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A Balloch woman whose dog was attacked in an “absolutely horrific” incident says it has shattered the confidence of both her and her beloved pooch. Linda Wright was out on a walk with her dog Charlie on October 10 near her home when it was attacked by another dog - which she believed to be a ‘bully’ style breed - near the village’s former tourist information centre. The dog was only pulled off Linda’s Australian Labradoodle with the efforts of Linda, one of the young couple with the other animal and members of the public who ran over to assist after hearing the screams coming from the incident. However, Linda has been left furious by the lack of response from the other couple, who are believed to have caught a train out of Balloch moments later - with Charlie left with major scars and facing surgery for his wounds. Linda told the Lennox: “He’s just a big teddy bear and he was on a lead when all of this happened as he’s always on a lead until he gets to the woods. “Charlie was just looking up at me and then suddenly this dog just lunged for him; my instinct is just to grab his lead and pull the other dog off but it wasn’t happening until the boy has managed to grab his collar which released the grip. “It just felt as if it going on and on but luckily because I’ve got a bit of strength, I was able to hold Charlie on my lead. “There was a lot of screaming and by this point, members of the public had come across including a lovely young couple and we were trying to calm Charlie down as he was shaking uncontrollably. “The other couple didn’t even try and say sorry, they just waited until it died down and then crossed the road and walked up by the train station. “It was honestly absolutely horrific.” The process of recovery for both dog and owner has been a tough one - with Charlie requiring extensive care for his injuries and needing to endure surgery after developing an abscess. She continued: “Charlie had a few puncture holes in his leg and body so those required about 8-10 stitches, then he was taken back in to flush out and cut away the extra skin and give him some antibiotics. “He has since been in because the massive hole he has developed an abscess so he was in theatre for four hours to drain the infection out. “If it wasn’t for the phenomenal vets at Pets at Home in Dumbarton, I don’t know what we would have done. “He still has his cone on, but I thought I’d try him out for a walk last week because we both need to feel safe out and about so we took him around close to me. “But there was an lovely older gentleman and his dog who ran up to Charlie and we were just so petrified after what happened so we ran home together, getting the confidence back will be really difficult.”
