Vicious Dogs

We just happened to be outside early this afternoon, when we witnessed a near-attack. The neighbor who lives a few houses past us was out with her two kids in the stroller and two dogs sans leashes. The neighbor's child who lives next to us going the other direction was walking down the street towards her house. She was at least 100 feet from the dog, maybe more. The dog, named "Blue" (a Blue Heeler), took off at a dead run, decidedly on the attack towards the child. Paul and I wear screaming and yelling at the dog (okay, maybe I was screaming and Paul was yelling), but the child jumped up into the bushes and the dog finally backed off and came back to it's owner. I am sure I looked like a rabid dog as I told the owner that she needed to keep the animal on a leash and had better not take the dogs out again without a leash. "Yes ma’am. Yes ma’am," was all she said as she headed back to her house with her children and the dogs. I went to the girl's house to let her mother know what had happened, but by the time I went, no one was home. Later, I called the Sheriff's office to make a complaint. The officer (TCSO) was here within 5 minutes! (Paul, this will be the majority of the type of work you will do...). The officer went to talk with the owner. When he returned, I learned that the lady walking the dogs has "memory loss" issues. There is really nothing he can do unless the child's parent's make a complaint. The dog has been complained on before. Here's my point: the guy knows his daughter-in-law is not completely competent (memory loss - I am sorry for her condition and whatever caused it, but it still makes her incompetent and is not an excuse) and yet he keeps a vicious dog that cannot be controlled. He will be responsible for any injury that dog causes. I hope that it won't take a serious injury for the dog to be impounded. The owner is just as responsible for the actions of his dog and his daughter-in-law as a driver under the influence, and in my opinion (it's my blog, it's my opinion), even more so because he knows and has been warned several times.