Pit Bulls attack horse in Ellington

Last night, two Pit Bull dogs, who had escaped from their owner's house, came onto the farm where I board my horse. According to the owner of the farm, the dogs, at first seemed only to be wandering about as they walked into the main barns (where my horse, and 21 others were in their stalls for the night). They didn't bother the cats, who were asleep on my tack trunk by the open door. They didn't bother the horses or the people. However, as they made their way up to the older barns, where the stalls are not as secure as those in the new main barns, they chose--for whatever reason--to slip beneath the stall door of a three-year old Halflinger (Lizzie), who is being trained to do therapy for special needs people, and attacked!

The panicked horse managed to break the chain that held her door closed and she ran. The Pit Bulls were hot in pursuit, and took her down not once but twice. The whole ordeal was witnessed by a renter in a house on the property. Attention was called to the ruckus and the Pit Bulls were thwarted away from the frightened horse. The police, veterinarian, Animal Control and the dog's owner all arrived at the farm.

Apparently, the same dogs had been loose most of the day and had already attacked a calf at another neighboring farm. The calf needed stitches and will recover. Lizzie will also recover from her wounds. She needed stitches to her neck and was wounded on the face, throat, legs, side and crotch areas.

However, what about the mental state of this horse who is destined towards a life of aiding the disabled? A horse that does such work needs to be completely bomb-proof, needs to not be afraid. When I saw Lizzie today she seemed relaxed, munching grass in her paddock with her horse pal. Thus far, all seems quiet with her, but what about down the road? Bad memories could pop into her head like a post traumatic war veteran. Yes, this can happen to animals as well, particularly an animal such as a horse that has a natural instinct towards fear and fleeing.

And what of the dogs? The owner was able to take them home and she stated she would fix the door where they had escaped, but the family is still fearful and vying for the euthanization of the animals. What if they get loose again and come back? The dogs now know the horses are there, they know there's easy prey on the farm. And why did they go after Lizzie in the first place when they had only been wandering about? She was in her stall, she was not running, nor did she pose a threat.

People state the best reason for the destruction of such animals as "what if next time they attack a child?" But is it not bad enough they attacked a calf and a horse?

Yet, on the other side of the coin, do they deserve to die for doing what instinct told them to do?  An opposing solution brought up was the removal of the dogs from their present owner, separation of them to remove the "pack instinct" (apparently the dogs are siblings) and relocation, apart, to different owners. According to what was told to me, both dogs listened to their owner and went to her when she called them. I was also informed that the owner contacted animal control or the police the moment she realized the dogs were gone.

These dogs did not attack a human (by most  law standards as well as many dog training views, a dog is not considered vicious or a threat for being aggressive to another dog or animal as this can be considered "natural" instinctual hunting behavior). But what really went on in the minds of these dogs and was this a first offense or one of many?  How responsible is the owner? The fate of the dogs will be determined by the truth behind these questions.

Many people still believe the old adage that once a dog "tastes blood," it will no longer be controllable and will never relinquish its need to attack and to kill, therefore moving up the ladder until it does inevitably attack a human. This is not necessarily true, at least not in its entirety. The thrill of the chase, the thrill of taking another animal down, is to a dog (particularly certain breeds with a higher predatory instinct) like a drug. They can become addicted to it, but this does not always mean they will eventually kill a human. Many dogs respect and see humans as their pack leaders, just as horses may see their owners as the herd leader. It also means that most dogs can be "broken" of this behavior, particularly if this is the first such incident. Humans domesticated the dog, humans put aggression back into certain breeds. Humans need to be responsible dog owners and be responsible for their dog's behavior.

Whatever happens in this case is yet to be seen. In the meantime, the dogs will probably be removed from their owner's care, either temporarily or permanently. The calf and Lizzie will both recover physically. But the repercussions and the memories of such an incident will not easily fade.