Florida Sheriff’s Deputy Bitten by Dog when Responding to a Call

Florida Sheriff’s Deputy Bitten by Dog when Responding to a Call
Police car. (Nick Starichenko/Shutterstock)
Janita Kan
12/20/2017
Updated:
12/21/2017

A sheriff deputy from Dade City, Florida, was bitten by a dog when responding to a call from a delivery person.

Robert Lewis and his partner turned up to a home after they received a report that one of the dogs had bitten the FedEx delivery person, reported ABC News.

When they arrived, they were greeted by two unfriendly dogs. As Lewis tried to take a picture of the dogs, one of the dogs came up to the deputy and started biting him.

“They got me good,” Lewis could be heard saying in his body camera video.

Lewis was bitten just above the knee.

“He bit you twice,” his partner pointed out.

The deputy then went to the hospital to get stitched up, reported the news station.

Despite being attacked, the officers did not use their guns.

According to animal control, the dogs’ owner gave up custody of them and they are a “mixed breed,” reported ABC News. The dogs are now being held under quarantine and no charges have been filed so far.

Another similar incident which also occurred in Dade City in 2015, did not end so positively. When a deputy was responding to a residential alarm call, he was charged at by an 88-pound Rottweiler. The deputy shot at the dog’s feet out of self-defense, reported TBO.

What to do if a dog attacks you?

According to Dr. Sophia Yin, most dogs that race to you even aggressively do not have the intention of biting, reported the Pet Health Network.

“The charge, bark and growl are just a threat to get you to go away,” Yin wrote. “When you stand still instead of continuing to move, they bark and back away and if you step towards them they back away faster. So once you’ve stopped and they realize you’re not going to run away for them to chase, they will generally walk away on their own.”

The veterinarian suggests that if you feel that a dog is actually going to bite, you can try holding something firmly as a shield between you and the dog. It is also important not to use the object to push towards or to hit the dog.

“The wider, and flatter the object the better so he can’t grab it,” Yin said.

From NTD.tv