A Royston nursery assistant has been left utterly “traumatised” after a German shepherd barged into her home, launching a savage attack on her one year old cockapoo that now requires constant attention.
25 year old Katie Marshall was about to embark on an evening stroll on September 16 when the marauding dog charged in and clamped down on her pet Honey’s flesh.
Katie endured a harrowing few minutes of “tug of war” with the beast, desperately clinging to Honey’s lead, only for her cherished cockapoo to end up severely wounded, necessitating stitches, surgery, and treatment for its necrotic, darkened skin.
Facing veterinary costs of £8,000, while their insurance falls short by £6,000, Katie and her partner Harry Hudson, a 31 year old garden maintenance manager, are swamped with anxiety as they tend to Honey’s recovery.
In the aftermath, Katie, who lost half a stone rapidly, is plagued by constant dread for the safety of her two young children, Belle, aged three, and one year old Riley, fearing a similar peril each time the front door swings open.
The ordeal, which occurred just days before their planned getaway to Alicante and is currently under Hertfordshire Police investigation, forced a heartbroken Katie to scrap their holiday to care for Honey.
Speaking to PA Real Life, Katie recounted: “It’s just been so much every time I close my eyes I’m taken back to that moment.”
She added, “I’m suffering with PTSD I can’t get over it.”
“It made me very ill the first four days.”
“The first week it happened, we were walking from my front door to my car, which is literally just a few steps to take Honey to the vet, and my daughter was actually scared to leave the front door to get to the car because she was so frightened.”
On September 16 at around 6:45pm, Katie got Honey ready for an evening walk by attaching her lead.
As soon as she opened the door, however, a German shepherd lunged at them, targeting Honey in a vicious attack.
Katie recounted the harrowing experience, “The German shepherd just ran straight at her and pulled her out of the house, so he actually crossed over my threshold and took her from the house,”.
“He just didn’t let go.”
She described the terrifying ordeal further, “He just had hold of her on one end, her back end, and I obviously had hold of her still in the lead, and it was almost like tug of war.”
Katie is now worried that her children may get attacked (Image: PA)
“She was in his mouth while still connected to me by the lead.”
Somehow, Katie eventually wrestled Honey away from the attacker, but found her pet to be eerily quiet and immobile from shock.
Katie lost half a stone in weight a few days after the incident (Image: PA)
“She didn’t cry, she didn’t whimper, she wasn’t even shaken,” she shared, worriedly adding, “I think she was in shock and didn’t know what had just happened to her.”
Concern for Honey’s well-being weighed heavily on Katie, “It was a little worrying because I didn’t know if that shock was going to be the end of her because I know some dogs can obviously die from trauma and shock.”
Honey now needs round the clock care (Image: PA)
Immediately following the attack, Katie spotted two injuries on Honey’s backside from the German shepherd’s bite and promptly took her to the Queen Mother Hospital for Small Animals in Hatfield, as her local vet was not open.
The medical team at the hospital cleaned Honey and dressed her wounds, which cost Katie £600.
Katie is traumatised after seeing Honey get attacked (Image: PA)
The next day, Honey had surgery at her local vet due to necrosis a condition where body tissue starts to die and turns black.
The vet stitched up her wounds, removed all the dead skin, prescribed antibiotics, and charged around £700.
Four days later, Honey was readmitted to the Queen Mother Hospital for Small Animals, where she stayed for eight days costing roughly £150 per night.
During this period, Honey was seen by a soft tissue specialist who cleaned her skin again, and it is currently unclear whether she might require a skin graft in the future.
Katie is still waiting for the final bill from the Queen Mother Hospital for Small Animals, as Honey’s treatment is ongoing, but she anticipates the total costs to be around £8,000.
Luckily, Katie has pet insurance, which will cover £2,000 of these costs.
The whole experience has been “very stressful” for Katie and her family, and she fears that her children might develop a fear of large dogs because of the incident.
She expressed: “I just feel so traumatised even when Honey is at home, it makes me think she’s at risk as soon as the front door opens.”
Expressing deep concern for the safety of her children, Katie said: “And now I’m worried about whether my children are at risk like, what if the door opens and the dog grabs them? “.
She also reflected on the potential dangers of their everyday activities: “It could have been a day where I was taking my daughter for a walk with me and Honey, and she could have been holding the lead.”
Katie observed that her dog Honey had become “a lot more wary” since the incident, prompting her to make plans to reintroduce socialisation with other dogs to mitigate the trauma once Honey is sufficiently recovered.
Following the dog attack, Katie took immediate action and reported the ordeal to Hertfordshire Police on September 18, which has led to an official investigation by the authorities who have confirmed that inquiries are ongoing.
Amidst this family crisis, a scheduled holiday to Alicante was inevitably put on hold. The family was meant to jet off on September 23, a mere week after the traumatic event, but Katie felt compelled to cancel the trip to provide essential care for Honey.
Uncertain about reclaiming the costs from the cancellation, Katie had invested close to £400 on flights, aside from the accommodation arrangements at her family’s holiday home where she wouldn’t have had to pay any lodging fees.
The impact on Katie’s work life has also been significant; initially off work due to annual leave, she’s now facing additional unpaid absence as she lingers in the aftermath of the incident. It’s her fourth day away from her job without pay, which aligns with her statement: “I just feel so traumatised, and Honey now needs 24-hour care,” revealing the extent of the commitment required during Honey’s recovery.
Not only is their beloved pet in need of round-the-clock attention, but the financial toll it’s taking on the family is not insignificant. Katie highlighted the strain: “We’re going to have to take more time off, which will mean a loss of earnings for us, so it’s very stressful.”
Despite the challenges, Katie maintains hope and a future-focused mindset, saying: “I want Honey to recover, and I hope we can all eventually overcome this, but I just can’t stop picturing it.”