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Doggie Daycare Attack in Springfield
by gallatea (Subscribe)
Posted on: Jan 4, 2008 at 11:05 PM PDT
Channel: Local News
Jasper, my 1 and half year old Old English Sheepdog was attacked by 13 dogs including pitbulls on Dec. 28th in a daycare in Springfield, Oregon. I wanted everyone to know how he's doing and post some photos and the 1st video I made of him when this happened. Jasper received countless (at least 30-50) puncture wounds and 12 very large ripped bite wounds in a fight where alledgedly the dogs were playing and Jasper ran away yelping for some reason. This is the report from the owner of the daycare. Supposedly the dogs were being supervised. I don't know how it could've gotten this bad for him to have so many severe injuries, but his story is important to tell so that no one has to go through this again. There is an updated news story including an interview of LuckyDog daycare on www.myfoxeugene.com. There are other ways to break up a fight and other ways to watch for the warning signs of escalation of behaviors that can lead to a fight.
Jasper is in stable condition at home now. He did not eat or drink for 5 days. On the 6th day he ate from the surgical specialist we saw - right from her hand. It was a prayer answered for me and everyone that knows him. He came home that same day. He's eating like a hog, walking fine, going back to being his usual self. He's just very sore, tired and has many open wounds that will take months to heal. He needs hand feeding and hydro therapy twice daily and 4 medications. His vet bills are near the $5000 mark, but he's worth it. His eye was originally swollen shut - and is now open. His ears were almost torn off on the outer edge to the back of his head - those areas are very raw. He has hundreds of staples which in some areas are not holding well. Some of the tears to his flesh are 5 inches long - there are 12 that are tears. The bruising on his legs, head, neck, rump and back legs is severe. His inside ear is very swollen and draining. Also his salivary glands are very swollen and may need surgery if they get blocked or damage. Time will tell.
He has a good prognosis if he can fight infections well. So far so good. I believe he will be a romping Sheepdog again very soon. Everyone has been so supportive especially the folks at oes.org and Mandie from Luckydog as well as countless vets and vet techs and family members and even long lost friends who found this story and didn't even know it was for sure Jasper!
Wow. I feel bad for what happened here. Such a sad story. You're dog is very lucky to have survived. I wish Jasper the best for a speedy recovery.
Jasper, we are happy to see you look better and better everyday. Sheepie's Rule!!!!
Aww, thank you ! OES.org rules.
How Horrific!!!!!!My heart, PRAYERS, n tears go to u, Jasper! Personally, I'd b looking into a lawyer.I pray God heals Jasper, body, mind n soul!!!
Wow! It's hard to believe that dogs who get along can so rapidly turn into a pack and tear another dog apart like that. What a cuttie too! Hope he is much better these days! The Harvey Family and our many animals say "hey" and get well soon!
How horrible! I can't believe something like this could happen. I have was looking into a doggy day care during the day for my little Bailey because of work. I didn't want her to be lonely, but I think I'd rather keep the tv on! My prayers are with u
Is there an update on how ur dog is doing?
First off, I just want to wish Jasper the very best, and hope he is feeling better, but what really bothers me is that you only mention 1 type of dog, a pitbull. Not all pitbulls are violent like everyone thinks.
I have always know that pit bulls are unpredictable. I worked at a vet and found that even the most family orientated pit bull could change at any moment. The thing is they have been bread to do just that. Hope you baby gets better.
Hi, I just read the first few sentences about your puppy. PLEASE don't EVER trust ANYONE to care for your pet unless they have been at your home and know your pets habits. PLEASE have your pet babysat at his own home.
Prof. people can take your dog for a walk, play at home with him, etc. for 1 or 2 hrs every day. Plus he won't be exposed to all those dog illnesses. You and your pet are the ones who care most about your pet, not daycares or kennels. Take care!
I feel so bad for your dog Jasper. We have use pet services before and there where some that the dogs REFUSED to get out of the car and go into. So people pay attention to your animals. I hope jasper gets better and my prayers go out to him.
Ok, I'll mention other breeds that were there that day if it makes you happy. There was a west highland terrior, a german shepard and 4 pitbulls.
Generally at all good kennels and daycares, your dog needs proof of all vaccinations and a health exam from a vet, signed by a vet. So I was not worried about illnesses. I was going out of state for a week, so a dog walker would not have worked.
