A vicious attack that left their Toy Pomeranian near death has Chatham couple angry and questioning the safety of city streets.
Cinta, a four-year old pet of Randy and Brenda Coote, is slowly recovering after it was mauled by Saturday by a Rottweiler on St. Clair Street.
The Cootes’ dog, which weighs just over two kilograms, required nearly 100 stitches to close wounds inflicted by the Rottweiler that they estimated weighed almost 10 times as much as their dog.
The couple had stopped at Subway on St. Clair when Randy took Cinta to the side of the strip mall while Brenda went into the restaurant to order take out.
“When we pulled in we noticed the Rottweiler in the back seat of a convertible parked some distance away. There was a woman in the car in the front passenger seat” Randy said.
“Cinta was on her leash and we were at least a hundred feet away when I noticed a blur out of the corner of my eye. It was the Rottweiler charging right at Cinta.”
Randy said his dog, which was on a leash, actually took a couple of steps toward to the Rottweiler. “Cinta was being friendly. She loves other dogs.”
“I could see by looking at the Rottweiler it was planning to attack. I tried to get between the dogs but the Rottweiler was too fast. It grabbed Cinta by the hind quarters, threw her in the air and began tearing at her,” he said.
Randy, who has a degenerative disc disease and requires a cane to walk, dropped his cane when he tried to stop the attack. “I hurt my back trying to get Cinta into my arms. She was covered in blood.”
The attack drew a crowd, including the person Randy believes owns the dog. “A man came up and moved the dog away from Cinta. He led his dog to the convertible and they started to leave the parking lot.”
A couple who was on the patio at Blazin’ BBQ came across the road to help and attempted to stop the car from leaving.
“The driver of the convertible wasn’t about to stop so these people called the police with the license number” he said.
Brenda said the couple from Blazin’ BBQ and an employee of Brewer’s Retail comforted Cinta and another passerby provided some cloth to help stem the bleeding.
When she initially couldn’t get through to her vet, the couple told her to call their vet who has an office nearby. “I called that emergency number and was told that since Cinta wasn’t their patient we’d have to go to our own vet. I explained that she might be dying but it didn’t matter.”
Shortly thereafter Brenda reached her vet, Dr. Fife of Fife Animal Hospital. “He was at his son’s birthday party but he came within ten minutes” she said. “He had an intern who had just finished working at his part time job and he came over as well.”
After three hours of treatment, they were allowed to take Cinta home.
The couple said the vet bill for that night’s treatment tops $1,000 but it’s worth it
“I used to wonder how people could get so attached to their pets but since I’m disabled, Cinta is my life for a good portion of the day when Brenda’s out” Randy said. “She’s great company and she keeps me going on bad days. I don’t know what I’d do without her. She’s like my special child.”
Randy said if the Rottweiler had grabbed Cinta in the midsection or by the head, she’d be dead.
“I can’t believe the owners just left like that. They knew exactly what happened and are taking no responsibility.
It’s bad enough that it’s my dog, what if that Rottweiler had attacked a small child. It’s pretty clear the animal should be leashed and muzzled.
Brenda said the police are working with the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to investigate the incident.
Randy said the dog owner needs to be held accountable.
“If there aren’t any consequences for this type of action it will happen again and next time it could be a child. Who’s going to step up and make sure this type of incident isn’t repeated?”
A person who identified herself only as Jessica at the OSPCA said the group has no comment on the incident, whether or not there is an investigation.
She described her title as “I work here.”
Electrical canes , sounds good with me!
the owner should definitely be held accountable and their dog should be muzzled and leashed for sure- this makes me so angry and sad- poor little pup 🙁
the dog who attacked is not a social dog and should not be unmuzzled or unleashed, that is so sad for the owners of the Pom and the Pom too. To leave with out trying to help is disgusting and cowardly!
way to go Dr. Fife-that's caring and compassion for you!
way to go Dr. Fife! Above and beyond again !
Thank you Dr. FIfe for being the Dr. that you are. You care/ Pets are like family.
First of all hats off to the people who helped and hats off to doctor Fife for there quick response and I hope beyond all hope the catch these iresponceable dog owners as far as I am concerned they should not own a dog, They had to have knowen there dog was getting out of there vehicle to go and attack your dog.I am so sorry that you had to endure this happening to your dog and here's hoping your cinta has a full recovery.
