Essex County Family Terrified When Their Dog Is Attacked In Mills Reservation

An Essex County woman is claiming that two off-leash dogs attacked her two-year-old canine companion during a walk in Mills Reservation on Friday.

The woman posted her account of the alleged attack on the Montclair Watercooler, a local Yahoo chat group.

“On Friday afternoon, my husband and I took our nine year old, her friend and our dog for a walk at Mills Reservation. Our dog, Truffle, is almost 2 years old and he’s a bundle of fun. We all love him dearly. It was our first time with him at the reservation.”

“Truffle was on-leash, frolicking with my daughter and her friend, and having a merry time until two off-leash dogs set upon him,” the woman wrote.

“One of them attacked Truffle and after what seemed like an eternity, but was likely only a minute or two, the owners caught up to the two dogs and managed to bring them under control. The girls were terrified, crying and screaming. I was screaming. My husband helplessly tried to extricate our dog from harm. Truffle was very scared, but he seemed otherwise ok after we quickly looked him over.”

“We high-tailed it back to our car and it was only once we were on the way home that we realized he was bleeding. I took him to the animal hospital and sure enough, he had two puncture wounds, which required several stitches. Fortunately, Truffle is going to be fine. We humans, however, will not soon forget the horrifying vision of our beloved dog being attacked.”

Mills Reservation is an Essex County park located in Cedar Grove and Montclair. The park has several walking and jogging trails, and is frequented by dog walkers.

According to the Essex County Parks website, unleashed dogs are prohibited except in “designated areas.”

Violations are punishable by a written summons or fines up to $1,000.

File photo: Mills Reservation

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