Dog attacks kill Harris County boy [TEXAS]

A 4-year-old boy died after he was mauled by two pit bulls this afternoon in his east Harris County neighborhood, authorities said.

The boy, who was not identified, was walking beside another child, who was on a bicycle, around 1:30 p.m. in the 8900 block of C.E. King Parkway when the dogs approached the boys, Harris County sheriff's deputies said.

The boy on the bike jumped off and was able to run away, but the other boy was bitten in the face by the dogs, said Sgt. Noel Araguz. The boy's mother ran outside to help him, but could not get the dogs off her son. The boy was flown to Memorial Hermann Hospital where he died at about 3 p.m.

Araguz said the attack lasted several minutes and the dogs were still mauling the boy when deputies arrived on the scene. The dogs were distracted by the lights and sirens of the deputies' cars.

As deputies approached the dogs, they were aggressive toward them and had to be shot, Araguz said. One of the dogs was killed and the other wounded.

Neighbors told authorities they thought the dogs were strays and no one has yet claimed to own the dogs.

You can bet the owner will not come forward.

Yeah, that's probably a safe bet :~(
Trailer parks, at least in my limited experience, are pretty small communities where people are aware of their neighbors.
So the dogs probably aren't from there.
Is the trailer park fairly isolated from other population centers?
'Healthy and well fed' could mean the owner lives nearby.
I wonder what police do in a case like this?
Do they canvas nearby areas? Give photos of the dogs to the media?

I'd also like to know what the trailer park office did in response to the complaint.
People have to start getting serious about preventing these attacks.
All the data shows that loose roaming dogs are responsible for significant percentage of fatal dog attacks. for example

Some additional info...

"Although the county has a leash ordinance to protect the public from such attacks, statistics from the Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services' Veterinary Public Health show loose dogs in unincorporated areas are a persistent problem.
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Pedro's death was the first that officials can recall in more than 20 years in unincorporated Harris County involving loose dogs.
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More than 7,000 stray dogs were impounded last year by county field officers, who work seven days a week answering between eight to 15 loose or injured animals calls a day.

About 70 percent of dog-bite cases are blamed on dogs that are running loose, said Colleen Hodges, a spokeswoman for the county's Veterinary Public Health division. Loose dogs involved in bite cases typically have not been vaccinated and are not registered, highlighting what officials call a pet ownership problem.

"The problem is dogs running loose. We have an irresponsible-owner problem," said Hodges. "It always comes back to the owner."
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Sounds like the county is doing its job but 7000 strays indicates a serious problem.

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