I have a pom that looks just like yours
The owner should be muzzled not the dog they seen what this dog was about to do.You cannot blame it all on the dog
Very cool Mike very cool!
First of all, of course they should pay all the expenses. That owner needs a hefty fine and some sort of action with the dog, i.e. mandatory muzzle when in public. Lastly when did Vet's become such elitist's? The dog was attacked and they could not receive.
service! Good on Dr.Fife and his clinic, would love to know the name of the other vet so they could be boycotted!
The owners should be charged with animal endangerment and forced to pay medical expenses for both dog and owner. Their Rotty should never be allowed off leash in public and should be harnessed in the car. Shame on them for not stepping up and doing the right thing! Why is the OSPCA so secretive and not forthcoming? Was there even an investigation? Questions the owner of the Pom should be asking!
omg that little pom is lucky to be alive!
My dads dog was attacked on his property in dresden and now his dog s afraid of every noise or movement just a little something for you to watch out for your dog. And I believe owners should have to pay for the vet bills.
very lucky a rotweiller and a Pomeranian I mean come on…and the owner taking off what an asshole…
happy birthday enjoy and many more
I would have beat the dog with the cane.
Yes, please report the name of the vet that wouldn't help. We need to know so that we don't use his/her services.
Just yesterday my two little Poms were attacked by a neighbor's Rottweiler and another dog in the same pack. If I had not responded the way that I did my Little Romeo would have been dead. I also was out for a walk with the baby in the carriage. I saw the dog charging and I pushed the baby off to the sidewalk under some bushes and backed up to the street so that the dogs would not be anywhere near the baby, (my dogs were the object of focus), I also thought someone may stop since we were in the street as I continuously and tried to fight off the dogs and still keep my dogs safe behind me. I tried blocking the dog in front and the other dog kept chasing my dogs but the leashes were close to me so I kept trying to block them, but I kept pepper spraying the Rot, he would retreat for a moment to shake it off, then he would come back. He kept doing that until he finally grabbed my little Pom in his mouth by his mid section and began to shake him violently but unable to hold on to him I think the pepper spray kept slowing him down. I was so scared he'd kill my little boy but finally 3 vehicles stopped but no one would help as I kept crying out for help they just stood there asking if anyone had a phone. In this day and age everyone has a cell phone. I just feel that they were scared and did not want to get involved. It is so sad that the would watch my little dog die in a violent attack than all of them come and subdue the dog. Some one could have picked up a stick or something, finally 2 young men came a teen abt 17 hesitantly got between us and the dog, beat the dog off and grabbed its chain and took it home only a few feet where the man lived. There was a Christian man who only offered help to watch the baby as the ambulance approached and offered me a seat in his vehicle til they got there. But never did he intervene when the attack was happening. The ladies just stood there with folded arms and watched me try to fight off the dog for 5 minutes :(. After my daughter came and the dogs were put away the man who owned the dogs came out of his house and only asked if I was alright, no apology, or anything else. He tried to blame us just for me calling for help and trying to get the dog away from attacking us. He told her the reason his dog went after my dogs was because of the excitement. This man leaves his dogs outside as a way of life chained to several of his broken down vehicles in the front of his house. All three are large breed dogs, they all have Mange and you can see the fleas on them from a few feet away as you pass by. The dogs are dirty, gross and very unkept, they are never out walking except when he allowed them to get out. I only saw this man with the dog walking him a short distance from his house one day and the dog was actually walking and pulling the old man. It was obvious that the man is not able to physically handle the dogs especially the Rottweiler. I plan on doing something about this situation that has gone on much too long. The dogs charge everyone who goes past that house. They are directly across the street from an elementary school :(. I thank God that my dogs were not killed, me, or the baby in the attack. I think because I was prepared with the pepper spray helped, and I thought to get the baby to safety quickly, and that I did not show fear and stood up for my little boys this helped to save us all.
Owners who condemn their dogs to the chaining up outside life without properly socializing them
turn the dogs into aggressive killing machines.
Blessed!
I totally Agree Sheila!