By Jennifer Stultz
Tri-County Tribune Editor
jstultz@cherryroad.com

One minute, Michelle Popovich was walking her sweet dog, Daisy, on a beautiful spring evening in Pratt, the next minute she was screaming for help as a loose dog in the neighborhood ripped into her beloved companion.

“I was just a block from my house on S. Pine, walking my dog. It was a horrifying experience. I will never ever do that again. It’s pretty sad you cannot even take your dog for a walk any more down your own residential street,” Popovich said.

Loose dogs, dangerous dogs, dogs off leash, people not caring properly for dogs has long been discussion fodder for Pratt area social media groups, but this outright attack Thursday, March 20, 2025 at the corner of Third and S. Pine, highlights the extent of the problem.

“It’s all kind of a blur,” said Popovich, a teacher at USD 382 who was enjoying an evening of spring break with her dog. “My daughter called so I was getting my cell phone out while holding Daisy’s leash, and I saw some dogs loose in the yard on the corner but didn’t think too much about it. Then all of the sudden they came running at me, growling and barking. My poor Daisy, jumped in front of me to protect me and the first dog just tore into her, ripping her shoulder, grabbing her by the neck and pinning her down in a death hold. All I could do was scream. I was so frightened, so scared. I just screamed and screamed for someone to come help me. My poor dog was being shredded in front of me and I just felt so helpless.”

Popovich said she later learned that her daughter called 911, a nearby neighbor jumped into the fray and tried to get the attacking dog off of her Daisy by grabbing it around the neck. The owner of the attacking dog, later identified as Michelle Overmyer, ran down the street to get off-duty Pratt City Police Officer Danny Gimpel who had just arrived at his home. Pratt City Police Officer Mason Eck arrived on the scene to assist and the vicious dog was secured, but not until after it turned on Officer Gimpel who round-house kicked it as he scooped up Daisy and put her into the back of a car.

“The owner of the dog said her dog was a rescue animal but had never attacked anyone or anything like that before,” said Popovich. “I do appreciate that she has agreed to help pay for Daisy’s vet bills which have already totaled close to $1,000, but this never should have happened. We have leash laws; we have dangerous dog ordinances. Why were there four dogs loose in a yard in a neighborhood where there are young children playing outside daily, where people like me just like to go for a walk? I do not feel safe anymore.”

According to the City of Pratt Police Department report on the incident, there were no charges filed, and the only information considered releasable to the public were the time, date and place of the attack. Names of the dog owner, the person attacked, the two police officers who responded, and the place of the attack were listed on the report pages. Nothing else.

Popovich said she was told that the dog had to be put down and tested for rabies, but she has had no verification of that yet. Her own dog, Daisy, is touch-and-go, hour-by-hour, as to whether she will survive or not. She has been stitched back together by a local vet and released for home care but she is not able to walk or move around on her own.

“Sometimes she seems better, other times it worries me. It is so hard to see her in such pain. The pain meds don’t last long enough,” Popovich said. “I took her to the vet yesterday to have the drain taken out; he said she is not out of the woods because we don’t know what is going on inside but, on the outside, it looks like things are healing.”

Popovich said Daisy, a miniature Australian Shepherd, joined the family in the summer of 2018 so she is almost 7 years old. Her favorite pastimes are snuggling on the couch or chair with her owners or playing with the family cat. She has been a loyal protector and a sweet companion to Michelle and her husband, Larry. They are hoping she will survive but are not sure what her quality of life will be if she does. She is not able to walk at this time.

Both are thankful however, that Daisy jumped in front of Michelle at the time of the attack and cannot begin to think of what might have happened otherwise.