Facial nerve damage after Staffie attack

[Christmas Crumpet]

My lurcher got attacked by a Staffie on Tuesday when we were out riding. It was on a lead but pulled its owner over and attacked my dog who is a little whippet x patterdale.

It took 3 of us about 5 mins to get the dog off mine and she was left with an egg size hole in the side of her face.

Went straight to the vets who patched her up. She now has facial paralysis on the left side of her face which means she can't open or close her eye or blink, move her ear and her lips are all droopy.

We've just been back for a check up and vet is concerned that there is no improvement and says there is no way of knowing whether nerve is totally severed or whether it will improve.

I am worried because I can't take her for a walk off a lead anywhere in case she scratches the eye or gets something in it because she can't protect it due to not being able to close it.

Just wondered whether anyone has experienced this in their dog and whether it ever mended?
I am feeling so miserable about it all and just want my dog to feel better.

I never ever wish to see or be involved in something as horrific again. It was awful.

 

[CorvusCorax]

Can she eat OK? I know this will sound horrible but is removing the eye an option if no improvement - it won't be the end of the world and she will at least be able to get out and about without risk of infection.

Poor wee thing!

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

Yes she can eat ok although not brilliantly on the left side.

I think removing the eye would be a last resort because we are hoping that there will be some improvement. Its just totally rubbish and unfair because she didn't do a thing wrong, just tried to walk past the dog which pulled its owner over and savaged her.

I am going round with the vets bills this evening. Wonder how successful that will be...!! The woman did admit total responsibility and is hugely apologetic but the dog belongs to her boyfriend not her and I'm not sure he is quite as nice as she is.

 

[CorvusCorax]

Well good luck, if they've any decency they will foot the bill and she did admit responsibility. Have you taken pics etc of the injuries also, that might be worth doing.

 

[planete]

It might also be worth having a word with the dog warden. This dog should be muzzled in public. I feel so sorry for you and your dog. What a horrible thing to experience. Best wishes for a good outcome.

 

[samlg]

How awful, sorry to hear about this. Will there be any repercussions for those people or the dog? I know its was an accident but that shouldn't be allowed to happen or them to get away with, that dog shouldn't be allowed out in public. It's just horrible that these attacks are still happening.

I know you said it your last resort and hopefully the nerve will improve but we had a lab who had her eye removed (German shepherd puppy got excited and punctured it) and they cope extremely well and like cavecanem said at least she wont be at risk of infection. Really hope she gets better soon.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

Please involve the dog warden: that dog could doit again if not muzzled in public.

Given this only happened on Tuesday, I think you need to be patient. I was told that nerves regrow at a mm every two days, no idea about that but I understand it depends on the individual. From personal experience, I've got most feeling back bar one big patch and that was nearly 7 months ok.

Be patient and as long as your little one can eat and there's no infection, stay optimistic for a good recovery, poor little lamb. You and she must have been terrified.

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

I have to say it was the worst thing I have ever witnessed between 2 dogs. We have a lot of working terriers and they have scraps but nothing like this. The staffie was intent on killing her, there is absolutely no doubt about it. I think we were all very lucky that it didn't go for us. The owner told OH that the dog is very sore. So it should be!!

Dog is no better although hole healing well. I have found a place that makes dog eye patches (don't laugh!!) which will protect the eye so I can continue to take her for walks.

I have been in two minds about ringing the dog warden because the people have apologised and promised the dog will wear a muzzle from now on. The lady was genuinely devastated about it.

We were supposed to be getting a whippet puppy on Sunday but I have had to ring the people and say we can't have him. I just can't take the risk not knowing how she is going to be with other dogs now. Its such a shame because she normally comes riding with me every day but even if her eye does mend, if another dog comes running out onto the road barking at her who knows what she will do. She must be so traumatised and I'm sure she will never ever forget what happened. Its just rubbish.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

I wonder if it would be better to have the eye temporarily sewn shut? My big dog had this when he pierced the eye on a thorn or something. It protects the eye well, keeps it moist-maybe see what the vet thinks of that as an idea?

What a shame about the puppy You have to do what's best for the existing dog, tho. Gentle hugs to your girl.

 

[Clodagh]

I'm so sorry to hear about that. Your poor girl, and I will get shot down in flames for saying this but it is always a bloody staffie that causes this sort of damage.

 

[Dobiegirl]

Im really sorry to hear about your dog and hope she heals and dosnt lose her eye, I am not criticising you but it is one of the reasons I would never ride out with a dog in tow.

Clodagh I agree with you to a certain extent but only because Staffies are a really popular breed of dog and there are so many around. Unfortunately Staffies because of their build are able to inflict so much more damage and are a breed which needs lots of training as regards dog socialisation. I looked in my local paper tonight and there were 68 adverts for Staffies for sale, a lot of them will be puppies with the majority not bred for temperment or rather will be but not the ones we would all like to see.

 

[Tiffany]

What an awful thing to happen. I hope your dog makes a full recovery, you must be feeling so upset.

