A Chilliwack man says he is nursing two “good-sized puncture holes” below his left knee after a day skimboarding on East Beach ended with a dog bite.
And Matt MacLean said he wants others to be aware of the potential danger, particularly since the sport draws so many young enthusiasts.
“If that was a little kid, that could’ve been a lot of damage,” he said.
MacLean, 21, said he had been at the beach with a friend for about five hours Sunday when the incident occurred around 5:30 p.m.
“We were just making our way back up to our stuff. (The dog) just came out of the blue and got me from the back,” MacLean said.
He described the dog as an unleashed pit bull, lighter brown in colour with some white. It clamped on as MacLean skimmed across a tide pool, and inflicted a wound he estimated took about 30 minutes to stop bleeding.
The owner, a man in his 20s, was “not too concerned,” MacLean said. The man told him the salt water would be good for the wound and asked that if he reported the incident, to “try to avoid saying (the dog) was vicious,” he said.
MacLean said he reported the incident to police but said he also wants the public to be aware. He estimated he shared the tide pools with at least six young skimboarders over the course of the day and can only imagine what the outcome might have been if the dog had chosen to go after one of them instead.
MacLean said he is unable to bend his knee as a result of the bite, and will not be able to return to his work installing kitchen cabinets until he can get around without crutches.
White Rock RCMP said Monday the incident did not show up on a search of detachment records; Surrey RCMP were unable to confirm the report by Peace Arch News’ press deadline.