This is the pretty face of 10-year-old Rhianna Kidd. Or at least it was until she was attacked by dangerous dogs while she cycled to her grandmothers. Over at everymum @ stv I’ve pondered what we should be doing.
If I'm going to get something, I usually get it in spades - luck (both kinds), children, clutter, dirty laundry, bright ideas, daft ideas...
This is the pretty face of 10-year-old Rhianna Kidd. Or at least it was until she was attacked by dangerous dogs while she cycled to her grandmothers. Over at everymum @ stv I’ve pondered what we should be doing.
Good article. I used to live in North London and would see these massive dogs (usually with short men) marching along the street, unmuzzled. The dogs were the size of pit ponies with jaws like a T-Rex. Terrifying and that was before I had children. I don't think it helped that many of these dogs were kept in small flats and are the type of dogs my mother would describe as 'gun dogs' – ie dogs that need about 5 miles of exercise per day and a ton of food.
Hi Jane, Thanks. You're right and that type of dog also needs to be trained by someone who understands them properly.
Hi, i am Rhianna Kidds mum and i agree with your article about they way owners treat their dogs. Powerful dogs need a lot more attention and training than smaller dogs. Yes smaller dogs can also inflict injury BUT larger dogs can cause far more damage in a much shorter period of time. Rhianna knew not to go near strange dogs, she would mention them but NEVER walk over to a dog she did not know extremely well, and only with an adults permission!
The dogs that attacked her did so unprovoked, they circled her bike, grabbed her from it then viciously attacked her. Her injuries were horrifying!
As for the statement from the “family man” who actually owned the dogs saying “You think you know how well behaved they are and then out of the blue this happens.” that is absolute rubbish, these same dogs had attacked a grown man just a few months before. Even he was not strong enough to fend them off! It was not “out of the blue”, he simply ignored the previous attack which could have prevented my daughter receiving the injuries she did!
Hi Lisa
Thanks for your comment. How is Rhianna doing?
I hope you don't think I was suggesting she in any way brought on her awful attack. I was just trying to make a point about the difficulties with the issue and that dreadful things can happen to anyone.
Best wishes
Ellen
Hi Ellen, (Rhiannas mum again) it's ok, i didn't think for a second you were sggesting that at all. I understand totally the point you were trying to make and it's a really good article!
Rhianna is getting better by the day, she had the stitches in her arm and leg taken out last week and they're healing well although will definitely leave scars. She still has stitches in her neck and ear though which hopefully should dissolve in the next week or so. Half of her face is still unable to move properly although her smile on that side is coming back a small bit at a time.
Physically she is improving a lot faster than anyone thought she would. Mentally we're not sure yet how she will react in the street if she sees a strange dog etc but will cross that bridge when we come to it.
(Sorry i posted under “anonymous, couldn't get the sign up to work)
Lisa x