Officer returns to work after dog attack injury

Six months after a dog attack, Constable Amanda Munro is back at work on light duties with plans to return to the road later this fall.

“I was lucky, I didn’t need surgery,” said Amanda, who received serious injuries to her left arm on March 1, 2019 while accompanying another agency to a residence in Vanier. She had no choice but to shoot the animal with her service firearm.

Amanda goes to physiotherapy twice a week to regain strength and mobility in her injured arm. It’s been a slow recovery, but she’s making progress.

“The hardest part was not being able to pick up my son or even change his diaper. He’s too young to understand why,” said Amanda. “For the first six weeks, I had to have someone with me to help look after him.”

Her husband and her parents took turns helping during this time.

Because of the high likelihood of infection that goes with animal bites, the injury had to be left open to heal from the inside out. “They closed the wound in three places and I was put on antibiotics to prevent an infection,” said Amanda.

An animal lover, Amanda now has a healthy caution towards strange dogs. “I know I will encounter dogs when I return to the road and some of them could be aggressive,” she said. “I will be more alert when I encounter them, but it doesn’t change the fact I love dogs.”

Amanda hopes to gain full use of her arm.