If any of your girlfriends ever question carrying

[Vasilia Zhietzev]

Hello, High Road.

I just wrote Oleg about this, and I want you guys (& women) to know as well. You are a good group of people...
If anyone you know ever questions the reason to carry a handgun, show them the pics. My apologies if they are graphic, I hope I don't make anyone sick. On March 21, 2005, I was assaulted by a pit bull while visiting an acquaintance's home. She was in home hospice care for pancreatic cancer. I had been a visitor several times before, and the animal knew me. Quite literally without warning, the dog attacked me, going for my throat in a lunge. The only warning I had was the change in the dog's expression when I looked at her as I was getting up to leave.

The attached pics show where she did get me, but more importantly, don't show where she failed. (plastic surgery is sooo fun in the ER.)

I'd be dead if I were not trained to defend myself.

I'd be dead if I did'nt have a handgun.

Grateful I listened to Oleg Volk, John Ross & a few good men about CCW? You bet.

Thanks for listening. See ya.

 

[Third_Rail]

Here is the picture - you had in in PSD and not everyone has PhotoShop.



You're lucky, and I'm glad you were smart enough to realize the benefit of training, tools, etc., that can be used for defense before this happened.

Welcome to THR, I hope you'll post often.

 

[Nightfall]

I'm glad to see you were able to put your CCW to good use, and are still with us. Whenever I mention the issue, my girlfriend regularly questions why I would want to carry, let alone why I wish she would. Maybe this thread will help provide a little more visceral hint as to why I don't want either of us to be defenseless.

Best wishes on your recovery!

 

[rock jock]

Yikes! You obviously reacted well under pressure if you were able to put that thing down during the attack.

 

[Standing Wolf]

Well done!

I hope you'll never need your carry gun again—but will always have it just in case.

 

[torpid]

My God, I'm sorry to hear about the terrible situation you found yourself in- did the ill dog's owner understand?

(Glad you are alive!)

 

[P95Carry]

Proof positive (if any needed) for that saviour in the one in a million situation.

It is frightening in the extreme - how rapidly an attacking dog can unleash damage. It is indeed a near miracle you actually managed thru all that to do what had to be done.

The thought of you having had no means of defence is hard to imagine.

Thx for posting - the pics speak volumes.

 

[SpookyPistolero]

Looks like you had a good surgeon. I had a very similar experience myself. A family pet, a neopolitan mastiff (around 210#) chaged his demeanor instantly and unexpectedly and took off about half my upper lip before I could blink. Aftewards he went for my throat. My pop stitched up my throat pretty well, but I needed a good plastic surgeon afterward. Anyway, I'm glad you chose a good recourse of personal change.

 

[stevelyn]

That's one of the main reasons my policy dictates shooting all loose dogs that cross the boundries at Ft. Stevelyn.

Here's an interesting and somewhat spirited debate on the dog issue. http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=170384&page=1&pp=25

 

[chris in va]

Wow, that's amazing. Can you elaborate a little more what happened? Maryland banned pit bulls, now I know why.

 

[Rich K]

I am glad to know that you were not injured worse than you were,and also that your training was of value.Very good reaction under pressure,also.

 

[duck_god827]

Glad to hear you are alright, we had a similar attack several years back that left my wife's little sister with two large bite wounds on her right leg. Both have healed well, but no one who was there had a firearm of any kind. I can't rember how long the attack lasted, but has given me good cause to shoot all dogs that come on our land.

 

[Sindawe]

Glad to hear that you came out relativly unscathed from the dog attack. I've known several pits, all sweet, good natured animals (at least with me, the owners and their kids). But knowing what I do about dogs, and my own experince with them growing up, is why I favor cats.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

sargirl, did you actually shoot the dog? Also, why no pictures of it? It would be very interesting to see the results of your actions.

Did you kill the dog or was the dog tracked down by animal control? If so, was it tested for rabies?

 

[SMLE]

First, welcome to The High Road.
Second, thanks for sharing your story and the photos. They are a very good object lesson for the blissninnies out there.
Third, best wishes for your speedy and full recovery(mental/emotional as well as physical).

As an EMT, I can stop bleeding, I can bandage laceractions and puncture wounds, but I can't fix DEAD. We've had some pretty high profile dog attacks around Albuquerque this year and the Legislature even passed a viscious dog law as a result of the uproar. Every time I hear about another attack, I can't help wondering "Why weren't they ARMED?"

 

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

I'm sorry to hear about your injuries, sargirl. I know how distressing facial injuries can be to a women. But I'm gratified to know that you had the skills and tools with which to defend yourself.

My mother was attacked by a pitbull a few years ago. She was alone and unarmed. She may well have been killed had she not been able to escape into the backseat of some stranger's parked car. I sometimes wonder how things would have turned out if that stranger had remembered to lock his car doors. After the attack I suggested that she carry a handgun, but she wouldn't hear any of it. To this day she insists that there is no reason for her to carry a weapon. This sort of self-denial is disheartening.

Anyway, I guess my point is that I find it encouraging to know that there are some women out there who recognize the need to protect themselves. You can be extremely proud about prevailing against such a vicious attack. I wish you all the best!

 

[BamBam-31]

Wow, that must have been frightening. Glad you had the will to defend yourself. May that same will carry you to a full and speedy recovery.

 

[Vasilia Zhietzev]

er. um thank you...

Hi again, folks.