Your dog is so precious..sorry to hear of your incident..Sincerly hope he gets better..Accidents can happen with any animals but this seems like something that should have been prevented by watchful eyes..Praying he gets better for you..
wow this is awful breaks my heart i have 2 dashcunds and 1 chichua i cant immagine this happening to them and if it did i would just be horrified. good luck to you !! jasper my heart and thoughts and prayers are with you honey . you get well. hugs
how lucky jasperis to have survived this viscious attack. your dog is just beautiful and loving. my dog sugar a fisch terrier and I send our prayers and hope he can come out to play soon. we are both concerned and send get well wishes for you both.
sheryl, every dog can change at any moment, not just pits. actually, cats can do dhte same, just as humans, after all, we're all mammals. sorry about jasper. my heart goes out to him, and I send positive thoughts.
I hope the doggie daycare covered ALLl medical costs for the unfortunate Jasper. This was a doggie pal combination gone wrong. Extra measures (monitoring/separation/etc.) should have been taken!! Much TLC time needed for Jasper.
i hope your dog is doing better. good luck on a fully and speedy recovery.
Sheryl....first of all all pits are not bred (not bread) to be aggressive, and what happened to Jasper is absolutely disgusting. What a gorgeous baby he is, and no precious animal deserves what he went through. My prayers are with Jasper daily.
So sorry for what has happened to jasper.Thank god he is doing well.i love animals and am saddened to see such a horrific thing.best to you and jaser. frank caporale
I feel so bad for what happened to Jasper. I am a huge animal lover, and it breaks my heart to see anything like this. I am glad to hear he is ok. And I hope that he is doing much better. My wishes go out to Jasper and his family.
I just read about Jasper, and I just want to tell you what a beautiful baby he is. I am glad to hear that he is on the mend. As many others have stated, I am also an animal lover. It just broke my heart to see his injuries. My prayers to Jasper.
I can't believe this happened. We have 4 pups. I don't know what I would do if this happened to them. I hope Jasper gets better!!!!!!
I am so sorry that happened to such a happy Pup. I wish for his speedy recovery, pray for him, and his family. There is no excuse for what happened at that daycare, there was no supervision.
what happened was a tragedy i only pray he makes a healthy and speedy recovery.may god bless jasper, and your family as well.and i hope that justice of punishment will be granted. say hello to jasper, for me.your all in my prayers.
Jasper has recovered nicely. Jasper's Latest update: http://forum.oes.org/viewtopic.php?t=19079 Jasper's Picture Gallery: http://photos.oes.org/thumbnails.php?album=lastupby&uid=1673
Very sorry about your dog -- but please remember, pit bulls were only some of the dogs. As a past owner of an English Sheepdog, I know they are wonderful dogs. As a current owner of 3 pit bull type dogs, I know they are wonderful dogs.
I really hope Jasper is able to fully recover and be able to play with other dogs in the future. Dogs MUST BE SUPERVISED, just like kids need to be supervised. Thoughts for Jaspers recovery!!
I took my lab to a doggie day care in Springfield. When we picked him up he had many bite marks on his neck. We were concerned and were told that the pit bulls at that daycare were former fighters. Hope your dog is OK.
I am so glad that jasper has recovered. He is such a beautiful dog. I love my dogs so much but they are of a mean breed also (Akitas) so I keep them away from other dogs so that they won't fight and hurt any other dogs. God bless Jasper.
i just watched the video about your dog. i hope he pulls through. he is a beautiful dog. im so sorry you have to go through this. we will pray for you and your dog.
Jasper is lucky to have you as an owner. You have a heart of gold! Kisses and Hugs to Jasper!
I wonder if the daycare in Springfield was the same one that I went to Jan cagle - they do keep some "rescue" type dogs on the premises. I didn't know this until after the fact.
from readying the title to the end i was crying and im only 12 years old my dream is to help injured animals
I hope the dog day care had insurance that paid for your dogs vet bills. I find it hard to believe that the day care people would put a bunch of dogs together with Pit Bulls. Just plain dumb! Hope your dog recovers soon.
What a terrible story. I would be so upset. He looks precious. You are right, he is worth the trouble! God Bless.
My heart goes out to you and your family. Jasper is a beautiful dog. It is so sad that your family had to endure such a tragedy. Dogs are one of God;s many creations and they should be cared for in that manner. Hope jasper gets better.
best wishes to Jasper and hope he gets better, that is very irresponsible of the owner to leave just one person at the daycare specially with 3 pitbulls there, these dogs are unpredictable and can snap at any moment, I should know I use to own one.
I am really sorry to hear about your dog. I hope he gets better. The person in charge of caring for your dog I hope is responsible enough to take care of the charges you are occuring, even though that dont make it right. Please keep us updated.
no matter how docile a "dog" is, they are always to be treated as if from the wild as a pack animal. All dogs bite. Sorry about your dog. Guessing he is alive and well....
