even more intensively. In addition, you always have to keep in mind that during a fight the pain threshold is significantly higher due to the release of a hormone cocktail and therefore punches and kicks are not even noticed. But it can also happen that the dog turns towards you and attacks you. Since the dogs are usually on the move, targeted blows, such as a blow on the nose of the biting dog, often cannot really be carried out.
Pepper spray
If the pepper spray is used specifically against the attacking dog, it can help. But you always have to keep in mind that if there is an oncoming wind you could get a load yourself. Furthermore, the other dog could feel incited and literally bite blindly. But you can just as easily incapacitate your own dog if it gets the charge. From the The use of pepper spray is not recommendedbecause you can't predict how the other dog will react and the situation could develop.
Knife
A Knives to fend off dogs are absolutely taboo! The risk of injuring yourself, your own dog, or even the other dog owner is far too great and can have serious consequences.
Stun gun
There are approved electric stun guns that can be used in such a case. This variant is the least dangerous for yourself, but also for the attacking dog. And even if you catch your own dog, it won't be seriously injured. However, you should familiarize yourself with how to use a stun gun beforehand. In a serious situation you no longer have this time.
Leverage
If two dogs have become entangled in each other, there is also the possibility of prying them apart. However, this requires two people (preferably the other dog handler, of course). To do this, each dog must be taken by the hind legs (grab and hold on really well, the dogs can develop enormous strength!) and at the same time both dogs must be pushed strongly into each other and then immediately lifted out or pulled back. However, this requires that both dog owners act thoughtfully and at the same time. dogs never simply pull it apart, as this can cause serious injuries.
Interrupt air supply
The safest option is to Dog that has bitten offto turn off the air by tightening the collar. Of course you have to get to the collar to do this. If the dog doesn't have a collar or is only wearing a harness, you can also use the leash. If a dog can no longer breathe, it will usually let go.
But beware! Then be sure to hold on tight in case the other dog turns against you. If necessary, the air supply must be interrupted until the attacker is unconscious
Conclusion: When your own dog is attacked
No matter which method you choose, it is of course important that these tools (if you want to use them) are included ready to hand and the dog owner is confident in handling them. Furthermore, it is helpful for you if the defense/self-defense is announced loudly orally. It doesn’t matter whether the other dog owner is there or not. In this way you make yourself aware that you will and must act now. If you are unsure and/or hesitant, it is better to let the fight run its course so as not to sustain serious injuries yourself.
Author: Melanie Weber-Tilse
Have you ever been in a situation like this with your dog? How did you react?