EditorB次元官网网址檚 Note: This file contains graphic images. Discretion is advised.
A Calgary family with North Okanagan ties is sharing a horrifying dog-biting incident in hopes it doesnB次元官网网址檛 happen to another family.
Kristen Lightfoot, whose husband Shane grew up in Vernon and whose in-laws live in Vernon, took her son, Gavin, three, to a birthday party in Calgary Feb. 23.
At the end of the party, as Lightfoot and Gavin were getting ready to leave the house, a mixed breed dog that had been tethered and harnessed throughout the party bit Gavin in the face. The cut required 15 stitches.
B次元官网网址淚 kept my child away from the dog for the party. The attack happened when we were leaving and happened in a split second,B次元官网网址� said Lightfoot, who shared her ordeal on her Facebook page. B次元官网网址淚 know I couldnB次元官网网址檛 have stopped this but I should have left earlier or told them (dog owners) to put the dog in a room.
B次元官网网址淚 regret this and it will haunt me forever.B次元官网网址�
Gavin had been to the house exactly a year before for another birthday party, but there was no dog at the house at that time.
LightfootB次元官网网址檚 spidey sense about the dog was tingling. She saw the dog harnessed and tethered during the party, and also saw that a friend with her young children didnB次元官网网址檛 seem concerned by the animal. Still, Lightfoot thought, there were signs.
B次元官网网址淚 could see this was a new pet. I asked about it and knew it was a rescue,B次元官网网址� said Lightfoot. B次元官网网址淭he dog was tired and agitated by the noise the children were making.B次元官网网址�
The kids, she said, were told not to blow party horns because it B次元官网网址渂ugged the dog.B次元官网网址�
She said the dog owners have not reached out to her.
B次元官网网址淚 could not have predicted how traumatic this would be for my family and, as a dog lover, the pain of what is going to happen to their family. I canB次元官网网址檛 express all the different emotions and stresses this situation brings up, especially when you know the family who owned the dog.B次元官网网址�
Lightfoot cautions fellow dog owners B次元官网网址� her family has a miniature Schnauzer named Monster B次元官网网址� to get themselves informed on their dogB次元官网网址檚 temperament, anxiety and limits before putting them in a situation where they could hurt others.
B次元官网网址淓veryone who owns a dog, especially a large dog, rescue, or notoriously dangerous breed, needs to be informed and prepared to handle these dogs and know which situations the dog can handle,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淒ogs get stressed, especially around young children in a confined space like a birthday party.B次元官网网址�
Gavin, she said, is doing fine and is recovering nicely from the trauma. He is not afraid to be around Monster.
Lightfoot said animal services in Calgary seized the dog the next day and has been informed it will be put down after 10 days following a check for rabies and whether or not Gavin needs to be treated if rabies is found.
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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