06/20/2026
💔 Learn From Other's Mistake 💔
Thursday night, our Police Officers were dispatched to a residence where two dogs were attempting to kill each other. The call was updated that a person was bit in the face. Officer Sanchez was called in for emergency assistance.
Calls like this make us cringe, because we never know what to expect when we arrive. How bad are the injuries on the human? How bad are the injuries on the dogs? What happened? Are they both owned by the same owner? Who provoked one of the dogs into biting? These are questions that run through our heads before arriving on scene.
Nothing is as simple as it seems. We want to be transparent with our residents to help prevent and be PROACTIVE and not REACTIVE. Your dog's life and yours is often times in your hands. It's up to YOU not to make the same mistakes. Learn from this very difficult lesson.
An individual was walking their Hound mix on a retractable leash. The owner allowed their Hound mix to walk onto a nearby neighbor's property. The Hound mix was allowed to venture up to the gated fence which sits in the rear driveway over 20 feet away from the public sidewalk.
Mistakes & Education:
▪️This is the first mistake which now became this owner at fault for the entire situation.
▪️Retractable leashes do not give you the control you need to have on your pet.
▪️Retractable leashes are high on the list when animals bites occur on walks.
▪️Fully extended retractable leashes can range from 10 feet to 26 feet. Your pet should not be more than 6 to 8 feet away from you on a leash.
▪️Once you or your pet is on someone else's property, you are trespassing.
When the Hound mix was allowed to go up to the gate, the Pitbull mix was confined in his fenced backyard. The owner of the Hound mix allowed their dog to go nose to nose with the Pitbull mix.
Mistakes & Education:
▪️You are still trespassing onto someone's property.
▪️Not every dog wants to say hi.
▪️Not every dog is animal friendly.
▪️Not every dog is ok with other dogs being on their property. Animals are protective of their property just as humans are of theirs. Surely you would not want to be disturbed when you are minding your own business at home for a stranger to come to your residence to just say hi to you. Animals are no different.
▪️You have no control over the dog in the fenced yard and you have no control over the dog on a retractable leash that is now 10 plus feet away from you.
▪️Not every owned pet is current on vaccines.
The Pitbull mix is animal aggressive. When the Hound mix when nose to nose, it provoked the Pitbull mix.
Education:
▪️Provoked bites mean the animal was given reason to bite.
▪️Unprovoked bites mean the animal bit of nowhere, the bite had no reason to happen.
▪️Provoked bites are typically the fault of the person or animal provoking the animal that bit.
▪️Again, unless you know the animal personally, do not assume every animal likes other animals.
The Hound mix weighed approximately 45 lbs. The Pitbull mix weighed approximately 90 lbs.
Once the Pitbull mix was provoked, the Pitbull mix pushed open his gate, escaping its confinement, and began biting the Hound mix on his property.
Education & Mistake:
▪️Again, you're trespassing onto someone's property.
The owner of the Hound mix picked up their dog in hopes of getting it away from the Pitbull mix. The Hound mix then bit the owner's face in redirection. The owner put the Hound mix down on the ground and in redirection was bit on the hand.
Mistakes & Education:
▪️Animals are animals and will do anything to defend themselves when they feel threatened. They can not think quick enough to realize who or what they are biting.
▪️Redirection bites are to have whatever or whoever restraining them let them go so they can continue on whatever they were doing (fighting or escaping).
▪️Unless you are in front of two small dogs fighting and if you pick up one of the small dogs then the other can not hurt you or reach the other dog, than do not ever pick up a bigger dog. You will almost always end up injured or at risk of being injured. The bigger dog is typically still able to reach the dog you are attempting to keep out of harms way.
Both owners were in their late 60s & early 70s.
Advice:
▪️Be mindful of the pet you have and what you can handle.
▪️If you cannot control the pet you have then make modifications to the residence to ensure they are unable to escape.
▪️If you can not make modifications, then consider a different pet that may not need modifications.
Education:
▪️Dogs are considered property. Your property is your responsibility to maintain and keep confined. Whether provoked or not.
Since neither owner was able to get the two dogs separated, PD Officers arrived on scene to find the two dogs attempting to kill each other and almost succeeding. Our Officers acted quickly and taser cartridges were used on the Pitbull mix. The first cartridge worked for a second but did not keep the Pitbull mix down and the dog went for the Hound mix again. A second cartridge was used and was able to keep the Pitbull mix down and away from the Hound mix.
Proud moment:
▪️Our Officers used quick thinking and instead of lethal force, they used a taser instead. We commend our Officers for their quick and swift actions. We are proud to work alongside of them. We appreciate our Officers immensely.
Education:
▪️For those that will have negative feelings or thoughts on the dog being tased, he was the larger of the two dogs and the one that could not be safely confined without anyone else getting bit.
▪️Taser deployment only stunned the dog for a brief moment. The dog was still alive, stable, and not fighting when Officer Sanchez arrived on scene.
▪️Being tased was not a death sentence for the dog.
Hard reality:
So many wrong things transpired in this horrific incident. All of this would have been prevented had the Hound mix not been allowed to trespass onto someone's property. This incident is a provoked bite on the Pitbull mix. The Pitbull mix is protected since he was provoked into biting. Now, that being said, the Pitbull mix is not protected for escaping it's property and being able to be on the public sidewalk. The Hound mix bite on their owner is also a provoked bite. Since the owner picked up the dog, the dog was provoked into biting the owner to let him go out of defense.
Both dogs are now deceased:
▪️The Hound mix sustained injuries that would have ran upward of $5,000.
▪️The Pitbull mix sustained minor injuries, but now the owner was afraid of their dog. Despite the dog not being at fault and not biting the human. The owner felt they could no longer confine him properly or control him properly.
Two dogs lost their lives. Two families lost loved ones. All could have been avoided with proper education, being proactive, and not putting your pet in dangerous situations.
Proactive awareness:
▪️If you have retractable leashes, please consider throwing them away.
▪️If you have a dog who does not like other animals, please reinforce your gates as throughly as possible.
▪️Consider putting up mesh tarp or tarp on your chain link fence if you cannot afford a privacy fence to prevent your pet from seeing other pets.
▪️Consider staying outside with your pet to ensure they do not escape.
▪️Look into Super-Beast tethers to consider purchasing them for secondary confinement.
▪️Do not allow your dog on other's property.
▪️Ensure you can handle your pet before adopting/buying them.
We apologize for the long read, but we hope others learn from this heavy mistake. If even one animal is saved from this unfortunate incident, then that is one life saved because the owner read this post.
