First Blood Equals Fear

    In the very first months of patrolling as an Animal control Officer, I picked up quite a few dogs. One dog in particular managed to avoid being caught. It was a Blue Heeler and as it evaded me time and again, I took up the challenge to try harder. On a particular day in December of '95, I had already caught two of the three dogs at large on 4th street. The Heeler was being difficult again. Ahh!  But today I had a pkg of cookies I was taking to a friend, maybe the cookies would help. The dog stopped and squatted down and I spent about ten minutes feeding it bits of cookies. I knew it would do no good to swoop down on this dog and catch her like a rabbit, so I took my time and tried to be patient. Very slowly I slid my hand under her collar and BANG, she went berserk!!  The first bite got me in the meaty part of my hand below the thumb and it bled well. But it didn't stop with one! And I wouldn't let go. So she went up and down both my arms like a zipper and biting right through my winter jacket. My fingers of course were not exempt from the bites and finally I slammed the dog on the ground and she went to work on my winter boot. Well that didn't hurt anyway. As in most traumatic situations this seemed to have gone on for a great deal of time but actually was all over in minutes. With too many dogs already in the back of my truck, I put this one in the front on the passenger side. I may have just thrown her in, I really don't remember.

   Now it was off to the hospital.  I drove with my hand on my leg and the blood spot on my jeans grew but not too rapidly. A long way from my heart as horse people would say and I would live to "catch" another day.  Upon entering the hospital one nurse immediately said, "Oh and she got your leg too". "No " said I. "Only my arms and I'm not dropping my drawers."  The Dr. was phoned and my bites were cleaned up and set to soak in a long pan of warm water. Now the pain began and I think too I was going into a bit of shock. I would have to wait an hour and during that hour it seemed to help if I could pace. I just could not sit and take the pain. Moving helped.
    In due course the doctor did arrive and no stitches were given, as it is better to leave puncture wounds to drain. I was sent away with a great many band aids and a butterfly type one on the big bite. Oh and of course there was a prescription for antibiotics, and one for pain and a tetanus shot.
    Now that it was time to leave, a funny thing happened to me, fear crept into my mind. Well it didn't creep it jumped right in! I didn't want to get into my own truck with that damn dog.  Hmm, what to do?   Just who did I think would do it for me?  No one, I was on my own and had hired on to be tough so......best get on with being tough and doing a good job.  At least check it out through the window and see first. I mean it wasn't as if I had a wild animal in there like a bobcat or a cougar that was going to leap out and attack. Or did I?  And I still had three dogs to "process". Get on with it girl times awastin'.

     Out at the truck I looked in the window at the dog and she looked up at me and more or less hung her head.  Now, this was an attitude I could handle and I would just have to put my wild imagination and any fear I might harbour on hold.  I picked up my meds but was afraid to start them until I was home and didn't need to drive any more. In the meantime I had work to do.  Back at the office I found out that the town had hired me as a "contractor" and really didn't want anything more to do with the fact that I had been bitten and needed $25.00 for my meds. I now know the way to go would have been a civil suit but at the time didn't want a lot of fuss and so I didn't do very much at all. I do know I was still on meds at Christmas and couldn't even have an alcoholic drink, which ticked me off all over again.