Belle the Terrible

The landlord has five dogs here at the moment including "Belle" a hunterway who apparently came from an abusive home as a younger dog. She is a nasty dog, pack leader to the other sheepdogs and the only one that has bitten me (twice). Belle leads the other dogs into all sorts of mischief including worrying cattle and the horses which she backs into a corner. She absolutely loathes my Sheltie Mishka and takes every opportunity to sneak onto this property, defecating in front of us to establish her dominance.

Thursday was a balmy warm late Autumn day so I decided to give Mish a bath. To do this I fill two buckets with warm water and have a hose running nearby while I wash him on the patio at the front of the cottage. We'd finished and I tied him to the front wrought iron railing while I went inside to find the blow drier to finish him off. As I went past the front window I noticed Belle come in over the front cattlestop. The next thing Mish had slipped his lead and was trying to chase her out. By the time I got out she had him pinned onto the front lawn and was taking a chunk out of his back. When I yelled at her she ran out the front gate with Mish behind her- I am hoping he took a piece out of her leg as she was limping as she ran away.

So Mish had to be washed down yet again as he was covered with dirt. I spent a good twenty minutes drying him off despite being shaky. Couldn't find any wounds on his back so looks like his thick coat saved him yet again.

A few years ago Belle and another dominant bitch called Jess bailed Mish up on the front lawn. Jess bit Mish in the jugular and Belle in the back. What got me was this was witnessed and I never received an apology. Instead I had a $50 vet bill for antibiotics.

Time has marched on and Jess has gone to that great dog kennel in the sky and I'm hoping that Belle won't be long following her. The other dogs here are all friendly with Mish so she's definitely a problem dog who is out to establish her superiority. Frankly I would never keep an animal that worries my stock as this "game" can so swiftly change to something more dangerous.