11st dog at centre of pack attack horror had therapy for lunging
ONE of the seven dogs believed to have been in the pack attack that left a dog walker dead had undergone therapy for ‘lunging and barking’.
The 11-stone Leonberger, Shiva, seems to have been at the centre of last week’s woodland savaging of a 28-year- old woman, in which another woman was bitten and a horse-rider thrown off.
Shiva, who appears to be locked in a police pound along with the other dogs apparently involved in Thursday’s attack, is owned by ‘psychic and crystal healer’
‘She is sweet – but not that sweet’
Delia Lewis, 38, from south London. The victim, so far unnamed, is believed to have been a professional dog walker who had seven dogs with her, including two dachshunds, a collie and a cockapoo, when they turned on her.
Witnesses told police a ‘larger dog’, believed to be the Leonberger, had first bitten a woman walking a lone dog – then turned on the victim, joined by the rest.
She fell to the ground, apparently entangled in leads, and shouted ‘go back, go back’ to two horsewomen nearby until they were chased off.
It is said that the mostly small to medium-sized dogs bit the victim in a frenzy, like ‘small wolves’. Owner Ms Lewis had previously revealed that her dog had needed behavioural therapy.
Reviewing dog therapist Cat Dubber, based in Croydon, south London, she wrote: ‘Since Shiva’s season she had become leashreactive, dragging when she walked, and extremely dogfocused. The dog focus and leash reactivity has been significantly reduced. We’ve gone from lunging and barking to just looking.’
In 2017, Ms Lewis appeared on a BBC2 programme about disobedient dogs, explaining that she had changed the dog’s name from Maple to Shiva, after the Hindu god of destruction. She said: ‘Maple is far too sweet a name for this dog. I mean, don’t get me wrong, she is sweet, but, like, she’s not that sweet.’
After the victim’s body was found, Ms Lewis posted online that her dog Shiva was ‘missing’, along with similar messages from the owner of two dachshunds. Yesterday flowers were laid near the site of the attack near Caterham in Surrey. Tandgridge district council, which covers the area concerned, requires commercial dog walkers to pay £156.50 a year for a licence, and limits them to six dogs at a time.
Amid rising concern that dogwalking must be restricted by law, dangerous dog expert Shaun Hesmondhalgh told The Mail on Sunday: ‘It is now time for the Government to look at introducing a nationwide framework.’
Dog trainer Bruce Clanford said: ‘We need all dog walkers to undertake basic qualifications and must have a national register of professionals, as a matter of urgency.’ An inquest will be opened soon.
‘It’s a compromise with the office. The car drives to work and I stay here’