How to Defend Yourself against a Mad Dog

According to World Health Organization about 1000 citizens require emergency care treatment on a daily basis for dog bite injury. Also, about 4.7 million citizens are bitten by a dog each year. Now, those are insanely alarming statistics. But they are true. And another bitter truth is that you may just be the next victim of a dog attack. Your friend’s dog may attack you because it doesn’t know you as a friend of its owner. A stray dog in your neighborhood may attack you while you are on a walk. Any of these could happen.

So if a dog attacks you, what should you do? Run? That’s the worst thing you can do in such a situation. Surrender? That’s another no-no. You would be badly mauled. You have to defend yourself.

SUGGESTION 1: Take precautions

Dog attacks occur usually because of inadequate training of the dog or insufficient containment of the dog. So, whenever you see any unchained dog, always prepare for the worst so that you won’t be caught unawares. A safe move is to take another path (if available). When you meet a stray dog, avoid eye contact with it, as most dogs see this as a threat. Also, avoid smiling at the dog. Though this may show that you are friendly, an aggressive dog would assume that you are baring your teeth in readiness for a fight.

SUGGESTION 2: Never underestimate a dog

Whenever you see a “Beware of dog” notice, be very careful. Underestimating a dog is the worst thing you can do. Never judge a dog by its size or looks. A small dog could inflict terrible bites. And a seemingly calm dog could be aggressive. A dog is a dog and should be regarded as one – irrespective of its size, age, color, looks, and so on. Having this in mind would help you stay away from dogs when you should.

Once you see a dog approaching you with its body straight and stiff and its head, shoulders, and hips aligned, it is most likely coming for an attack. Don’t wait till it gets closer before you think of what to do. Prepare for it. But don’t run.

SUGGESTION 3: Be calm, then act FAST

When a dog approaches you, DO NOT RUN! I just can’t emphasize this rule enough, because it’s just intuitive for anyone to run away from looming danger. But doing so in this case would cause more problems, as the dog would chase you like a prey and you can never outrun a dog.

Rather than running away, remain calm. Then try to command the dog with words like “DOWN” or “GO BACK”. Such words may cause the dog to retreat temporarily, giving you ample chance to get away. But if your commands fail to work, remain calm. Avoid facing the dog directly and avoid making eye contact with it, as doing these would signal to the dog that you mean no harm.

To further convince the dog that you are not trying to attack it, fold your arms tightly to protect your fingers. Better yet, keep them still by your sides with your fists clenched tightly to protect your fingers. Then remain in a still position. Dogs have very short attention spans. So, it may lose interest and go away after seeing that you mean no harm.

If the dog comes closer, remain still and calm. Some dogs would only sniff you and go away without biting. But if the dog is biting, try to grab its neck if it is a small dog that you can overpower easily. If it is a larger dog, find something hard or pointed that you can either force into its mouth or use to block its teeth each time it tries to bite you.

If there is nothing you can protect yourself with, and the dog is a large one that you cannot overpower, quickly place your clenched fists at the side of your head and your elbows by your sides. This will protect your vital organs, as the dog can only bite at your legs and other parts of your body that are less vital. If the dog knocks you down with its weight, roll yourself into the fetal position and protect your head, neck, and belly with your fists and elbows. This way, you will have minimal injuries – if any at all.

• 1 Wash the wound thoroughly with a lot of soap and water
• 2 If possible apply tincture of iodine or betadine
• 3 If an animal has been bitten, the caretaker should wear rubber gloves or two strong non-leaking plastic bags to prevent saliva from the rabid animal entering any wounds on their hands when cleaning the bite wound
• 4 Measures should be taken immediately to prevent tetanus whether the bite was rabid or not
• 5 Get anti-rabies injections immediately at Health Centre or from a private clinic.