 

[Luci07]

I'm so sorry to hear about that. Your poor girl, and I will get shot down in flames for saying this but it is always a bloody staffie that causes this sort of damage.

Yes you will. Statistically, black labs cause more damage and there are more registered attacks from these dogs. My own Stafford puppy had his eye permanantly damaged as a 4 month old puppy by a black lab attack. Another friends dogue de Bordeaux was savaged to to death by a black lab, the only dog to bite anyone in my family was a black lab.

This attack is horrendous and heartbreaking. OP wisely acknowledges this will impact her dog in how it reacts to others .. My middle boy detests large black dogs. However by focusing and blaming a breed you excuse the owner and let them off the hook. That particular dog SHOULD have been muzzled. That behaviour would not have been an out of the blue incident but you can't simply put the horrible incident down to that dog being a Stafford. It is the owners fault. End of. I KNOW I can't fully trust my oldest Stafford bitch so she is muzzled or on a lead. This is even more annoying as she allows other dogs into my house and gets on with dogs at the yard but she legged it once and doesn't get another chance.

I really hope your poor dog recovers OP and you must be heartbroken. I would maybe suggest trying to get her to interact with another really easy submissive dog as soon as practical though. A friends very cheeky and lovable JRT was badly savaged by a GSD recently. He has gone from being in your face to terrified of other dogs even his doggy friends and literally wet himself when he saw my 3 again. Heartbreaking as they used to all be grand friends but I walked them away as he was shaking.

 

[wren123]

Hope your dog recovers fully. my last lab was attacked randomly by two greyhounds, it was a nightmare, badly injured but not killed, thank god. But the amazing thing was she was just as confident with other dogs as she was before! So there is hope she will recover mentally.

But it is so frightening, like you we were fighting to get the dogs off mine, so sending you best wishes, as I know how much it shakes you up.

 

[Copperpot]

I also think its more media sensationalised when a staffie does something wrong.

When any other breed does something it may get reported, when it's a staffie the devil dog / dangerous dog headlines get thrown about and it's made a big deal of.

Not saying this in your case OP as it is a big deal and I hope your dog recovers as well as can be.

If people actually got to know a well behaved "bloody" staffie they may appreciate what loving and wonderful dogs they are and not just believe the image the media has unfortunately given them.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

Not sure the breed is relevant. A yellow lab used to attack one of mine every time they met. A bearded collie attacked Zak (last pic in sig) and he went from being a happy friendly dog to extremely dog aggressive with every dog. I wish I'd re-socialised him, I think I was over protective after the attack.

 

[Clodagh]

Every time - 100% of the times - my dogs have been attacked it has been a staffie or staff x. I know it is because they are more common than other breeds, and often owned by idiots, but their jaws are designed to cause maximum damage and to be as strong as possible.
THe attack on OPs dog would have been just as awful if it was any other breed, but it was a staff. The labs I know tend to all be gundogs and therefore well socialised and obediant so I don't know a representative sample, the staff comment was just MO.

 

[Goldenstar]

Yes you will. Statistically, black labs cause more damage and there are more registered attacks from these dogs. My own Stafford puppy had his eye permanantly damaged as a 4 month old puppy by a black lab attack. Another friends dogue de Bordeaux was savaged to to death by a black lab, the only dog to bite anyone in my family was a black lab.

This attack is horrendous and heartbreaking. OP wisely acknowledges this will impact her dog in how it reacts to others .. My middle boy detests large black dogs. However by focusing and blaming a breed you excuse the owner and let them off the hook. That particular dog SHOULD have been muzzled. That behaviour would not have been an out of the blue incident but you can't simply put the horrible incident down to that dog being a Stafford. It is the owners fault. End of. I KNOW I can't fully trust my oldest Stafford bitch so she is muzzled or on a lead. This is even more annoying as she allows other dogs into my house and gets on with dogs at the yard but she legged it once and doesn't get another chance.

I really hope your poor dog recovers OP and you must be heartbroken. I would maybe suggest trying to get her to interact with another really easy submissive dog as soon as practical though. A friends very cheeky and lovable JRT was badly savaged by a GSD recently. He has gone from being in your face to terrified of other dogs even his doggy friends and literally wet himself when he saw my 3 again. Heartbreaking as they used to all be grand friends but I walked them away as he was shaking.

The statistic about labs means nothing unless you know its been adjusted to allow for the numbers of the different types of dogs in the general population.

 

[Copperpot]

Statistics would say there are more registered litters of labs a year but I imagine the amount of staffie or staffie x litters a year unregistered would make them bred far more. Can bet a years wages 99% of the ones for sale on sites like preloved aren't registered.

 

[Luci07]

The statistic about labs means nothing unless you know its been adjusted to allow for the numbers of the different types of dogs in the general population.

It was and it is also my own personnel experience. Do I hate black labs? Not at all, my uncle always had labs when we were growing up and one of my dogs best friends is a lovely black Lab bitch. I am not trying to point a finger at a breed, I was trying to use this as an example. I know so many people who buy a lab and assume it is going to be perfect when in fact they are normally bright and strong minded dogs who NEED training.

