My dog almost died....so bizarre!!!

shanzone2001 · #1 03/05/10, 09:48 PM

My 2 lab mix dogs are always wrestling around. This afternoon the older dog somehow got her tooth caught in the younger/smaller dog's collar.
The collar was wrapped around her jaw and as she tried to get it off, she was getting angry and agressively growling and trying to bite the smaller dog. She was choking and dragging the little limp dog around. Luckily we heard the noise and were able to cut the collar off before my little pup choked to death.

Does this mean my older dog is aggressive, or was she just reacting to having her tooth stuck and unable to get it out???
I am still shaking and part of me is worried if my dogs will ever be OK together. My little pup won't go near the older dog, and the older dog is now refusing to come inside.

D Lynn · #2 03/05/10, 10:05 PM

Oh my Gosh! What an ordeal!!

No I don't think your bigger dog is aggresive, she was probably just freaking out and in survival mode trying to react appropriately to a very scary situation.
I don't think your little dog will be afraid of the bigger dog for too long. I've read that most dogs only "remember" for about 2 - 3 wks (opinions vary).

I think I would simply comfort them both (together as a family, like) and get them playing together as soon as possible to hurry up the "forgetting" part.

Dogs don't rationalize emotional stuff the same way humans do. In my experience making a bigger deal out of a "situation" seems to make these things worse and harder to get over.

Get the bigger dog back inside and act like nothing happened, with lots of "GOOD DOGS, GOOD PUPPIES!!!" Get toys out and start playing. I work wioth dogs every day. Diversion works wonders.

I hope that makes sense. I hope your little one is okay! No harm done?

sisterpine · #3 03/05/10, 10:24 PM

Oh my goodness! I can only imagine how scared the big one was and the little one thankfully seems to have passed out. I sure hope there is not damage to the little one. D Lynn is correct that dogs live in the now but they sure learn from their pasts as well. Hoping all get quietly settled in a good way for all of you. sisterpine

JasoninMN · #4 03/06/10, 12:13 AM

This is one of those things you just don't think about till it happens. It happened to me when I brought my dog over to my friends house. They were wrestling on the ground and my dog who is a large dog stood up and his beagles back leg was wrapped in my dogs collar. He was dangling by his foot and started to panic, which led to him to start fighting for his life. He started attacking my dog and my dog started freaking out from being attacked and was trying to run away from the beagle. It was total chaos. Luckily I got my dogs collar unbuckled quickly and everything turned out alright and no one got hurt. I would suggest taking them together on a walk, I bet by the time you get back they will have forgot about it.

farmmom · #5 03/06/10, 03:12 AM

I agree with the others. Your older dog was attempting to protect herself. She was scared by having her jaw tangled up. I'm so glad you were able to get them separated!!!!

Rockytopsis · #6 03/06/10, 05:37 AM

Yes I agree the dog was just trying to get the other dog loose. The same thing took place here about 10 years ago with my two older dogs and Duce ( the female with the collar) still had the scar where the chain cut into her neck and Ace ( the male ) has a scar around his lower jaw where the chain cut him.

Duce was never the same after that, we figure she passed out and that is the reason she did not choke to death. She still took her job of taking care of the goats the seriously though, she lived to be 11, we had to have her put down due to cancer. Ace is still going strong.

malinda · #7 03/06/10, 06:54 AM

The same thing happened to a client of mine, only the choked dog died.

We teach our horses to stand still and remain calm if they get caught in something. I never thought about it, but a dog could be taught the same.

unregistered29228 · #8 03/06/10, 07:30 AM

I came home from work one day to find that my cat had gotten her lower jaw under her collar and had been freaking out for some part of the day. I had to throw a blanket over her to subdue her and got bitten and scratched as I released her collar. For weeks she blamed me for her predicament, but eventually she forgot. I never put a collar on her again after that.

I can imagine that the trapped feeling would make any animal go nuts....give them time, I'm sure they'll get back to normal.

7thswan · #9 03/06/10, 07:34 AM

I think you dogs will be Ok with each other, there was panic going on. My dogs do not wear collars, the 2 younder ones jump up and put their paws on the picket fence arround their yard, they would surley get caught. The older guy wears his- he never jumps on the fence.

Tricky Grama · #10 03/06/10, 07:38 AM

Oh, gee, how scary! I agree, in a few days things will be back to normal.
Wonder if the little one had a "near death experience" & saw a light at the end of the tunnel!??!

bubbahead · #11 03/06/10, 08:00 AM

Oh, my! I'm glad both will be alright. Same thing happened here between my 2 large dogs. We now only put collars on when we go out on the leash. Even then they are the kind that you can release with one hand........NO buckles.

Scared the life out of me.

SunsetSonata · #12 03/06/10, 08:15 AM

This must happen more commonly than is thought, even if rarely. I know someone this happened to and also have seen this exact issue posted on another website before. Unfortunately I don't really know how such a thing can be prevented. It's unlikely to ever happen again, but still, how scary.

Backfourty,MI. · #13 03/06/10, 08:29 AM

How Terrible for all of you & Scarey!! I think they are both probly just really scared & freaked out it sounds like. I think they will both come around in a short time hopefully. You might have to coax the older dog back in the house & pet them together, etc. but they should be OK. Poor things are probly still scared to death & trying to figure on what went on too.

