Vacation and Dog Bites

We spent last week in Lake Geneva, WI visiting my mom.  The weather couldn't have been more perfect. Sidekick has always said that Grandma lives at the beach, but until we read books about the beach, I'm not sure he understood what that means.  As soon as he saw the beach near Grandma's house he got so excited.  It's like a light bulb went on in his head. Our first day there, we went to the beach, and this kid was so incredibly happy! One would think that he's been going to the beach since the day he was born.  He has no fear whatsoever and he just embraced every new adventure.

 

           

                    

 

After his nap that afternoon, we went outside so Sidekick could sweep the acorns on Grandma's driveway (is every kid obsessed with sweeping like mine???).  A family with a three year old and two terrier-like dogs were out for a walk.  We've met them before, so we all started talking.  After about ten minutes, Sidekick, who adores dogs, walked towards the dogs slowly. Both dogs were on leashes.  Dog #1 grabbed Sidekick by the shirt and started attacking him.  Dog #2 apparently felt left out, so he started attacking Dog #1, and Sidekick was literally caught in the middle.  I immediately ran to get Sidekick, the dad picked up his daughter, and the mom was panicking while trying to separate the two dogs that were fighting.  Talk about an adrenaline rush!  It was the scariest thing ever!  Sidekick was screaming, and I wasn't sure if it was because he was hurt, scared, or both. I looked him over and found a massive scratch down his stomach and four puncture holes on his shoulder. 
 
I didn't want Sidekick to be afraid of dogs after this incident, so after he calmed down, he did pet the dog (that was being held very tightly) that attacked him.  He's such a brave boy.  We went inside so I could look him over again and clean him up.  When my mom got home shortly after this incident, I walked down to the neighbor's house to make sure they were up to date with their shots, which they were.  The mom started sobbing as soon as she saw me.  I gave her a big hug and reassured her that Sidekick was okay, but she kept saying she couldn't imagine if that had happened to her daughter.  I told her that I was very relieved that nothing more had happened to Sidekick, and that we should all be grateful.  Later that night, I couldn't get that image of two dogs attacking my sweet boy. 
 
The next day, the family came down and brought Sidekick a dog stuffed animal.  As soon as she saw  me, she started crying again. I think they felt better seeing that Sidekick was just fine, and we never made an issue of it again to him, so I'm hoping he's forgotten about it.  This whole incident gets me thinking... I have a golden retriever, and I wonder what I would do if she attacked Sidekick or someone else. Would I assume it was a fluke or would I take drastic measures and put her to sleep?  Even though I am a total dog lover, Dog is almost 12 years old, but part of me thinks that I would never trust her again, and for my peace of mind, I think I'd have to put her to sleep.  I would be devastated for so many reasons just like this family is, but humans take priority in my life, and I'm not sure I'd ever want Dog around Sidekick again especially since he likes to lay on her, hug her, play rough with her, etc. I wonder if this family is thinking the same thing as I.