Family recovers following stray dogs attack on a Manitoba First Nation

A teen has been discharged from the hospital following a serious dog attack at a Manitoba First Nation, and now the family is calling for more awareness to be safe around strays.

Friday night, Treyden McLeod was taking one of the trails in Cross Lake. That’s when he heard barking. Seconds later, he was attacked by a dog.

McLeod managed to fight it off, but then was attacked by a few other dogs. He says the attack is still fresh in his memory and he’s struggling to speak about it.

“I still hear those dogs. I still hear them barking, I still hear them biting me,” he explained.

His grandmother, Shirley Robinson, says it has been traumatic.

“It was one of our local men, who lived not too far from where that happened. He was up watching TV. And he turned of television and heard a faint call; he could hear somebody,” said Robinson.

McLeod was taken to the hospital with multiple scratches and bruises all over his body. The family asked not to show photos of his injuries.

His grandmother says it took medical staff a while to stabilize him, as he was also suffering from hypothermia.

“They said they were trying to stabilize him, and it was very scary. I didn’t know what to think, what was going on just yet,” said Robinson.

His family expects the recovery to be lengthy, both mentally and physically. But McLeod will require a prosthetic ear.

“I was pretty sad to hear about my ear, too. But I am getting plastic surgery there. I just hope it happens soon,” he explained.

McLeod says the community support is helping keep his spirits up. He says friends, people from other communities and even total strangers reached out over the past four days to show support.

“A lot of people are reaching out to me from out there. A lot of people are supporting me,” said McLeod.

Robinson says it’s her understanding that the dogs that attacked her grandson will be put down, and hopes more measures will be taken to prevent tragedies from happening in the future.

“These dogs are going to be taken care of. I know that. I know that there are measure taken in our community to ensure that what transpired does not happen again,” said Robinson.

McLeod will now head home to celebrate Christmas among siblings and relatives.

“I am happy to go back home. I don’t think it’s going to be the same, when I go back. There will be a lot of dogs around.”