Ha! I have yet to see a dog act Out at the squares. I have, however, seen many PEOPLE do so. I say ban the people, allow the dogs:-)

Im with you 100%.People with dogs should keep them at home. Why these owners insist on dragging them out into crowed areas defies common sense.

While I am not a fan of dogs in the squares in the evening, I have yet to trip over one or over their leash!

I'd much prefer that we keep out the folks who wear their odiferous fragrances while strollling thru the squares and sitting among the crowd watching the entertainment!

Hi Lovey2:

For the record I did not accuse the owner of the two labs of anything but listed a number of reasons for a dog's behavior that have applied in my experiences. Nor did I say put the dogs down. I did say they would be gone meaning they would not be residing with me as i wouldn't tolerate an animal that would be a risk to people. And I did not say bankrupt the owner but the lab owner is responsible for the damage and should honor his/her obligations.
Dogs will be dogs and that's why it is a dog owners responsibility to have control and restrain of their animals . Based on the OP's description this owner had two powerful dogs that s/he could not control or restrain. We have the dogs leading the owner. Lucy could have been a person and perhaps a young person at that rather than a dog.

This story strikes me as having to be more concerned about dogs in The Villages than coyotes

One incident of this sort does not give cause for concern for the entire community. We have over 100,000 people and I've never heard of this happening before......Good grief. Chill!!

Why do you need two dogs? Isn't one enough!

I'm not sure why you think I was writing to or about you in particular. I was not. It was simply the tone of the responses I FELT each time I read the thread. And believe me, I read and reread it time and again. As usual, I probably should NOT have responded at all...it never goes well for me...but I did. I feel terrible for the dog attacked and yet, I still feel bad for the owner of the 2 labs somehow. We DON'T know his animals were not properly trained, we DON'T know if he was amenable to paying the vet bills (as he should have) and we DON'T know how he feels about the whole thing. If he is a true animal lover he TOO feels bad for Lucy and is possibly shocked and saddened by what his loving (to him and in his mind) dogs did to her. The post just automatically accused him of abuse, ill training and how he should be forced to pay. We are dealing with ANIMALS here...no one ever truly knows what they may do (Siegfried and Roy, for example) and I only LIGHTLY suggested maybe dogs should not be expected to "chat nicely" with each other as their humans do. I would no more let another animal approach my cats (just to see what they do, as a friend suggested) than I would blindly walk up to a dog and attempt to pet it. I didn't mean to offend, if I did. I was simply stating MY opinion as so many others do. I pointed my remarks at NO ONE.

I guess everyone should've only had one kid, too. Not that it's anybody's business how many kids or dogs another person has.

Lovey, I understand that you were trying to give "the benefit of the doubt" to the owner of the dogs that attacked Lucy. And it's commendable to see two sides of every story.
However we can say with certainty that the dogs that attacked Lucy were out of control. Properly trained dogs don't attack other dogs and drag the owner. If they were properly trained, they would respect their owner and listen to his commands.
I believe the owner of the two labs probably feels sick about what happened, and that he will offer to pay for any veterinary care needed by Lucy.
:ohdear: If I don't tell you how many children or grandchildren to have, or how many golf games is enough, you don't tell me how many dogs I should have.:rant-rave: OK?

I, as a kid on a motorcycle, got attacked by a dog running out to the street and bit my leg. This was the street I lived on. My father told me to get a water pistol and fill it with ammonia. The next day when the dog again attacked me I sprayed him in the face with ammonia. Looking in the rear view mirror it was very effective. The next day when I rode down that street I saw the dog in the front yard, and when he saw me he ran into the back yard. He didn't want anymore of that ammonia in his eyes.

"However we can say with certainty that the dogs that attacked Lucy were out of control. Properly trained dogs don't attack other dogs and drag the owner. If they were properly trained, they would respect their owner and listen to his commands."

I agree...:(
what a terrible situation, for all involved...especially Lucy!

That would probably work on those ankle biters at the square too!:1rotfl:

I'm certain that you are joking. No one has ever been bitten at the squares. Carrying a water pistol with a chemical inside is certainly not a smart thing to do.

Don't believe it. NO way they were Labradors...must have been a mix...

I agree [emoji106]