(Please Freep-mail me if you’d like to be on or off the list.)
Posted on 01/18/2007 8:31:36 AM PST by the OlLine Rebel
A plastic surgeon spent three hours sewing up Linda Mittino's face after her son's dog first attacked her in November.
But she insisted the 7-year-old German shepherd, called Bear, deserved a second chance.
On Monday, the animal lover's loyalty cost her her life when the dog once again turned on her — this time attacking in her bedroom.
"She called him her protector. She loved that dog," said her son, Joe Mittino, the dog's owner.
(Excerpt) Read more at stltoday.com ...
And now the son is rationalizing and saying he'll be OK "away from people" (where is that?).
The dog should be put down.
(Please Freep-mail me if you’d like to be on or off the list.)
As much as I love dogs, I agree with you. No one will be safe around this dog.
Suicide by dog?
I love dogs but these people are nuts....this dog needs to cease to exist.
The article says the dog also previously attacked a brother-in-law, who required hospital treatment. I wonder if the owner, Joe, is living at his parents' home because he's brain-damaged or on drugs ... or whether he's got a grudge against his relatives!
I know it seems this kid is not concerned about the death of his mom but still wanting to preserve this dogs life.
Good point he may have mental or emotional problems or drugs...who knows, I would hope the law would put that dog down.
He has a wife, incidentally.
>And now the son is rationalizing and saying he'll be OK "away from people" (where is that?).<
And just WHAT, pray tell, does this nitwit think will keep Bear from attacking him? He's obviously seriously lacking in dog skills, or critical thinking skills, for that matter.
Oops, wrong. That was his sister.
Wish 1 could delete stupid posts like that! (embarrassed)
I should say this article is courtesy of KANAWA, who showed it to me.
You're not alone....I have wished for an "edit" button after hitting the post button too soon!
Too many people that keep dangerous animals as pets have received Darwin Awards.
People that keep dangerous animals deserve Darwin Awards. Not nearly enough of them receive them.
From what I read, the first attack on the mom occurred when she grabbed at the dog's collar. RULE #1: never grab at a dog. Never. I have (and would stand by) a dog that has bitten twice because of that, and seriously fears men. There are reasons why they distrust and (aggressively) protect themselves. NEVER grab a dog. Don't presume you have that right simply because you are human. It's a dog... an animal... and it does not believe it is subservient. Secondly, that lovely little picture of the dog lying on her lap all cosy-like? Dominance. The dog is dominating her. Such a dog will not tolerate her grabbing at it, as she is lower in the pecking order than he is. Now, this might make this dog a danger to humanity and qualify its being destroyed, but it is only being ... a dog.
I agree about the "lap-sitting". While I don't think it'll truly hurt with most, it should never be done regularly and never ever with a dog clearly already naturally dominant, much less aggressive.
I totally disagree about the "grabbing". I've never known a dog upset about mere "grabbing", anyway. We all have to reach for their collars. What are you going to do if you can't "grab" for your dog? Sounds ridiculous to me. If you have a dog like that, he is as unstable as this dog was.
Happens to me often.
What an interesting observation. We've never owned a dog, so I never thought of the psychological dynamics.
Although I guess when a cat sits in your lap, it's also expressing dominance ... "You exist for my comfort" :-).
Yes, we all 'reach' for the collar, having already formed a bond of trust with the dog. My dog may indeed be unstable. Our guess is that it was stolen from its original home at the age of 1'1/2 and it ran away from a collecting barn where the thieves had placed it with other stolen dogs waiting to go to research facilities. The first new adopted home it went had a big, big guy who, yes, grabbed at the collar and got bitten. The dog came to us. We are wee little ladies, and the poor thing is very clingy. However, let a man enter the room and it is all alert. And woe betide any man who 'grabs' for it. I, on the other hand, can do with it what I will. All a matter of trust. Are we to put down every dog with a sad background, or should we manipulate its environment to avoid problems? Humane societies regularly screen and match adopters and adoptees very carefully for this reason.
I agree. As much as I love GS dogs, and as good as they normally are with humans, especially kids, "Bear" sounds like an a "bad seed" within the breed. That or there was some abuse in his history that the family is not forthcoming about.
My other thought is that while Bear might be described as a GS Dog, I wonder if he's actually a mix. Either way, it's sad to say, but Bear needs to be destroyed.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.