Politicians pitch in to help journalist’s dog

Wellington politicians jumped to the aid of a journalist after a rottweiler attacked her dog.

Stuff journalist Andrea Vance was swimming with her dog Dubh, a shar pei, at Birchville in Upper Hutt yesterday when Dubh – pictured – was attacked by a rottweiler.

Dubh touched noses with the rottweiler before Vance’s husband lifted her out of the water to get her away from the other dog.

‘‘[It] jumped up and bit her while she was in Sam’s arms,’’ Vance said. ‘‘It’s like two big puncture wounds in her back.’’

Vance said she ran out of the water to pick up Dubh while Sam tried to restrain the rottweiler.

The dog’s owner later said: ‘‘That’s just what rottweiler dogs do’’, and added the couple should have restrained Dubh.

Vance called Animal Control but its staff could not help unless she had identification for the other dog.

She took to Twitter to ask for help and Hutt South MP Christopher Bishop shared her post on Facebook, identifying the man in her photo in just 25 minutes.

Parliament’s Speaker, Trevor Mallard, also shared Vance’s tweet, and even posted his cellphone number to ask for help.

Vance said with identification, the Animal Control service would be able to act and perhaps stop the same thing happening to another dog owner. They didn’t want anything to happen to the rottweiler but perhaps it could wear a muzzle in public, she said.

Dubh was doing OK after a visit to Central Vet Hospital, where the vet put three staples in her back to close the wound.