I am the owner of a dog daycare in Toronto, and do not allow Pitbulls and unsocialized dogs of large breed into the facility. The other thing that amazes me is how all of these dogs were grouped together when they shouldn't have. All the best to u.
Im sorry about your dog. I feel so bad. How is your dog doing now? I hope he is all back to his normal self. I love my dog very much too.
My prayers go out for Jasper and your family. What a horrific thing to happen. With all the love you have for this dog I know he will receive the best care. Best wishes for all of you.
I would move heaven and earth for my baby girl so I know how you feel. We will keep you in our prayers and ask God to heal your best friend. He knows your love for your dog, he is more than a pet he is family. I am in tears here...God bless you!
Jasper is doing wonderfully now ..all healed up and acts like he has no memory of it. I can imagine that any trauma and hospital visits like his would render most with a blurry memory. He was on pain meds that were stronger than morphine!
Maybe you should have first thought about school for your dog before you brought him to a "doggie daycare" Every statement you have made insofar shows you are a human being incapable of caring for anyone other than yourself. There's no excuse for you
Did your vet bills get paid in full ? I sure hope so...
please remove the insensetive remark from Megan Phlum - that was out of line to publish what she wrote - the dog owner went through a lot of pain and expense, and should not be disrespected in this manner, nor should you be so UNPROFESSIONAL
I don't get what she's saying. Most daycares require previous daycare experience. Jasper was well-trained and had gone to other daycares with no problem. He also did a trial visit at the one he was attacked at.
I also think that some people think it's cruel to have your dog boarded or put in a daycare at all. I was going on a vacation with to visit stepkids. I had to board him. If I had family here I would've gone that route. It seemed safe, but was not.
From this point on, he's still very well behaved and trained. But I won't be boarding him or using a daycare.
And yes, Jasper attended puppy training at Bush Animal Hospital well before going to daycare.
And even if ANY dog were to attend daycare & was NOT trained or taken to a "school" (whatever this means) before daycare, NO dog should be left alone with a group of 13 without at least 3 adults. I was told they'd always be supervised. Not true.
This is a heart breaking story, with a happy ending, which truly needed to be shared. Thank you. Did this daycare have monitoring camera's? Did the daycare pay for a portion/all of the vet bills? Your Jasper is a darlin' and your love 4 him true.
Yes, the daycare owner paid a portion after I hired an attorney. We didn't need to go to court or anything. He was defensive at first when it happened, but then admittedly sympathetic and responsible months later.
I did research other daycares before choosing this one and tried one other a while back. None others had cameras that I know of. I'm not sure how they'd feel about that as things can be misconstrued in a fuzzy webcam pic, but it also might help.
Generally speaking though - they can still hide things from the camera and alter the angle or footage so I'm not sure it would be the be-all end-all to the pet's safety.
Thank you, for responding. I passed your article on to friends who take their dogs to daycare for socializing. However, now I'm unsure this is a good idea. Dogs, being pack animals, are territorial. Poor, gentle Jasper was the new kid on the block
Well, it's a double edged sword. Dogs should be socialized, but the how and where is tricky. I think the key is LOTS of supervision and back up plans. LuckyDog daycare is awesome. And actually helped Jasper after they heard the news.
I am an expert - but after hearing from quite a few dog trainers and daycare owners after this ordeal - their advice - pick a place with back up plans for a nip (water hose) and check them out with references. Don't pick a brand new place.
And pick a place that is picky about their clients. Not a place that takes in rescues, or rejects from other daycares or guard dogs. But dogs that have proven themselves through experience. Their philosophy is to have the same dogs all the time.
I mean, if daycare is to work the most safely - the idea is to have your dog go in 2-3 times weekly. A familiar pack is better, but not a guaranty. It wasn't about territory - It was about a tiny trist in play and my dog ran yelping.
That, in turn, triggered the instinct of the pack to attack the perceived weak dog. There is usually 1 alpha dog that is the instigator, and the rest follow. It has nothing to do with their training. Or how they are with humans. It's natural.
That is precisely WHY HUMANS need to supervise at all times even when things are going great. Just think about kids on a play ground. There are always fights. Adults intervene. It's not that all kids are bad. It just happens.
I had never heard about this type of behavior before taking him to board at the daycare. Obviously I learned my lesson. Just know what you're getting into before you drop your dog off. It's not rare either.
But honest accidents do happen I believe. I don't think anyone meant to hurt Jasper. So I forgive. But not forget. Just do your research. Daycare is still very new. And not all dogs are compatible with it.
I concur. Very wise words. The incident occured in Dec, it is now May, would you be willing to share new pics of Jasper? I'm currious to see how the little dude looks, his beautiful coat. English Sheep dogs are so adorable. Tessie, is my huskie.
