Multiple dog attacks concern residents of Montana First Nation

09/06/2019

WARNING: This article contains graphic images.

Residents of Montana First Nation are calling on their council to make changes to keep people safe after multiple dog attacks were reported in the community.

RCMP confirm a woman was attacked by dogs there on Aug. 31 and she had to be transported to hospital by EMS.

Officers also say there was a second attack, on Sept. 1, where a man was bitten while walking.

Tyrone Cattleman says that was him. The Calgarian was attacked while walking to his uncle’s house. He said he was east of the town site when he first noticed a pack of dogs.

“There was already five big black dogs coming after me, but I managed to stomp the ground so they kept their distance, but kept following me,” he said.

Once he reached his uncle’s driveway, he said 10-15 dogs swarmed him.

“They came up to me and started biting my legs. I was fighting them off. I was fighting as hard as I could. But I could feel myself getting tired,” Cattleman said.

That’s when a friend came rushing in with a golf club, swinging at the dogs, yelling, and eventually scaring them away.

“It all happened so fast,” he said.

Cattleman had five stitches to mend his bite marks.

After his attack, Cattleman was told by locals not to walk alone because dog attacks are nothing new.

WARNING: This gallery contains graphic images.

Tyrone Cattleman shared photos of his injuries after being attacked by dogs on Montana First Nation.

Global News has since learned about a third attack, which also took place on Aug. 31. It sent Henry Rabbit to hospital in Edmonton where doctors used 50 staples to repair deep bites in his calf.

Rabbit says he was walking to his friend’s house near the Montana town site when he heard a dog bark.

“I was scared,” he said.

He said he yelled at it and grabbed a stick. That’s when more dogs came out of the grass.

“Before I knew it, they had me surrounded. I hit one and then I fell and that’s when they attacked me.”

Rabbit said he was saved by a passing driver, who let him jump into their vehicle. The driver took Rabbit to his friend’s house, where they worked with RCMP to try and provide first aid while waiting for an ambulance.

“They looked at the cut, the stopped the bleeding and bandaged it up,” he said.

WARNING: This gallery contains graphic images.

When Rabbit arrived at the University of Alberta hospital in Edmonton, doctors put 50 staples and five stitches in his calf.

“They’re just happy it didn’t hit an artery or main tendon,” he said.

Nearly a week later, he’s still hurting from the attack.

“It’s an ongoing, throbbing pain. I’m trying not to move around,” Rabbit said. He’s using a crutch to help him get around.

“I can’t walk on it until the staples come out. Then, when it heals, I might have a cane,” he said.

“I just haven’t felt so helpless in my life. I grew up with one arm but this is beyond that.”

He’s also been struggling mentally.

“I’m already scared of dogs. I’ll be more scared of them now.”

He wants to see bylaws developed to protect his community.

“What I’m worried about is: what if it was a child that couldn’t defend themselves like I did? Or an elder?”

Rabbit said he hasn’t had any luck getting Montana’s Chief and Council to hear his concerns.

“All they do is brush us away and say they’ll do something, but it never happens,” he explained.

Cattleman feels the same way.

“I called the police to make a complaint. The RCMP came and I said, ‘What are you going to do with those dogs? They’re still around.’ They said there’s nothing they can do because there’s no bylaws.”

That made him angry, so he called Montana’s Chief and Council and says he was told the same thing. “They sloughed it off.”

Cattleman is also worried about future attacks and wants action taken now.

“Bylaws don’t have to be written in blood,” Cattleman said.

Despite repeated calls and messages to Montana First Nation by Global News, there has been no response.

Montana is located about an hour southeast of Edmonton.

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