Marion Taylor and John Bickley speak to the Express & Star about their traumatic moment when they were attacked by two dogs and their owner.

Express & Star

Marion Taylor and John Bickley from Wolverhampton speak to the Express & Star about their traumatic moment when they were attacked by two dogs and their owner, whilst walking their dog at Sandwell Valley Park, West Bromwich.

Transcript

00:00OK, so Marion and John and Milo here, you've been the victims really, haven't you, of quite

00:07a serious attack while you were walking Milo at, was it Sandwell Valley Park?

00:13Sandwell Valley Park, yeah.

00:14Just explain what happened Marion.

00:17We were walking the dog along Swan Lake and we were approached by two big enormous brown

00:24dogs with their owners, which was a 60 odd year old man and his daughter, and the two

00:32dogs saw Milo and decided to have a go at Milo, and so the two big dogs were circling

00:40round John while Milo was at his feet, so John picked Milo up and held him up in the

00:47air so the dogs couldn't get him, but the two dogs were jumping up John and the one

00:53jumping up at the front of John was a bit too close to his face, so I actually kicked

00:59the dog away and grabbed it by the collar, and then the gentleman who owned the dog came

01:06along and kicked me, and because I was still holding his dog, he was punching me and demanding

01:15I let go of his dog.

01:16So rather than trying to help and pull the dogs away, he was attacking you as well?

01:21Yeah.

01:22That's dreadful.

01:23Yeah.

01:24So he kicked me three feet into a bush, and so of course John's still got the dog in the

01:30air and I'm on the floor, and he disappears quickly with the dogs once I'd let go, and

01:36his daughter was the only one left really, so she was apologetic and she left as well,

01:44so I did tell her I was going to report it though, but you don't expect to walk around

01:48Sandmore Valley Park, which is beautiful.

01:50They had two young children with them as well.

01:53That's frightening isn't it really?

01:55Who witnessed their grandfather kicking a man around.

01:59That's awful.

02:00I mean what was the thing?

02:02This is it, so when you see big dogs now you're automatically afraid because this happens

02:09so often, and so anybody walking around Sandmore Valley and you see big dogs, I would be very

02:15wary about walking past them, I really would.

02:18Yeah, I mean it must have shaken you up really, shook you to tears.

02:22I did yeah, and very shaken and I've not slept properly since, to be honest, so.

02:28Do you think you'll be walking Milo around there at all?

02:31I doubt it very much indeed, I don't, because it was so busy, it'd been a lovely day, and

02:39there were so many dogs, but most of them were on leads, most of them were smaller,

02:43these two were off the lead on their own.

02:46Not muzzled?

02:47Not muzzled.

02:48And they weren't doing anything, like the girl was trying to call them off, but he wasn't,

02:57and basically they just ran at us and attacked both of us.

03:01Dreadful, dreadful.

03:02Have you managed to take Milo a walk anywhere else since then, or has it affected how you

03:07feel taking Milo a walk now?

03:09We took him out yesterday morning for a short walk in a local area, and unfortunately he's

03:16been affected himself, because he's barking at every dog that goes past him now, and I

03:21think he's kind of upset by the incident as well, because this one is...

03:26Yeah, it must have affected Milo quite a lot as well, mustn't it?

03:29Yeah, well this is it, I mean he's a sweet little dog, he's no trouble, he's very calm,

03:33placid, very friendly, but all of a sudden he's barking at every dog that walks past,

03:38which is not like him.

03:41So he's been affected as well.

03:43Yeah, I mean it's awful to think what could have happened, John, if you hadn't been there

03:47to pick Milo up, you know, if Milo had been running round the field or something.

03:51Two really large dogs like that would have torn him apart, I'm quite convinced.

03:55Yes, yes, absolutely.

03:57Definitely.

03:58Yeah.

03:59So lastly again, you just want to warn people, you know.

04:01Oh God, yeah, be very wary, see.

04:03Be very vigilant.

04:04For all we know, if you've got a gentleman who is so prone to violence as this one obviously

04:09is, it's probably not the only occasion.

04:13Yes.

04:14So if there's anybody round Sandwell Valley Park and they know of a father and a daughter

04:21and her two young kids and two large, tan, American bulldog type animals.

04:28Yeah.

04:29Yeah.

04:30Might be worth having a chat with the police about it really.

04:33Yeah, because this sort of thing can't carry on.

04:35No.

04:36Definitely.

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