A nine pound Italian greyhound (named “Tiny”) is recovering after being attacked by a pit bull at a dog park in Springfield, Oregon. The story provides some salutary lessons in what you can and can’t expect from authorities in the wake of such incidents.

It happened at Willamalane’s Lively Park Monday evening. The park is divided in a large dog section and a small dog section.

Toshika Wilson told KVAL News she moved her dog Tiny to the large dog side so that he could have more space to run. She said her dog was standing in the middle of the park minding his own business when she saw a pit bull heading straight toward him.

“He was completely under the pit bull,” Wilson says. “I don’t know what went on but he was totally under it. I thought he was dead.”

Tiny suffered numerous injuries including bite mark wounds to his neck, cuts on his ear, and scratches on his belly. A witness told KVAL the pit bull bit two other dogs right before Tiny, deep enough to where they drew blood.

What happened after the attack is what upsets Wilson the most. She says the pit bull’s owner quickly got his dog, and left the park.

“I said, ‘Give me your name and your telephone number,’ and he said, ‘There’s no need. There’s no need. Get away,” Wilson said.

Wilson memorized the man’s license plate and called police, but nobody would help her.

“They wouldn’t take my report,” she said.

Basically, the man can’t be charged with letting his dog roam loose, because of-course you’re allowed to do that in a dog park or run. No people were injured, only dogs, and by another dog, so what can be done? Charge the pit bull with cruelty to animals?

The dog park itself has “rules,” including the following:

Dogs exhibiting aggressive behavior must be leashed and removed. Owners are responsible for the actions of their dogs.

Clearly the owner in this case was flouting this rule. His irresponsibility in letting his dog free in the dog park when it obviously can’t control its own aggression is outrageous.

But these are just the rules of the community, so to speak. There are no penalties for an owner who breaks them, other than the disapproval of the community. The next “rule” states:

Park users and dog owners assume all risks related to the dog park.

And that there is the bottom line. Dogs come to the dog park to run around loose and play. Sometimes dogs will fight or attack one another. If your dog comes out the loser, or is even ripped to shreds and killed, well … them’s the breaks.

That’s a harsh way of putting it, but facing that blunt truth beforehand and thinking accordingly would save people a lot of frustration and anguish, and no doubt save some dogs’ lives too. The owner in this case brought her tiny dog into the large dog run, rather than the small dog run, because she wanted him to have more space to play. That’s understandable, but the risk to a small animal from much larger ones is very serious. It only takes a moment for the Grim Reaper to do his work in such a situation. That’s why small dog runs exist in the first place, and why it would be helpful if they were more common. Even small dogs can kill each other, but the fight, being somewhat more one of equals, takes a little longer.

So the lesson is: It’s a jungle out there. Even if, like me, you’re lucky enough to live somewhere where dogs are generally very well socialized, most are spayed or neutered, and owners are generally attentive, you still have to be prepared to encounter a newcomer to the local dog park at any time. You have to protect your dog — including when that means skipping the visit to the dog run or leaving early — because if something goes very wrong, you’re likely to be on your own in picking up the pieces.

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