A truly terrifying experience....

Less than 3 hours ago, around 7:30pm, I was taking my big black dog, Bailey, on our nightly walk. We turned down a street we've walked on hundreds of times before when a black/gray Akita came across the street towards us. At first I didn't think much of it, but then the Akita attacked Bailey and had him on the ground in seconds with his teeth clamped onto Bailey's throat.

Bailey weighs about 80lbs, so I'm not used to seeing him in a helpless position, but he was 100% at this dog's mercy. I tried to pull him away with the leash and it was impossible. I started screaming and trying to kick the other dog away but he would not let go. Bailey's tongue was turning gray before my eyes and I was sure that he was going to be killed. My screams turned from trying to frighten the attacking dog to screams of terror and helplessness.

A man across the street came running and started yelling at the attacking dog and hitting him with a backpack. I got one good kick into the dog's face and he would still not let go. A lady came out of her house and turned her hose on the dog and the man took the hose, which startled the dog enough to let go of Bailey. The man yelled at me to get behind him with Bailey, which I did. The dog still did not leave, and stayed only at the tip of where the water from the hose reached him.

Another lady came out and asked if I was OK and offered to let me take Bailey into her dog-free backyard to see if he was OK and to calm down a little. The first lady with the hose called the police and the man who had helped left. A black Mercedes SUV pulled up across the street and the attacking dog stood next to it, like he recognized the driver.

After seeing the Bailey didn't have any broken skin (miracle) just a lot of saliva around his neck, I left him in the "borrowed" backyard and went to talk to the lady in the SUV. The gray dog was hers, and had gotten out while she was buckling her 18 month daughter into her car seat and the little girl was holding the clicker to their gate. They live 2 streets away and the dog got out and walked 2 blocks. The lady was extremely apologetic and asked if Bailey was OK and then, surprisingly, admitted that she was willing to surrender her dog. I asked her how long she had had the dog (whose name I never learned) and she said 7 years. She seemed pretty willing considering how long she'd had him.

She said that she was nervous about having him around her daughter and that every time Animal Control came out to her house she had discussed re-homing the dog with her husband. (Every time Animal Control had been over? This is not normal.) I learned that SHE is the one who would call Animal Control because the dog would kill skunks and opossums and she would call them to clean up the carcasses. No, this is definitely not normal.

I lost track of time, but somewhere in there a police car arrived and the officers put her dog into their cruiser. I stood with the other ladies across the street while the police talked to the dog's owner for a long time. Bailey waited patiently for me in the neighbor's yard, looking OK but a little confused.

While the policeman got statements from the two neighbor ladies, I went and talked with the dog's owner. She apologized profusely again and offered to pay any vet bills. I didn't think that would be necessary, but I asked for her contact information just in case. I'm going to see if he's in any pain tomorrow and maybe take him to the vet just to be sure there are no internal problems.

Then it was my turn to give a statement to the officer. I didn't have any ID on me--this was supposed to be a quick 10 minute walk, not an hour-long drama--but gave him what information I could. My heart was still racing.

45 minutes after the attack I got Bailey home and had dinner with my mom at her house across the street. I had to recount the entire tale again and that was when the tears came. Things had been so intense I couldn't even cry before, but now as I relived it and thought about how Bailey looked with that dog's teeth on his throat, the thought of losing him like that was horrible.

Three hours later, Bailey seems to be OK. He kept panting for a long time after we got home and his eyes were very bloodshot. I could hardly eat any dinner. All I wanted to do was hug him. Right now he's sleeping peacefully at my feet.

To the best of my knowledge, the police took the attacking dog with them. And, as much as I love dogs, that particular dog is dangerous. I love my sweet Bailey. He's my constant companion and protector. I know that he will not be around forever, but I'm not ready to give him up yet, especially in a way like what happened tonight. It was awful.