Wildlife Attacks Dog

TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) - The Arizona Game & Fish Department is reminding pet owners to beware of wildlife that could be in neighborhoods after a recent dog attack on the west side.

Amber Knox said she found her three-year-old rescue, Bullet, bloody Friday night after he got out of the backyard through an unlocked gate.

'The amount of blood we saw, I'm surprised he made it back. He's a very strong dog,' said Knox. 'He looked like he had been through a fight, he looked very beaten down.'

While it is not confirmed what kind of animal attacked Bullet, AZGFD said it could have been a javelina or coyote. The team working on him at The Pet Doctor Tuesday believed it may have been a mountain lion or a bobcat.  

'When wildlife attacks animals, they are doing it because they want to eat,' said Doreen Windsor, Hospital Manager. 'They aren't doing it because they are playing, they are doing it for the kill.'

Knox said she usually walks Bullet every morning in the wash and has seen animals before, like herds of javelina, but had never been close enough to feel in danger of the wildlife.   

Windsor said Bullet was lucky to have made it, and said smaller animals may not have been as lucky. 

'The size of him and his strength is probably the only thing that got him through,' said Knox.