You should go to your internist/primary care doctor, explain the situation, have them check your basic vital stuff, and get referrels for psychologists. No shame in that.

your fear is not neurotic or unreasonable at all. you suffered a very serious trauma. maybe give yourself some time to get over it?

I don't think you're off at all...It's a shame you can't carry a concealed weapon w/ a permit. If a dog (or person for that matter) was viciously attacking my family, my dog or myself I wouldn't think twice about putting a few rounds in them. I'm not going to turn this into a debate about gun control, but I have a lot to say about it.

I've often had the thought about the bully breeds that I think it's the worst combination possible. They tend to attract macho, irresponsible ownership and obviously have the capacity to inflict serious physical damage. The worst of both worlds. I've definitely ran into great dogs that were APBTs and corsos...so I'm not going to trash the breeds. It's mostly irresponsible owners, 95% of the time. That said, I still wouldn't hesitate to stop a dog w/ deadly force to protect myself or my dog. It sounds calloused to think that way and I would feel really bad for the dog(b/c more than likely it's not his / her fault)...but life is life.

I think you are very normal and strong!!!! I have two pit bulls, one Am Staff and one APBT. My male is 47 pounds topping the scale for the standard and my female is on the small size for a Staff - 32 lbs. My male and I were attacked by a 70+ lb staff, his owner was a middle class woman with a very arrogant husband who loved having a big tough dog, did not have a clue about his chosen breed and thats why the dog was on a zip lead which he broke charging me and my boy. Lucky for me my boy very quickly pinned this brute which became very fearful and just plain aggressive after being let up. To this day when I see another pit bull owner walking their dog I mentally scan, collar..leash...dogs attitude, and I know the fear and I was not even injured. Because my female is DA, I get afraid when I see any dog and I am working that. I have spent some time with a therapist because of this fear and it seems to radiate right down the leash to my dog...LOL. I have gotten a lot of comfort, support and confidence from Leerburg and it's members....I have my female under control, she is so much better than me now...because of that fear that creeps in. I sure do relate to your issue and I say talk to some one and stay here, between the two places....therapist for you and Leerburg for solutions to just about any dog issue, you will mend and get your confidence back, because it sounds like the inner strength is there.

Another tip I got from a Pit Bull trainer is a "hot stick", "red devil"...I cannot find them on the net, but when he takes his dogs to train if he is approached by a strange off lead dog this is like a mini cattle prod, it sends ths dog packin. I will ask him about the effectiveness on a large bully and where you might get one, PM me if interested. Good luck!!!!!!!

One of the ladies in my neighborhood as a small Yorkie-type dog and carries one of those mini-cattle prods. A fear of mine for the mini-prod would be increasing drive of a dog if it was already fighting/attacking or having a situation go from growl/bark to gnashing teeth. Many people in my neighborhood carry small clubs when out for a walk. A lot of strays or even more likely a lot of dogs escape their yard.

As for as being afraid of "bully" breeds I would recommend seeing a real doctor/therapist. Those sound like awful experiences.

Don't be embarassed...witnessing something that horrific is bound to have an effect on anyone.

Talking to someone about it, I am sure will help. It's really too bad that you don't know someone or have access to someone who owns a nice calm non-aggressive bully type dog so that you can re-establish yourself with one and get over your fear gradually. Kind of like how they put people smack dab into the middle of what their afraid of.
Where I live, any pit-bull that I've ever associated with or come across have been some of the sweetest dogs I've ever met...heck my border-collie/husky cross is more aggressive (but were working on it) than most of the pit bulls we meet around here.
But their potential scares me, and we all know how a dog of that kind, in the wrong hands and with the wrong owner is just an accident waiting. I always hesitate when I see one, as much as I hate to say that, and thats just based on what I've seen on tv and what damage they can do.

You've been traumatized, it's only natural for it to effect you in this way.

