photos of RB Bruno, graphic (post-attack)

[finn's mom]

Bruno, my RB dog, was attacked by our upstairs neighbor's pit bull when we were living in Alexandria, Virginia. I thought Freesia was a great dog, but, after the attack, a lot of my neighbors felt she should be euthanized. But, during the attack on Bruno, I had physically harmed Freesia (the pit bull) in order to get her to drop Bruno. She did, after much punching on my part, and, cringed at me as Bruno ran away. I felt that if she was truly a vicious dog, she'd have turned on me. It was unfortunate that she chose Bruno, who weighed only 19 pounds and was 10 years old at the time, to be her chew toy. It was 100% completely unprovoked, as Bruno was just sitting in the grass, and, was one of the worst experiences of my life. I did tell the owners, though, that Freesia had to be muzzled any time their door was opened. They quickly agreed, because they knew what the alternative was. We only lived in Virginia for a couple more months, although we didn't move because of the attack. Anyway, so, here are the photos. And, again, I'm posting these more for myself than anyone else. And, it's still amazing to me how quickly he healed! He was so strong, it was unbelievable how much heart he showed. My little baby boy.

There are drainage tubes under his skin. The neighbor kids were so concerned, they said "oh, my gosh. they could have at least taken the other dog's teeth out." It was so funny. He was attacked on August 27, and, these were taken on the 29th.





These were taken on September 5.





I love this one, he still loved me. Even through all that pain.



These were taken on September 7.

[finn's mom]

Here he is, the day the vet removed all of the excess, dead tissue/skin that was covering the wound. I think they called this reticulated skin or something. It looks really red, but, it wasn't bloody. It was new skin forming. He was acting almost 100% normal by this time. These two were taken on the 8th of September.





And, these were taken on the 13th.





I hope no one is totally grossed out, that wasn't why I posted the photos. If you looked at them, I hope you can see that I just wanted to show his strength. The vet told me he was trying to stand up on the operating table even before his stitches were completely done. His heart was that of a lion's.

[elizabethann]

Oh my God! Poor Bruno! That must have been awful for you! Thank God you were able to get the other dog to drop him! I'm glad Bruno was able to get out of that situation alive. Personally, I don't think I would have been so understanding of the situation as you were. I would have taken a gun to that other dog (don't care if it was a Pit Bull or a Poodle). That said, I hope Bruno is doing okay. How is he with other dogs now? Does he get scared when he sees a dog (like a big dog)?

Poor little Bruno. Give him a big kiss for me.

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by elizabethann
Oh my God! Poor Bruno! That must have been awful for you! Thank God you were able to get the other dog to drop him! I'm glad Bruno was able to get out of that situation alive. Personally, I don't think I would have been so understanding of the situation as you were. I would have taken a gun to that other dog (don't care if it was a Pit Bull or a Poodle). That said, I hope Bruno is doing okay. How is he with other dogs now? Does he get scared when he sees a dog (like a big dog)?

Poor little Bruno. Give him a big kiss for me.

Yeah, trust me, I was not very nice to Freesia. She peed herself every time she saw me after that. But, sorry, Bruno has been gone for two years now. Those photos were from August and September of 1998. He didn't ever really play with other dogs, but, it didn't change his personality at all. It was funny, though, after the attack, he would growl at the door any time Freesia would come downstairs. And, I don't know that I wouldn't have shot Freesia if I'd had a gun with me. But, after-the-fact, I didn't have any hard feelings.

[RobiLee]

Oh, it just breaks my heart. Poor little Bruno. What a tough little guy he was. Thank you for sharing your little RB baby with us. He sounds like he was a wonderful pup.

I have to say that you must have a very good heart. I'm not so sure what my reaction would have been towards Freesia after this attack. I certainly hope that there weren't any more problems with her after this.

[LKPike]

ewww poor baby! what a handsome little guy, I hope hes resting peacfully now

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by RobiLee
Oh, it just breaks my heart. Poor little Bruno. What a tough little guy he was. Thank you for sharing your little RB baby with us. He sounds like he was a wonderful pup.

I have to say that you must have a very good heart. I'm not so sure what my reaction would have been towards Freesia after this attack. I certainly hope that there weren't any more problems with her after this.

