MONTREAL -- A young woman in Montreal who was attacked by a dog as she rode her bicycle Sunday wants more to be done to make sure pet owners are following all the rules.
"The dog just lunged at me," said Vanessa Piliguian.
She and her boyfriend were biking on a path when she said a German Shepherd attacked her.
"I was in shock, screaming at the top of my lungs saying my boyfriend's name. I threw my Bixi bike right on the corner."
She said at first the dog didn’t let go and when the dog finally did she was left with a deep cut that required stitches and bruises.
"I couldn't stop crying, almost hyperventilating, too," she said. "I was panicking. I was freaked out by the dog."
She says the dog was on a leash when it snapped, but said the owner couldn’t control the animal and with the path being so narrow, she couldn’t get away.
To avoid situations like this, Montreal updated its dangerous dog by-law three years ago following the death of Christiane Vadnais, who died after being attacked by a dog in her backyard.
One of the provisions came into effect last January, which states that any dog that weighs more than 44 pounds must wear a harness when being walked.
The couple said the dog appeared to weigh more than that and wasn't wearing a harness. Piliguian’s boyfriend said the rules should be even stricter.
"Just have a muzzle on the dog at least," said Jordan Kardassilaris.
"If it had a muzzle, it would have hit my girlfriend not bit. It would have been a very different outcome; maybe a bruise, not a gouge in her leg, not bleeding."
The bylaw states a muzzle is only mandatory if the dog is being evaluated as potentially dangerous.
CTV News reached out to the city to get an update on the dog involved in the attack, but has not heard back.
The couple did file a police report and as they wait for news, they are thankful that it wasn't worse.
