Pit Bull Mauls Grandma, Arms Amputated

ABC7 ^ | 2.17.04

[ambrose]

ORANGE - A 91-year-old Orange woman attacked by her great-grandson's pit bull had both of her arms amputated and was in critical condition at UC Irvine Medical Center today.

Ruby Sharum, whose arms were amputated at the elbows, also suffered serious damage to her face in the Friday night dog attack, said Jean Necas, a nursing supervisor at UCI Medical Center.

Zion, the dog that attacked Sharum, reportedly belong to her great- grandson, identified by the Orange County Register as Ian Buckhard.

At Buckhard's request, Orange County animal control officials euthanized Zion on Saturday, the Register reported. A Rottweiler owned by Buckhard also was impounded, the newspaper reported.

Officials are trying to determine if the Rottweiler participated in the attack on Sharum, or poses a future danger, according to the newspaper.

Animal control officials visited the home on the 400 block of South Pixley Street several times in past year, neighbors told the newspaper. The dogs were sometimes seen wondering loose outside, they said.

A few weeks ago, a third pit bull living in the home was euthanized after sustaining serious injuries in a fight with Zion, according to the newspaper.

[Slings and Arrows]

The dogs were sometimes seen wondering loose outside, they said.

"Wow, man! Like, what's it all mean, y'know?"

[Elle Bee]

will we defend the dog's right to 'bare arms'?

.

[thoughtomator]

A pit bull named Zion? The owner has to be one for the psychology books!

[capitan_refugio]

"The dogs were sometimes seen wondering loose outside, they said."

I, too, wonder what they wondered about!

(Hint: Spell-checkers are not the solution.)

[GeronL]

If the liberal media picks this up... the headline:

Attack Dog Zion Assaults Grandma; Sharond denies involvement.

[GeronL]

My cat is named Wanderer.. got the name before his eyes were open...

[My Dog Likes Me]

In my neck of the woods (Alabama) we had a pitbull attack and kill a grandmother who was raking leaves. She had been "minding" the dog for either her son or grandson for several days before the attack.

I was surprised at local media coverage here afterwards. Experts were beating that "nature versus nurture" drum immediately. The pitbull just wasn't raised right??!! Give me a break. Why don't collies attack and kill people on a regular basis? I think pitbulls should be banned.

They're just, by nature, killer animals.

[farmfriend]

A few weeks ago, a third pit bull living in the home was euthanized after sustaining serious injuries in a fight with Zion, according to the newspaper.

Too bad they didn't get a clue and put them both down.

[Clock King]

It's not just the breed, it's the owners. Sounds like this fool was using pits and rotts to pump up his own manhood, and let them/made them aggressive. I wonder if he even feels any sense of responsibility for maiming his great-grandma? I hope the rest of the family beats his a-- like no tomorrow.

[Maynerd]

ba da bing!

[Melas]

A pit bull named Zion? The owner has to be one for the psychology books!

Nah, pop culture reference. The Matrix.

[clee1]

True, the owner bears the bulk of the responsibility for raising dogs that are aggressive - but some dogs are just beyond the control of some kinds of people.

I have had several Pits, Rotts, and Chows - all notoriously aggressive breeds. MINE have never done more than bark at people, let alone attack anyone. It is critical that aggressive breeds be kept only by people that know how to raise them and keep them under control.

[ApplegateRanch]

Bird dogs are, by selective breeding, predisposed to either set, point, flush, or retrieve birds.

Collies, Shelties, etc are, by selective breeding, predisposed to herd.

Hounds are, by selective breeding, predisposed to trail game.

Pit bulls are, by selective breeding, predisposed to cause Liberals to repudiate their belief in Natural Selection.

[My Dog Likes Me]

I'm not liberal. My life experience tells me that pit bulls are the serial killer-terrorists of the dog world, and should be banned.

Pit bulls are evil. Some insurance companies won't insure your house if you own one of these insane animals.

In the two attacks mentioned above (on old women), both victims apparently "knew" the pit bulls. They weren't even random strangers!

Also, these dogs are good fence-jumpers. They'll find a way to escape from the back yard and cause mayhem or injury in the neighborhood. That accounts for the "dogs..wandering" line in the posted article. The owner could have been the guy from "Wild Kingdom," yet he'd still have no control over them or their base instincts.

As I said, when collies begin attacking grandmothers, then we'll revisit the "nature vs. nurture" issue in a serious manner. Far as I'm concerned, that argument is illogical, based on the evidence.

[Khurkris]

Dogs of peace

[HairOfTheDog]

Poor woman...

Good Lord I don't understand why Pit Bulls are chosen as pets.... There are just so many better choices available.

[ApplegateRanch]

My point was that Liberals generally favor Darwinian Selection, except when it comes to banning Pits; then they scream 'nurture'. But, I expect them to be illogical at best, and hypocritical at worst...that's why neither of us is one.

EVERY breed has characteristics genetically instilled in it by selective breeding; that is what makes it a 'breed'. Anyone who does not believe Pits are selectively bred for mindless, tenacious, vicious aggression, does not understand the 'selection' of 'selective breeding'.

Yes, they DO need to be banned, as is being done in parts of Europe, via mandatory neutering & spaying, etc.

Dobermans were bred by the Nazis for similar characteristics. Unlike Pit Bull breeders, Doberman breeders have SELECTIVELY bred for better temperament, while retaining conformation, and ended up with a trustworthy working guard dog.

When one of our Shelties escaped, I finally found her over a mile away. She was bored, so opened a gate, and went out and found a shepherd & his flock. He told us she was a good worker, and welcome to help him; send her over whenever she was acting bored. Natural ability; we had not trained to her work. Had she been a Pit, it would have been a very different scenario.
Sheepdogs need sheep to be happy; Pit Bulls need killing.

If it were up to me, there would not be a Pit Bull alive in the world by tomorrow morning.

[capitan_refugio]

Yes, but did your cat chew anyone's arms off?!

[capitan_refugio]

Nature or nurture? Can a breed "designed" for viciousness be "re-programmed"?