GoldenMom · #14 03/06/10, 09:00 AM

I'm in the just a response to being scared bunch. My Ruby got her collar caught on the door to a wire kennel a few nights ago. Trying to get away from the kennel only made the kennel follow her. She was terrified! I was able to get her unbuckled quickly and there was no permanent damage, but it made me see how dangerous collars could be. My pup and Ruby wrestle all the time and bite each others necks. It could have been a jaw rather than the kennel! I've since ordered Keepsafe collars for both (they will be our invisible fence collars, which will be the only collars they wear unless we are going somewhere). http://www.premier.com/View.aspx?pag...fe/description

yarrow · #15 03/06/10, 11:09 AM

I had the exact same thing happen to two of my german shepherds back years ago. My female (a high drive west german import, that I used for tracking) While playing, she got her tooth caught in one of the holes (where you tighten/loosen) of the leather roll collar my young male was wearing. I saw it happen. She got her tooth caught, freaked...he then freaked leaped over her back twisting the collar..They were face each other, up on back legs.. screaming & thrashing.. Grabbed a knife and took off.. I was home alone... the collar was so tight, I couldn't get the knife under it anywhere.. by this time my male was no longer making noise.. he was beginning to stagger.. My female was still screaming at the top of her lungs. Maruf was dying before my eyes.. I began pounding on Yaga's canine tooth..hoping to either dislodge the collar or knock out her tooth.. I kept pleading with Maruf to just "hold on, mommy's trying to get it loose".. "don't die!".. but the life just faded out of his eyes and he slumped to the ground. It was at that moment that the collar came up off her tooth. I grabbed Maruf (he was about a year old, 100 or so lbs worth or big boned, east german dog).. He wasn't breathing, I could not feel a pulse. I flipped him over and started CPR. His muzzle & nose area was so large I had a hard time trying to move air.. First breath... barely moved his chest.. I put both hands around his muzzle and blew into his nose with everything I had.. his chest rose up.. I did it again.. I began chest compressions.. I went back to breaths, back to his chest... I was sobbing and screaming for help during compressions...but no one answered my screams.. I was almost completely worn out.. Gave him more breaths and then I felt it... his life force just rushed in.. He began to take some breaths on his own.. I continued to help him breath.. finally his eyes opened. He began to struggle to a sitting position. He was dazed, I was exhausted.(turns out I was having my first & hopefully last "Exercise-Induced" Asthma attack). We just sat and leaned on each other. It took us quite a while to get back to the house. Poor Yaga.. she just sat on the back steps and stared at us.. she was bleeding at the gums (thankfully she didn't hold my beating her in the mouth, against me!).. we were all 3 a mess. Called a friend to on the phone, to come help me. Got them both to the vet's. Maruf had a broken rib from the compressions. Yaga's tooth was loose, but would tighten on it's own.. everyone was staring at me.. seems I'd broken blood vessels in both my eyes (the white in both eyes had turned RED. I was quite a site) It was from my having to blow so hard to get air.. down his muzzle & into his lungs.. Maruf recovered his health, but the whole episode changed his personality. I'd had him in schutzhund since he was 8 weeks old.. the accident changed his ability to grip the sleeve.. his prey drive also really changed. He no longer enjoyed bite work of any kind. I let him just be a dog. He loves us, we love him & that's been enough.

susie, mo ozarks

7thswan · #16 03/06/10, 11:27 AM

Wow, susie what a story, I'm so glad both the dogs and you are OK.

Ruby · #17 03/06/10, 01:22 PM

We don't put collars on our two because they go under our storage building in the summer time and I'm afraid there might be a nail or something they can get hung on. There is no way we could get under there to release them. It's only like a six inch space. But they also wrestle alot and would surely get hung. I know a lady who had a couple poodles. She tied them outside one day by the porch. One of them went up on the porch and jumped off. When she went out to check on them it was dead from hanging there. We bought a couple harnesses for ours for when we take them on a leash.

Also hear of a person who had a motor home. They had left their little dog and went out to eat. When the got back the dog had been on the dash and jumped off and hung collar on the gear shift and died. I hate collars.

Also wanted to add, before Max died, he wore and collar all his life. If you took it off he would wart you to death to get it back on. That was HIS and he wanted it. BUT he would not go into tight spaces. He wouldn't even go under the bed to retrieve his squeaky, and at the time he was the only dog so didn't worry about it getting hung.

Toads tool · #18 03/06/10, 03:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mom_of_Four

I came home from work one day to find that my cat had gotten her lower jaw under her collar and had been freaking out for some part of the day. I had to throw a blanket over her to subdue her and got bitten and scratched as I released her collar. For weeks she blamed me for her predicament, but eventually she forgot. I never put a collar on her again after that.

I can imagine that the trapped feeling would make any animal go nuts....give them time, I'm sure they'll get back to normal.

Same thing happened here with my cat Angus. He tore my wife up while I went for the gloves. I still laugh about it.

Shanzone2001- All will be well with your critters.
If you weren't so emotionally attached you may even see the incident as comical.
A lesson was learned by both dogs, they shouldn't forget.

Minelson · #19 03/06/10, 05:08 PM

Shazone..thank goodness you were there and able to save your dogs! wow. I think they will both be fine with a little time. Everyone is freaked out from the traumatic situation. And Yarrow..your story is really terrifying. Kudos to you for thinking fast and being able to bring your dog back to life.
Ok...I'm going to go take Boris's collar off right now.
It amazes me at the vet where I work how many dogs come in with those chain choke collars on...in the choke position!! I always point out the danger when I can.

KatW · #20 03/06/10, 06:30 PM

This happened to our dogs years ago, McCoy managed to get his tooth caught in Poppy's collar and in trying to get free he nearly strangled her to death. She was so afraid she vacated bowels and bladder (all over our futon!). They were both terrified even after we got them free. But after some petting and comfort they got over it. But we learned our lesson, now they only wear their collars when we are putting a leash on them and going somewhere. They are both microchipped and most shelters and vets offices have readers now.