(sorry if i misspelled something, or my grammar is weird, this was a long blog and I am tired!!)
When I got back from church on Sunday I was in my room about to take a nap. Right when I was ready to fall asleep I heard my dad come running inside saying "Rascals dead Rascals dead!" I ran outside as fast as I could (without changing my skirt, or grabbing shoes) At first I thought he was ran over by a car, but then I saw the blood dripping from my dads hand and knew something else had happened. I heard dogs barking down the street and took off running. As I got closer I saw Rascals leash on the ground and then looked over and saw Rascal being torn apart by three other dogs.
Apparently my Dad was walking Rascal and he got too close to the fence and the other dogs grabbed Rascal by the neck and pulled him through the fence and bit my dads hand in the process.
Without really knowing what to do I started screaming and yelling and shaking the fence as hard as I could. The dogs were mean and vicious and I was scared out of my mind. This whole time I already thought Rascal was dead, he was rigid and bloody and I couldn't tell if he was still alive. Finally I did the only thing I could think of and I jumped over the fence. I found something on the ground and threw it at one of the dogs. The smaller dog and one of the big ones backed off, the biggest of the three stood over my dog and stared me down. I stared back and finally said "get back" and the dog backed off. Not until I picked up Rascal did I realize he was still alive. I screamed for my mom and she came around the corner and I handed Rascal to her. We got to my house, checked on my dad and got in the car to take Rascal to the Animal Hospital.
After driving 90 on the freeway and flipping at least 2 people off we made it there and ran Rascal inside. At first they didn't really know if he was going to make it, they said they couldn't tell until they took x-rays to see if the bites have punctured or bruised any major organs. Amazingly enough, nothing was seriously injured. The Vet was worried about a couple of things so Rascal stayed the night to get stitched up and to be monitored. The next morning me and my mom went and picked him up, the Vet said everything looked normal and that he was stable. The one thing she said was that he needed to Pee sometime before 4, if not we would have to bring him back.
Around 4 my parents took rascal back in because he hadn't gone to the bathroom yet. They checked everything out and told us that it still looked okay and to wait overnight to see if there was any change. Sadly, I had to go back to Cedar that night so I had to say goodbye and just hope he would get better.
So far things are looking so much better! He even pooped today (kinda gross, but thats a good sign) As for the mean horrible dogs... The one that bit my dad is Quarantined for ten days, after that he is let out and still has 2 more chances until he is put down. That is, if he hasn't done it before. The other two are basically let off the hook. When the police approached the owners about the situation they both said they weren't liable for what had happened and they aren't going to pay any for about the $2000 vet bill my parents now have. I'm pretty sure my parents are planning on suing, but we don't know how strong our case it yet.
I should mention that my dad is okay. He had eight stitches in his finger and they bandaged up his other arm that was scratched by the fence, everything else is fine. My dads best friend is Rascal, so if anything happens to him my dad will be devastated. Cute little side note... When my dad was in the hospital for over a month Rascal for the first couple days was so sad. He would sit by the window and wait and my mom said he wasn't eating really good the whole time.
Rascal is doing better and I just hope he gets better fast because if you have ever met him he is the happiest dog in the whole world. I decided if something happens to him I'm going to get his paw print tattooed on my somewhere (okay, maybe not, but how cute would that be?!)
A couple things I found out doing some research on the Utah Laws regarding animals:
If I get the dogs that did that to Rascal to chase me I can kill them.
Utah Code Title 18 Chapter 1 says: Every person owning or keeping a dog shall be liable in damages for injury committed by such dog, and it shall not be necessary in any action brought therefor to allege or prove that such dog was of a vicious or mischievous disposition or that the owner or keeper thereof knew that it was vicious or mischievous; but neither the state nor any county, city, or town in the state nor any peace officer employed by any of them shall be liable in damages for injury committed by a dog when: (1) The dog has been trained to assist in law enforcement, and (2) the injury occurs while the dog is reasonably and carefully being used in the apprehension, arrest, or location of a suspected offender or in maintaining or controlling the public order.
(sorry if i misspelled something, or my grammar is weird, this was a long blog and I am tired!!)
** you can see pictures of rascal on my facebook!
