We adopted a new doggie last Wednesday. I wasn’t really sure I was ready, and concerned how it would effect Storm, but husband was missing Angelus a lot and didn’t even have the company of Storm as he is strictly a Momma’s dog and could care less about anyone else.
The doggie we adopted is a very sweet Malamute/Siberian Husky (seemingly) mix. But I know he has something else in him. It’s either German Shepherd or wolf/wolf hybrid. But he was rescued out of the shelter as a puppy originally so it’s all a guess. I ordered a doggie DNA test but they don’t test for wolf or coyote. We’ll see.
On his first night here, he and Storm got into a tussle over what seemed to be cookie crumbs. Storm sniffed them and Shadow (his new name) growled, Storm growled and BAM they were going at it. Husband and I each grabbed a dog and I pulled Shadow’s mouth off Storm’s face. But he didn’t bite down as Storm had no injury, just some spit bu he was just very upset. Stormy wears his heart on his sleeve and has always gotten his feelings hurt when other dogs attack him. But he’s always had Angelus around to back him up and take care of things quickly.
I was very upset. I do not want Storm’s life upset. We have a set routine and it works very well for him. The loss of Angelus was very tough on him and that followed a long medical issue. But he’s doing so well now and I was unsure if a new dog would upset him or make him happy since he has had Angelus around him all of his life. So we took Storm with us to meet the potential adoptees. He got along (meaning he basically ignored or sniffed a little) pretty much all of them. A couple of the younger guys were going to be too much but Shadow (originally Rontu) seemed pretty relaxed with Storm and loving to people. But he seems to have a food aggression issue with other dogs (not us though.)
But since that first night, which was pretty much our fault since we treated him like Angelus and not like a new dog who doesn’t know us or his new house, he and Storm have kinda hung out together, gone on short walks together and gotten along. I’ve not allowed them to hang out alone together though. And he gets along great with every other dog he meets even if they (usually older ones who want no part in playing) growl at him to go away.
Yesterday afternoon we took them both out for a short walk and I brought Storm in first. He went into the laundry room, where a water bowl is, to get some water. I followed behind him to grab a light bulb. Apparently husband let Shadow in off-leash (we’ve been keeping him on leash inside as per introducing a new dog to the house) and I’m not sure what happened as it all happened so fast but as I turned around, Shadow was attacking Storm so I pushed Storm back behind me (pushing over the elevated water bowls as well) and Shadow got my right hand. Not sure anything has hurt so much ever. I kept Storm behind me and pushed Shadow back and he got my left wrist and hand as well. By then husband had run in and grabbed Shadow and got him locked into the bedroom.
By now, I sunk down to the floor and tears just started flowing from the upset and pain. And an awesome pool of blood was forming on the floor and all over me. Husband came in to ask what happened and saw the blood and ran to get towels. I was trying to stay calm but I was upset. I took a wet towel from him but told him to check Storm who turned out to be totally fine. I got him out of the way in time. Husband got him out of the laundry room, walking right through my blood and leaving little bloody paw prints CSI style, and to the deck so he could check him again and keep him out there. Storm actually seemed totally normal so I am glad I did act quickly.
By now I was getting cold and shivering which is apparently due to shock. Yes – I was pretty shocked. I have never had a family pet hurt me before. I’ve been bit my dogs at the dog park or beach a couple times as I pulled them off my dog but they have never drawn blood. And I’d rather take the bite then allow Storm to get bit (Angelus would never get bit as he would kick the ass of any dog who started anything.)
After holding a cold towel on it for awhile to stop the bleeding husband cleaned the punctures as well as I’d let him (fracking hurt.) He kept trying to get me to go to the ER but all they would do is clean it, bandage it and charge me hundreds of dollars after insurance after sitting in the waiting room in pain and bleeding for 2 hours. I would have probably gotten some good pain meds but whatever. I hate doctors and especially ERs. Meh.
Put some anti-bacterial spray on the wounds and bandaged them. Because it’s my hands, and one of them is on the inside, we put a bunch of cotton in the palm of my right hand and taped it. This kept it more straight as the fold of my hand kept opening the wound and causing more bleeding. Storm came in and hung out by my feet which is unusual for him. He really is a sweet little guy.
I was definitely in shock as I felt nauseous and was like ice. So I sat on the couch the rest of the night under a blanket with my bandaged hands elevated on pillows. I’m sure it looked amusing. The bleeding eventually stopped but not the pain. I could not use my hands at all without hurting a LOT. I had some Vicodin leftover from my pinched nerve last year so put 2 on my nightstand in case the pain was that bad during the night (didn’t take though.) Went to bed and slept about 4 hours. The rest of the night I was awake and in pain.
Finally got out of bed at 5:30am to take Storm out really quick. I was pretty woozy and in pain so took 4 Advil. Figured that’d help with any swelling too. Fed Storm, very slowly, and have been on the couch ever since. I can’t really use my hands although my 2 forefingers work without pain so I can type slowly. And made some trades :)
I’m not sure what we are going to do now. I know Shadow was not attacking me and I essentially put my hands near/in his mouth. But that’s still not acceptable. He can’t be ready to attack Storm at any second. We will research food aggression and see what we can do. But I can honestly say I will never, ever leave Storm along with Shadow ever. Not ever. And that sucks.
We think it might be because the food container is in the laundry room so maybe Shadow felt he was protecting his food. But that’s not acceptable. At all. Storm was simply drinking water out of the bowls he has always used for water. And since it happened so fast, and my back was to them as I was reaching into a cabinet, I don;t know who growled at who first. But I don’t care. Giving a little growl is saying hey back off. That’s dog speak. Does not justify a full blown attack.
Obviously with rescues you don’t know what their history is, what happened to them. But the foster mom had other dogs in the house, so why is he so aggressive towards to Storm?
I think what makes me the saddest, even more sad than the pain and getting bit by a family pet and sitting here not able to do anything, is that it made me miss Angelus even more. And truly realize what an incredible personality he had. He would never bite me. Never growled at me. I never even worried about ever being bit by him no matter what I did. When he was a puppy we would take away his food and then give it back, same with treats and toys, so that he got used to us and never felt threatened. And he would give Storm a little lip if he came over when Angelus was eating but never, ever snapped at or tried to bite him. No matter what Storm did. He truly was a remarkable friend. To both me and Storm.