 

[Luci07]

Well said copper pot. It is also a sad fact that many dogs are said to be staffords when they are clearly not. If you walked around Crufts I don't think you would recognise the breed. They are meant to be small family dogs, no bigger than 16" at the shoulder for a dog and 14" for a bitch. They are MEANT to bred to have the best character and are highly active intelligent dogs. All in all a recipe for disaster when ending up with idiots who want them to make themselves look big. Next time you see some chav hauling an unhappy Staffie type just remember they abuse that dog as just could not get away with treating another breed like that as said breed would not put up with it. I make a point of always going up to see the dogs with my best Surrey voice and every time the Stafford x goes all wriggly and smiley because it is being given attention. I think there are very few dogs which need minimum input or exercise, maybe a cavalier? But every breed has its own characteristics bred into it which need to be taken into account. I have a massive soft spot for working cockers but they are not for the faint hearted. Also keen on lurchers of any type but again, working dogs that need managing. A proper Stafford needs a LOT of exercise to keep it calm and 20 minutes on a lead does not cut it. They need to socialised and trained but it is interesting to see that this breed or cross breed is turning up more and more in agility. Shows what they need.

So again, please don't excuse an ignorant or lazy owner. Never look at a dog and judge it purely on breed, there are too many variances and it's too easy to say it is down to the dog and not the owner. My sisters purebred Stafford boy was properly socialised, did all the training and was the easiest dog to have around, ever.

 

[mynutmeg]

REally hope your dog recovers - nerves grow very slowly so it will take months for you to see much improvment. As for her reacting to other dogs, slowly introduce her to dogs you know to be friendly in a contolled manner once she's healed a bit more and she'll be ok. One training class I went to for a while had a german shepard that constantly went for my collie dog. They never made contact but it scared my collie to the point she was scared of all gsd's. I made a point of every gsd we meet I asked the owner if it was friendly and if it was we introduced them on the lead so that Meg learnt that most of them are friendly and she's absolutly fine with them now.

 

[CorvusCorax]

Sorry to derail OP but if Staffies are such super-hard dogs, why aren't they utilised more heavily by the police and armed services, why aren't they used as protection or security dogs or in some of the European dog sports?

I know it's all relative and location based but where I exercise dogs, the Staffies and their owners are some of the politer people and dogs we meet and the owners are often older people, not chavs.

Anyway, I hope she's improving x

 

[CorvusCorax]

I agree.
in typical Daily Mail headline grabbing style the newspapers like to use a stock image of a dog showing its teeth - you'll know the image that I'm talking about!

Apparently that picture was taken at a show (the background would indicate that is correct) and the dog was yawning....

 

[Clodagh]

I have never met a staffie that was bad with people, they are a breed I have always found to be wonderful with children in particular, they are lovely little people dogs. I just find they tend to be dog aggressive, and being confident types they don't mind saying so.

 

[chestnut cob]

I have never met a staffie that was bad with people, they are a breed I have always found to be wonderful with children in particular, they are lovely little people dogs. I just find they tend to be dog aggressive, and being confident types they don't mind saying so.

My cousin has a Staffie who is really lovely, such a softie and brilliant with his young children. A friend has one who is nice too, yet another friend has a horrid one. The latter I think has been badly socialised and the lack of leadership and training shows up in its behaviour. It is a nightmare towards people, just insanely hyperactive all of the time and doesn't respond to commands. It is vicious towards other animals, has to be muzzled to walk and kills anything that gets into its back garden (has killed a couple of cats and I think it got into her neighbour's garden and killed their dog) - I am amazed no one has ever called the Police and had the dog put down.

But... just goes to show, three different owners and three very different dogs. Unfortunately around here, all you see are chavs walking Staffies who are badly behaved and have murderous looks on their faces, going for anything that walks past.

 

[Dobiegirl]

Apparently that picture was taken at a show (the background would indicate that is correct) and the dog was yawning....

The dog was sneezing, but hey ho its the Daily Mail who are rubbish at researching and why let a good photo go to waste lol.

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

The wound is healing really well and the swelling has gone right down. The paralysis is obviously still there but she is shaking her head less. She seems far happier than she did last week and a lot more perky.

It turns out that it might actually have been a pitbull. OH isn't sure. It was a brindle bitch and I think I assumed it was a staffie, probably because you see them more often. It was still quite dark when the attack happened and I was more interested in getting the dog off as opposed to figuring out what breed it was!!

I didn't want to start a Staffie hating debate at all - I too know some gorgeous staffies that wouldn't even consider attacking another dog. Not sure about pitbulls!!! Don't think I know any that people have as pets.

 

[Clodagh]

That is good news.
A pit bull is no more or less aggressive than a staff I don't think, but bigger and stronger. sorry for going so off topic on your thread anyway.
I burnt my hand badly years ago and it took about 18 months for the nerves to regrow, so the paralysis might take a while to clear. At least it sounds as though she feels better though.

 

[CorvusCorax]

Good news although you need to be really sure if you're saying it's an illegal pit bull type - that's a whole other can of worms.