JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) — New details are emerging about what was reported as a dog bite at a Home Depot in Evergreen.
FOX31 is hearing investigators are waiting for medical records to determine the extent and type of the injuries.
Jefferson County Animal Control investigators said they first need to know what kind of injuries were caused by the dog to determine if charges need to be filed.
Investigators are now waiting for a doctor’s report to determine if the dog bit the customer or head-butted her.
FOX31 was told the dog’s owners and a trainer were all at the store when the woman was hurt.
“The victim asked the dog owner if she could pet their dog and then they asked her if she would give him a treat,” Jefferson County Animal Control Supervisor Jennifer Dow said.
That is when the incident took place, but the owners took off investigators said.
The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office asked for the public’s help identifying the dog and its owners.
An anonymous tip helped officers find them.
It is not clear if the victim asked the owners to stay after she was hurt.
“I’m not sure. I don’t think so. I think she was recovering, and she was surrounded by all the employees that came and were giving her gauze. She was bleeding a lot, they were trying to stop the bleeding,” Dow said.
VCA Alameda East Veterinary Hospital Veterinarian Kevin Fitzgerald said it’s best to be extremely careful when approaching someone else’s dog.
“There are cues that mean something to an animal, that that might not mean anything to us that might make them fearful or defensive and might set them off,” Fitzgerald said.
Even when given permission to pet, it’s best to still be careful.
“I think we have to be careful and the unpredictable nature that they are not little people they are animals,” Fitzgerald said.
The great Dane is now in quarantine.
Jefferson County Animal Control said the dog is 2 years old and had been vaccinated.
FOX31 made a request to speak to the person who was hurt in the incident, but she declined.
A spokesperson from Home Depot told FOX31, “As a practice, we do not allow animals in our stores except for service animals. However, when allowed by law, individual stores may tolerate dogs that are properly secured at their discretion.”
Jefferson County does not prohibit animals in buildings.