A dog owner has been left ‘traumatised’ after a vicious attack by a German shepherd that burst into her home and left her one-year-old cockapoo needing round-the-clock care. Katie Marshall, a 25-year-old nursery assistant from Royston in Hertfordshire, had just opened her door to set off for an evening walk on September 16 when the German shepherd ran across her threshold and grabbed her cockapoo, Honey, with its teeth.
After several minutes of a terrifying ‘tug of war’ with the dog, while Katie was holding Honey’s lead, her beloved cockapoo was left needing stitches, surgery and treatment for necrotic, blackened skin. With insurance covering only £2,000 of the estimated £8,000 in veterinary bills, Katie and her partner, 31-year-old garden maintenance manager Harry Hudson, said they are under immense stress as they manage Honey’s care.
Within a few days of the incident, Katie lost half a stone in weight and is now living in constant fear for the safety of her and Harry’s two young children, Belle, three, and Riley, one – worrying they too could be at risk if the front door is opened. The incident, which is now being investigated by Hertfordshire Police, also happened just a week before the family’s planned holiday to Alicante – which ‘devastated’ Katie had to cancel to focus on Honey’s care.
Katie told PA Real Life: ‘It’s just been so much – every time I close my eyes I’m taken back to that moment. 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 6:45 pm, Katie got Honey ready for an evening walk by putting her lead on. But, as she opened the front door, a German shepherd suddenly appeared and began attacking her dog. ‘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,’ Katie explained. ‘He just didn’t let go. 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. She was in his mouth and she was attached to me with a lead.’
After several minutes, Katie managed to pull Honey away from the German shepherd, but Honey was left in ‘complete shock’. ‘She didn’t cry, she didn’t whimper, she wasn’t even shaken,’ Katie recalled. ‘I think she was in shock and didn’t know what had just happened to her. 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.’
Katie rushed Honey to the Queen Mother Hospital for Small Animals in Hatfield for treatment. The veterinary team cleaned Honey up, bandaged her wounds, and diagnosed her with necrosis. She underwent surgery, had her wounds stitched up, and spent eight days in the hospital at a cost of approximately £150 per night. Ongoing treatment and the possibility of a future skin graft may bring the total veterinary bill to around £8,000.
The entire ordeal has been ‘very stressful’ for Katie and her family, as she worries about her children’s safety and the lasting effects on Honey’s behaviour. She reported the incident to Hertfordshire Police, cancelled a planned holiday, and is uncertain about her return to work due to the trauma. Katie hopes for Honey’s recovery and for her family to overcome the incident, but the emotional toll remains significant.