I couldn't bear to watch the video, until today. Poor thing. However, I must admitt though, when I viewed pics of Jasper before the incident, I lol'd. He is such a charmer! His expressive face and eyes...I can see who is master of your house =D
I just received the link to this and it was an extremely distrubing story. This may scare him for any future socialization efforts, but I hope not. Both my small dogs are in daycare and I hope to God nothing like this happens where I take them.
I know it's scary. But sounds like you've had success. Even with big dogs, it's scary. You'd think a 80 lb. dog would be OK. Anyway, I think daycare can work if it's ran properly. Jasper still loves other dogs despite all this. No memory of it.
Don't know what we would do if this happened to our little Hollie. She is, like your Jasper, our family. Hope he is healing and suffers no ill effects. Best wishes to you all.
http://www.kval.com/younews/19448984.html I posted new pics of Jasper here. For some reason the website would not allow me to upload a video that I have (no button for uploading). I may try again later.
Hi, I am the owner of a doggy daycare and I have had this happen to me while supervising. Believe it or not it happens right in front of you in a split second. My incident was with a foster dog that I had taken in as a "good deed" and a male puppy
that had not been neutered. The theory is that the foster dog had only been neutered within the previous 3 weeks and still had not adjusted. He attacked the pup while I was introducing him to the other daycare dogs. Once he started they all joined
in and started taking bites at him I was powerless to help him I could only try to get him to a safe place. His injuries were not as severe as your Jasper but I never want to experience it ever again. I just wanted say it can happen supervised.
My favorite pics are, on the couch...all the poses. The curled up on your coffee table. The soda bottle in mouth. I LOL'd! The profile w/trees and sportin' his jacket. =D
I checked out the new website. Thanks for posting new picks of Jasper and update. Gosh, He looks FANTASTIC! Just wanna give him a big bear hug.... Gotta <3 big dogs! =)
I hope the dog gets better. Thats hard to believe somthing like this could happen.I will pray so the dog gets better.I hope it never happen again.I wish Jasper the very very best and to your faimly.I am glad he survived.He is a cutie!
This is an UNBELIEVEABLE story. As for Megan Pflums comment, I would just "ignore the ignorant". Most likely her only pet was a snail. Jaspers looking great now, and so glad he survived this horific ordeal! You are a wonderful pet owner.*****
You and Jasper stay brave! I hope your beautiful dog pulls through this horrific experience! You are both in my thoughts and prayers!
I know that months have passed since "lil" Jasper was attacked, BUT still the same I hope & pray he continues to heal & dosen't have memories of his attack. Jasper, you are thought of,loved,cared for by many, even me. Take care. :)
I for one find it a little offensive that only a pitbull was mentioned. I own 2 of them and I also have 3 small children that treat them like family. I think that it is solely the daycamps fault that these dogs were allowed together.Hope all is well
If i was riding my bike instead of my husband I would have had my calf completely torn off. It sad what happened to your dog. Hopefully he is doing better now.
I made this video 6 months ago and at the time I was upset when I found out that the daycare was taking in rejects from other daycares. I was told that a pit was the main instigator, and 3 others participated, but also all the dogs were involved.
Anyway, I can't change any of what I said back then. I'm sorry that pits were involved with this. Most daycares won't take dogs that are bred for fighting. But I'm sure there are some nice ones out there. I've come to the conclusion that this
fight was based on pack mentality, rather than breed. But the bigger more powerful the breed, the more severe the damage will be. The bites were typical of the pitbull breed so I've learned from other pit owners that rescue and train them.
How is Jasper doing now? Hopefull allot better, it made me so sad to look at theses pictures. I take my dog to the dog park regularly and this kinda thing makes me think twice about what could happen at the dog park or at a doggie daycare.
Such a handsome dog! It is so sickening to see what happened to him. He's got such beautiful blue eyes! I can tell he's a very good dog. Here's a nice long rub on the belly and scritch behind the ears just for you Jasper!
I hope Jasper is doing well. He looks like a great friend. My prayers are with Jasper and a few treats to boot : ) Take care
oh my god that is so horrible ! im so glad he is ok !! thank god and i will pray for him !! god bless him
again i am very sorry it happened to Jasper, i think its the owners who should have something done to them as the dogs are only doing what they are taught. anyone who teaches their animal to kill should be crucified!.
lylmid says ...
On Tuesday, Jan 8 at 3:09 PM
So sorry about Jasper. I am thinking positive thoughts for him and you. I believe there is no excuse for what happened. The dogs should have been closely observed and an emergency procedure in place to immediately break-up a fight.