A sincere 'thanks' for the wishes for my well-being & recovery. I hope you don't mind a few replies listed in one post v.s. indiviual replies. (let me know if this fits the THR netiquette, ok?)

I wrote Oleg about some details of the attack at his request. It was an upsetting situation all around, so I hope the gentleman whom asked why I did'nt have a picture of a dead animal will be kind enough to understand that I don't usually carry a camera & I never returned to the scene of the assault again. The owner, whom I will excuse as being medicated, was only concerned about her pet, and had absolutely no regard for my life or my injuries.

I have always loved dogs, and will continue to do so. I know pit bulls can be loveable; in fact this one was very affectionate to me during prior visits. It did'nt make me feel good to do this; in my eyes I'm no heroine. I just...reacted. I doubt I wil own a pit bull, but then, I doubt I'll own anything bigger than a happy mutt.

Also, my thanks to the gentleman whom posted the debate link. A good read.

I hope this incident will be a positive influence; I am recovering well and I think of myself as fortunate these days.

I don't know if I will write more, but I certainly appreciate the inviation to do so.

See ya.

 

[Gus Dddysgrl]

Wow that would have been scary for me. My cousins dog tried to bite me once when I was little, even before I was exposed to guns (other than in the movies). I'm glad you survived ok.

Your friend is very ungrateful for only being concerned about her dog and not you. What if it had been her that the dog attacked? She's lucky you were there otherwise she may have been the one and it probably would have been worse for her since she's sick.

Glad you came out stronger. "If it don't kill ya, it makes ya stronger." (sorry I don't know where I heard that, but like the saying.) Hope you get better soon.

Gus

 

[pangris]

Very glad you made it out OK. We have a 200 lb mastiff that has just started to display some aggressive behavior. Took him to the puppy head doctor who informed us that it was a result of bad parenting - read, spoiling him and treating him like a human. He thought he was a leader and started explaining to us how things should be in HIS language - aggressive behavior.

I was a very firm believer that I wouldnever hit my dog, and that all training should be done with positive reinforcement. I was wrong. Two years of that led to a dog who was mediocre in his obedience and became anti-social despite being socialized regularly. A tight pinch collar and corrective pops on the nose worked WONDERS in two weeks.

We aren't abusive but we have learned that dogs understand action, not "NO" or some corrective sound. Now the dog listens without the promise of a treat and obeys on the first or second time a command is given.

I think in another month I cna have him to the point where every command is followed the first time. Resocialization is harder - you have to risk him snapping at people.

Having dogs, especially big dogs, is a tremendous responsibility, even a burden.

 

[spacemanspiff]

bu...bu...but! but that dog could have easily disarmed you and used your gun against you!!! how dare you fight back! how dare you defend yourself against a poor dog that is confused and doesnt know any better! how dare you take the life of such a beautiful creature that only wanted to express its deep love and emotion for you with its crushing jaws.





the above paragraph is a sampling of what would be said had this thread been posted over at the DU, and are not the actual sentiments held by this individual poster. glad you survived, glad you had the tools available to keep yourself from further harm.

 

[absolute0]

Seeing pictures like these make one hope that there is a distributor of justice in the great beyond...

 

[larryf1952]

My 25 year old daughter was given a pit bull pup out of the blue by a friend. Now, that pup is about a year and a half old, and she has always been a sweet natured dog. My daughter is madly in love with her, and thinks that she's the greatest thing since sliced bread.

My wife and I were visiting my daughter's home on Mother's Day, and the dog was being very well mannered and behaved. As we got up to leave, my daughter let the dog outside to do her business. As my wife and I were getting into our truck, the dog began to bark at a boy that was walking down the sidewalk. She did not attack the boy, but she wouldn't leave him alone. At one point, she tried to grab the boy's shoe with her mouth, although it was clear that she wasn't, as yet, trying to aggresively bite him or attack him. What bothers me about the whole incident is that she could've changed her mind in an instant, and there wasn't anything that any of us could've done about it. My daughter was able to grab her by the collar and get her back into the house, but if she'd wanted to break free, it wouldn't have been any problem.

I want my daughter to find a new home for the dog, preferably, out in the country somewhere (she lives in town, which also adds a legal element to the mix). But, she'll have none of it. My concern for my daughter's safety grows daily, and accounts such as the one that this young lady shared only adds to that concern.

I also used to have dogs, albeit not pit bulls. That's one reason why we now just have a big, loveable fluffy gray kitty cat.

 

[entropy]

Welcome to THR, sargirl. Glad you were able to defend yourself, and mitigate your injuries. A good friends' Black Lab, whom he'd raised from a pup, went for his throat with no provocation or indication. Only his quick reaction got him a bite on the forearm instead of a ripped out voicebox.

Gus Dddysgrl, that quote is most often attributed to Freiderich Nietzsche, (Was nicht micht ümbringt, macht micht starker), and was popularized by Conan the Barbarian, but goes much further back in history, at least to Saint Paul, who IIRC 'borrowed' it from one of the Greek philosiphers.

 

[Aikibiker]

I am glad your alive. And sorry you had to kill your friends dog.

I think the people asking for more details are wanting to know the make and model of your weapon, caliber, number of shots fired, ammunition type and that sort of thing. Also bullet type, shot placement, and how the shots were fired. Ie: were all shots fired from contact, were they aimed, using the sights, a combination of both?

I know it is morbid, but information like that may help someone who reads it in the future.