At least six people stopped along highway to help free smaller dog

Smoky was taken to an emergency veterinarian clinic in Langley where he underwent surgery for several bites around his neck, requiring stitches, and a broken blood vessel in his eye. (Contributed)

A woman and her friend were attacked by a pit bull type dog while trying to stop it from attacking a smaller one they had been walking Sunday evening in downtown Maple Ridge.

Shanna Boehmer and her friend Christopher Wolfe were walking Smoky, a two-year-old maltipoo, on the south side of Lougheed Highway, toward Burnett Street at around 7 p.m. when another dog, described by them as a pit bull, burst through the gate of a ground-level condo unit and grabbed her dog by the neck.

“There’s a broken gate and a broken door to the patio on that condo,” explained Boehmer, saying the dog came flying out of the gate right on top of Smoky.

Wolfe let go of Smoky’s leash and managed to unhook it before it wrapped around Boehmer’s hand. Then he jumped on the dog and pinning it down with his body.

At least six people stopped to help. A couple of trucks pulled off Lougheed Highway onto Burnett Street and two men ran to their aid.

“This dog was really strong. He actually lifted me up a couple of times and I’m 248 pounds,” said Wolfe.

While Wolfe had the dog pinned, another man went behind him and lifted the dogs rear legs, which released Smoky, who ran onto the highway.

Boehmer ran after Smoky while witnesses called the police, who, Boehmer says, showed up within seconds.

“Halfway down Lougheed, before The Frogstone [Grill], a lady coaxed him off the road. Another lady stoped traffic going towards Mission,” explained Boehmer

“I was shaking so bad, one of the guys turned around and said, ‘Come sit in my truck.’ And I was like, ‘If I don’t sit down, I’m on the ground,’” Boehmer said as she held onto Smoky.

Wolfe suffered superficial wounds on the middle finger of his left hand and a little bit of damage to his right hand, as well, during the struggle.

Boehmer suffered rope burn from the leash when it wrapped around her arm before Wolfe managed to let go of it.

Paramedics on scene examined the injuries and told Wolfe to go to the hospital if the cuts got worse.

Smoky was taken to an emergency veterinarian clinic in Langley, where he underwent surgery for several bites around his neck, requiring stitches, and a broken blood vessel in his eye.

“He is sore and scared, but will be okay,” wrote Betty Cocking, Boehmer’s mother, in a Facebook post in the group Protecting Maple Ridge Without The Censorship.

The incident has been reported to the B.C. SPCA, which is aware of the report, and Ridge Meadows RCMP.

“We want to thank all the good Samaritan that helped out yesterday, especially the young people who stayed with our daughter while the police and ambulance attended and gave them a ride home,” said Cocking in her post.