He was an awesome little boy. And, I don't know if anything ever happened with Freesia. It was so crazy, they had another little dog, and, nothing ever happened with her. Freesia had never done anything like that prior to hurting Bruno. They were always walking her around and Bruno and I passed them often. I never stopped to let Freesia meet Bruno, just because Bruno was more of a people dog than a dog dog. He was never agressive, he just ignored other dogs. But Freesia had never lunged at any other dogs or anything. She was almost two and had never even growled at another dog. And, the morning this happened, I was outside with Bruno. He was off his leash, which was okay with our apartment community, as long as the owner had control of the dog (which I did). He was just sitting in the grass, taking in the breeze and pretty sun. It was so crazy, it happened so fast. He was just relaxing, and, the next thing you know, Freesia came from around the corner of the building and snatched him up in her mouth. She had him off the ground and was shaking him. It was so weird, he had his back to her, he never even saw her coming. Freesia was leashed, but, the girl had dropped the end of it so that she could run a little. Needless to say, everyone steered clear of all of them after that. And, they, as far as I knew, kept their promise of keeping her muzzled. They wouldn't even open their door without muzzling her, just in case she bolted. I agree with having vicious dogs euthanized. But, dogs bite other dogs, that's the nature of the animal. I don't regret not having her put down. But, I guarantee that if she did anything else while living in that community, she'd be euthanized.

[elizabethann]

Did the people who own the dog offer to pay for the medical expenses? Just curious. You don't have to reply if you don't want to.

[RobiLee]

{{Hugs}} for you. Such an awful memory to have. I think it just goes to show that they are animals and we never know what they might do. My aunt had a little dog that was attacked by a neighborhood dog. I don't know what kind. My aunt's little shih tzu did not survive. If I remember right the bigger dog broke her back.

Let go hug our doggies now! Give Finn a hug from me too!

[Pit Chick]

Poor little man. That's a terrible situation to be in. Unfortunately animal aggression is a trait in Pit Bulls, but that doesn't make them vicious, especially not towards people. When something like this happens it's hard not to take it personally and have hard feelings towards the dog, but it wasn't Freesia's fault. And you are a great person for not having hard feelings towards Freesia or demanding that she be euthanized. They are to blame for not supervising their dog; it's owners like that who give responsible Pit Bull owners and their dogs a bad rep.

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by elizabethann
Did the people who own the dog offer to pay for the medical expenses? Just curious. You don't have to reply if you don't want to.

It's fine, actually, I was going to edit with that information. Yeah, they immediately said they'd pay for everything. The girl even said she'd understand if I pressed charges and had her put down. She was in tears when she said it, but, said she honestly thought she would if the tables were turned. I felt bad for her, she was so disappointed in her dog. But, yeah, it was a lot of money, but, they paid all of it. He had the surgery, of course, IVs, pain medication, antibiotics, and, had to have blood work done before they would even put him under, because of his age.

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by Pit Chick
Poor little man. That's a terrible situation to be in. Unfortunately animal aggression is a trait in Pit Bulls, but that doesn't make them vicious, especially not towards people. When something like this happens it's hard not to take it personally and have hard feelings towards the dog, but it wasn't Freesia's fault. And you are a great person for not having hard feelings towards Freesia or demanding that she be euthanized. Where were her owners at the time? They are to blame for not supervising their dog; it's owners like that who give responsible Pit Bull owners and their dogs a bad rep.

Her owners were great with her, that's what was so weird. The whole thing was just so odd. I don't know what happened. It was a married couple or boyfriend and girlfriend, I can't remember. But, yeah, if she'd attacked me, I'd have deemed her vicious and would have certainly pressed charges. But, the girl was walking her, and, had dropped her leash to let her run. She was behind the building, where it was really open and I guess she'd been doing that since Freesia was a puppy. But, Freesia went around the building, and grabbed Bruno. The girl came running around the corner shortly afterwards. I was already beating her dog, though, and, screaming like a devil. Another guy had come up with his two labs, and, told my husband later, "I hope I don't ever get on her bad side", meaning me. There were people two buildings over that heard me swearing like a sailor and yelling. Freesia had a bloody face and my hand was swollen for a couple of days. I just wanted her to drop Bruno, I really thought she was going to kill him.

[cloverfdx]

Poor little Bruno , that must have been so horrible for you both {{Hugs}}.

RIP Bruno, little handsome man.

[finn's mom]

Originally posted by cloverfdx
Poor little Bruno , that must have been so horrible for you both {{Hugs}}.

RIP Bruno, little handsome man.

It was, and, I had to go straight to work after taking him to the vet. I still had blood on my shirt.

[Pit Chick]

Originally posted by finn's mom
But, dogs bite other dogs, that's the nature of the animal. I don't regret not having her put down.

That's the smartest, most sensible comment anyone in your situation could make. It's true, they are animals doing what animals do.