Our dog was attacked by a pitbull that came under our fence

Hi Liz,  We had an incident similar to that a few years back.  Great advice - reinforcing the bottom on the chain link fence.  Glad to hear Buster is doing OK.

Liz, may Buster soon be stronger than ever.  Great tip to stake down the chain link into the ground.

Moral choices can be difficult. Filing a police report could potentially prevent another incident. Perhaps the next victim wouldn't be so lucky. It's nice the owner paid the Vet bill and that Buster is healing, but the next victim may not be so lucky. Even dogs can be traumatized for life and they depend on their owners to protect them from bullies too. Doing the right thing, like putting stakes in the ground to protect your dog was a smart idea. 

Keeping peace with the neighbors is always smart but neighbors can turn on you too. This is one of those decisions that you'll ponder over the years. It reminds me of a so called friendly neighbor I had many, many years ago. It was the first summer I went away with my kids to take another job. The friendly neighbors asked me if they could use my swimming pool when they had parties while I was gone. Because of liability, I said no. 'Also, because I had a barbed wire fence (it was rural property), I decided to install a chain link fence, higher than normal to keep people out, and a very expensive cover for the pool and proper locks on my 4 gates. It cost me a lot of money, because I had an acre. Then about a month after I was gone, I got a letter from the Police. My friendly neighbors made a police report, informing them, out of safety concern for the neighborhood, they climbed my fence, drained my pool, and notified the police I had abandoned my property and caused them undue stress because of the pool. 

I hope you make the right decision. Good luck!

Wow sorry to hear about this . I lived in an area yrs ago where we might encounter a loose dog when walking ( I carried a golf club )

Oh no, so grateful your dog is okay. I just can't imagine how frightening this would be... 

I wonder what gets into a pitbull ( who is raised in a good home) - that makes them want to attack. It's so sad. 

Liz Lockhart - Coincidentally, my sister just had an experience with her own dog within the past few days. Her daughter got a pitbull about a year ago. She assumed the main responsibility for the dog; however, she just left for college (out of state). Their dog was put into a kennel while the move was taking place. When my sister went to pick up the dog, everything was fine until she tried to get the dog out of her vehicle. The dog went nuts and became very agreesive to the point, she had to call the police because she couldn't leave the dog in the car all night long. Even canine police came to assist. It took several hours before the dog calmed down and got out of the vehicle - very stressful. The point is, she contacted the Vet and the Vet explained agressive behavior in pitpulls and why this happens so frequently. It is a behaviorial problem that is common when there is stress involved and mental problems with the animal in distress. Subsequently, my sister and the Vet are trying to find another home for the dog out of safety for all. I wonder if you talked to your Vet to get a professional opinion for the safety of your own dog or what your Vet has to say about the situation with the pitbull. 

I hope all is going well for you and hope you will soon be posting again.

Have an outstanding August.