Eh, I'm hesitant to say a lot more...I really think you should talk to your internist, and find therapists who specialize in adult phobias and mental traumas...but I don't think any kind of carry weapon makes sense for your situation right now. Fear- or anxiety-based weapon carry without the benefit of confidence and discrimination is a really bad idea (hopefully no one here on this board disagrees with that). And some of the situations you've described...sentiments about what you'd do the owner, etc....can be casual but the fact of the matter is that you're describing some uncontrollable anxiety in some situations. Matching that up with anything from a cattle prod on up is asking for problems. I'd stick with the pepper spray (though I might add not all pepper spray is created equal, search the archives here and surf around the web for stuff used by actual police departments, etc), find a new place to walk the dogs (or a new dog walker, for that matter), etc. until you get your own deal figured out and in control.

I respect you taking the time to ask for input on your head, though. You must not know freaky dog people very well. <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.leerburg.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Reading some other posts, I disagree with 1 or 2. Woody, try being a small-framed woman before you suggest that the carrying of weapons is not sensible. In a perfect world, you are 100% correct. Reality though likes to rear its ugly head each and every day.

Hayley, you sound completely normal to me! Unless you are a woman the size of Conan the Barbarian, we are at a disadvantage when it comes to helping our own dogs by fighting off a Rott, Pit, Presa, etc. It's just a question of physics, no?

So, I level the playing field as best I can by carrying everything I can that's legal, and some on the fringe of legal. Although I own a gun, I just wouldn't bring it with me. I may regret that decision one day but I don't have a carry permit and don't want to jeopardize the legal ownership of the gun.

So, I carry with me on all walks pepper spray, a bat (the size of one's forearm) and a knife. I do carry a steel walking stick sometimes but the grip is harder for me somehow. The bat, if needed, would be far easier to keep in my hand if I were swinging it.

If I ever find myself in a situation as horrible as yours, I would not hesitate to smash the pit's head or back with the bat. If that wasn't enough, out comes my knife.

Regarding the mere sight of bully breeds scaring you, don't be too hard on yourself. It's instinctive to all who walk this earth to learn from experiences (good and bad). I guess it's nature's way of protecting us from further harm. You've seen firsthand how lethal the dog can be. Maybe it's a healthy fear now, maybe not. Understanding it would be a good start.

I'm no psychologist but I think your new fear sounds like it comes from having had no control of the attacking beast and being powerless in the situation to stop the attack and keep your dog(s) from harm. So now when you see the breed walking down the street, powerlessness comes over you each time.

If it were me, I'd start by arming myself with whatever I need to feel empowered. Weapons on walks would be first and foremost, reading up on the breed that induces the fear, finding locations and/or people that possess the breed and won't or can't put you in harm's way so that you can safely interact with them, try to replace emotion with logic whenever possible when the breed is within your sight, i.e. stranger walking with dog on leash. Logic will tell you that ALL of them are not dangerous. And finally, trust your instincts and don't tempt fate. I would just plain stay away from places you know have more than their fair share of the bully breeds off leash. Hopefully you live near many other alternatives.

Good luck Hayley.

I have to say this thread has made me think hard about my situation. I stated in another post that where I live in rual TN we have tons of loose dogs of every breed and mix. I walk my dogs and its not uncommon to come across pits, labs and gsd. So far all that has been required is for me to assert myself and not let my dogs offer up any sort of challenge through body language, stareing and such. Every time the loose dog (and some are very assertive) have turned and allowed us to proceed without incident. I carry pepper spray as a next line of defense but the instantanious aggression spoken of in this post makes me wonder and doubt that I am prepared enough for such an encounter. In TN they do issue concealed carry permits and I do have pistols. Would I shoot a dog that was attacking my wife, my dogs or myself?, yes. Would I want to use deadly force initially? That would not be my first choice so I think I will go to the gun shop and see if they have any "varmit" or bird shot rounds for a 38. I would not discharge anything more potent as there are homes and a stray bullet can do unintended harm and damage.

I owned two Staffs for a very long time (17 and 14 yrs)but they could never be trusted off lead. Way to willing to investigate if there was a good fight to be had. My dogs would have never initiated the sort of attack outlined in this thread so like a dummy I didn't even give this any thought at all.

Now we have the dobe and 6mo pup. Niether are the least bit dog agressive and both now ignore loose dogs when we are out. This thread hasn't made me fearful of "bully breeds" but it definately has made me aware that I'm not suffeciently prepared should a determined out of control dog press the issue, regardless of breed.