Kyle Dyer, KUSA Anchor In Denver, Bit On The Face By Rescued Dog (GRAPHIC VIDEO)

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Max, a 3-year-old Argentine Mastiff, fresh off his rescue from the icy waters of Smith Reservoir, has bit veteran KUSA anchor Kyle Dyer on the face during a segment being filmed at at 9News studios this morning.

This morning, the 9News Facebook page read:

There was an incident during 9NEWS today. Kyle Dyer was bit in the face by a dog. She is getting medical attention due to the injury. As soon as we know the extent of Kyle's injury, we will update you on her condition.

Thankfully, 9News reports that Dyer is "currently in fair condition and is being evaluated by the trauma team. She is awake and visiting with family who asked that we thank the community for their immediate outpouring of support."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/08/kyle-dyer-kusa-anchor-bit_n_1263246.html?ref=mostpopular

[Bonhomme Richard]

1. I would never had let her put her face that close to my dog.

The fault isn't with the dog. The fault is with the handlers.

[sharp_stick]

2. A Mastiff

fer chrisakes why are people so dumb, what else could you expect from the dog? It's not like the dog knew this woman, it's in a stressful environment and she goes right into it's face.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

3. a stressful environment + just rescued from a RESERVOIR

I would have kept my distance and let the dog's handlers provide the love.

[hlthe2b]

4. HuffPO never updates their articles... Kyle is doing well after lip reconstruction surgery & home..

There are additional updated videos on the wwww.9news.com website. THe owner was cited, as required by law, but will likely get the dog back in a few more days after he completes his mandatory 10 day quarantine (he was not current on rabies).

He will not be put down, as there was no prior history and from the POV of a stressed dog, this is not considered to be an "unprovoked" incident... I repeat, from the POV of the dog. No one is saying Kyle was doing anything intentionally aggressive. The bite is attributed to stress following his ordeal. But, in reality many dogs would see this move to put their face directly into their own-- by a stranger human-- as aggressive... Just not something one does with a dog you don't know. They are conditioned after all to react instinctively to predators going for their jugular... That instinct is not something that gets automatically blocked in a stressful situation with a human they don't know.

I know Kyle a little bit on a professional level. She is a wonderful person and adores animals. I know that she feels bad about what happened, not only for herself, but for the audience (especially kids) who may have seen the traumatic incident--and also for the dog. She made a mistake, but one I hope she'll be able to share with others in months to come to help educate others on how to approach dogs and other domestic animals you don't know. to her recovery and dedication.

[jsmirman]

8. Thank God, if they are sensibly considering the perspective of the dog

please continue to update.

I'm sorry for what happened to that lady, but seriously, forget putting your face in a animal's face who hasn't given a clear sign of welcome (no less one who has just been through a trauma) - let me tell you another thing not to do. Don't pet a freaking rescue dog on the head unless you have been told it's ok to do so, or the dog gives all of the indications that it is ready to be pet on the head (I am referring to this situation, in general, as a separate situation from what happened in the video). Many rescues have suffered abuse, and the hand's movement to the head will make them think of very unpleasant memories. If they bite you, I'm sorry, but it's because you did something stupid by approaching an animal you don't know without any common sense.

Everything you said in your post is true, though, especially the part about her being able to educate people on approaching animals who are not familiar with you and who you don't know.

I hope she does a follow up when she heals to speak in support of the dog and to explain the animal's perspective. Wonderful animals will bite if irresponsible humans approach them irresponsibly. Sounds like a very unpleasant injury, so I don't mean the last sentence to be read without any compassion, but I've just seen situations like this too many times.

And for information, in case anyone is reading this who would like a tip or two, in my experience, carefully present the back of your hand, dangled in a non-threatening manner for inspection. A cat or dog will sniff and inspect it and will decide how close to it they are willing to get. Then they will let you know how to proceed from there. Be highly attuned to how they are responding and don't be careless.

[CrawlingChaos]

13. That's what struck me when I watched the video

You can clearly see how much this woman loves animals. I'm sure the last thing she'd want to do is create bad PR for the canine world. It's just one of those unfortunate mishaps that becomes a learning experience. I've been bitten several times myself, usually because I did something foolish. I can just imagine how she feels, but I bet a whole lot of people who saw this video learned a little something about how not to approach a dog for the first time.

[backscatter712]

5. I don't blame the dog...

She clearly doesn't know how to read dog body language, and got in his face, and the dog reacted.

[flexnor]

6. I was bit on the nose by a mink when i was a little kid

didnt like it

glad i dont have scars

[flexnor]

7. as an adult, i dont blame the little sob for doing it

he/she was thinking

"ok you little monster, you flipped the lid on this box, i'm going to bite your face, make my way for the river and hasta lavista to this rich b--ch coat factory...no way in hell i'm gonna be 1/32nd of a coat for your female kind"

[flexnor]

9. whenever i approach a dog, i extend my hand, fingers inward

so it can smell, and make up it's own mind, and i read it's face. with my fingers inward, it cant bite them off if the verdict is negative. dogs have an olofactory memory, they can remember you by smell, or judge of you smell like someone they like or dislike

dogs are big on smell, both sensing (and creating) it. if you respect their ettiquette, you do better with them

[jsmirman]

10. You described the way I suggest to do it

see my post #8, above. I recommend this approach, as well.

It's the same thing with cats. They like to sniff things, too, to see how they feel about a situation.

[flexnor]

11. yup, same thing with cats

they really respect the territory thing

both cats and dogs really like people, they just need the etiquette

[jsmirman]

12. That's exactly it - let that "territory" be theirs

the distance between you and them is "territory" laden with much more vibrant meaning for them than it has for you.

As long as you let them control the interaction in that "territory," the worst you're going to get is a negative response in the form of non-interest/I'm sorry, I'm still afraid, please be patient or, at worst, a hiss. I mean there might be one or two exceptions to that (an unexpected attack), but if you can't see those coming (those animals will present very differently) and know to approach them even more carefully, you would have to almost be ignoring any possible signs.

I've seen cats that still need some work and can work you over because they're still getting adjusted to their surroundings still respect the rules surrounding a non-threatening hand. You're a human, which means you're part of a group that can be scary for them, but you're proffering a hand in a gesture that basically says, "I am no threat to you - here's my hand - you are in control and I'm not even defending myself from a swipe from you."