CV Community Members at Their Best

Dear Editor,

On 02/23/22 (Wed) late afternoon, our daughter was walking our leashed dog on the west side of Center Street and Gem Ave, when our dog suddenly stopped and went on alert. 

Our daughter immediately scanned around and observed an unrestrained husky heading towards her, with its owner just watching - about two houses in from the corner on Gem. Despite our daughter yelling, “Call your dog back!” several times to the owner, he did nothing, as his Husky headed into the busy intersection (during rush hour traffic) and then started fighting with our leashed dog. 

Thankfully, a quick-thinking lady pulled her car over towards our daughter and honked her car horn several times, which surprised both dogs enough to break up the fight. Two other drivers subsequently also pulled over, essentially creating a barrier between the Husky and our daughter and dog. 

After the Husky started trotting back towards its owner, the three drivers checked the status of my daughter. She assured them that she was fine, as she thanked them for their help. The drivers were incensed when they heard that the owner just watched & did nothing to prevent his dog from: (a) heading into a busy intersection with oncoming traffic and (b) provoking and attacking an unsuspecting dog walker and her leashed dog. 

To the irresponsible Husky owner who did nothing & allowed your dog to risk injuring itself and/or others, your dog deserves someone who takes pet parenting seriously and responsibly. If that isn’t you, please consider rehoming your dog with someone else who is.

To the three drivers who pulled their cars over that day, my family and I extend our deepest thanks & appreciation. Your intervention, clear thinking, and quick actions helped prevent an incident of harm and injury. This is CV community members at their best! Thank you so very much!

–Aileen Chong-Jeung, Castro Valley