Posted on 03/30/2010 10:59:54 AM PDT by Chet 99
Pit bull attacks child 2nd time
Animal Control will euthanize dog this time
By Baylie Evans bevans@wyomingnews.com
CHEYENNE -- A 10-year-old boy is home recovering from surgery after a neighbor's pit bull attacked him and bit his leg last week.
This is the second time the dog has attacked the child in the last year.
Last Thursday, William Wyatt Kunert was on his family's porch at 599 E. Fifth St., in south Cheyenne, getting ready to ride his bike with some other neighborhood kids. His 2-year-old brother, Jordan Martinez, was beside him at the doorway.
That's when the neighbor's pit bull, which lived two doors down the street, "jumped its 4-foot fence and came straight at my son," Wyatt Kunert's mother, Lindsay Kunert, said.
Wyatt pushed his brother out of the way and tried to slam the screen door closed, she said. But he closed the door on the dog, with its head and shoulders inside the home.
The dog got hold of Wyatt left thigh from behind, dragged him outside and started shaking his leg violently, she said. She grabbed the dog's collar and tried to get the dog to let go of her son, but couldn't.
"I was just screaming," she said.
The owners of the dog then ran over to help and punched the dog in the head until it let go, she said. It took about three or four minutes before it finally let go.
As soon as she realized how bad her son's injury was, she called 911.
"(The wound) was the size of my fist, and I could see bone," she said.
Wyatt Kunert was taken to the hospital in an ambulance and then to surgery to repair his muscle fibers and stitch him up.
He was released Friday afternoon. Doctors told Lindsay Kunert that her son should recover fully within about a month, but he will always have a scar.
The owners of the dog have surrendered it, and it is currently at the Cheyenne Animal Shelter under observation to be sure it doesn't have rabies.
Around the same time last year, the same dog attacked Wyatt as he was walking his bike home from school.
That time, the dog bit his face around his eyes and cheeks, causing him to need several stitches and leaving scars.
"Animal Control was called at that time," Lindsay Kunert said.
Court records show the dog's owner, Duane Padilla, was cited the first time, in April 2009, for keeping a vicious animal. He paid the fine and never went to court.
Lindsay Kunert said she didn't pursue a lawsuit because she hoped her neighbors would make good on promises to pay her for her lost wages. They didn't, she said.
This time, Padilla and a co-owner of the dog have been cited for keeping a vicious animal and for not having proper vaccinations for the dog.
Lindsay Kunert said a lot could have been done to prevent the second attack. She said she feels Animal Control failed to follow up after the first attack, which allowed a dangerous dog to live in a neighborhood.
Whether an animal is impounded after it bites someone is left up to the discretion of the Animal Control officer who responds.
In this case, the officer issued a ticket after the dog attacked Wyatt the first time, but did not impound the dog or follow up on whether it had been properly vaccinated.
It is still unknown whether the dog was properly vaccinated at that time, said Rick Collard, the executive director of the Cheyenne Animal Shelter.
"Based on what I can see ... we did what we were supposed to do," Collard said of the first attack.
It is certain, he added, that the dog was not vaccinated when it bit Wyatt last week.
Now, because the owners surrendered the dog, it's up to Animal Control to decide what to do with it. The shelter doesn't adopt out vicious dogs, so it will be euthanized, Collard said.
Padilla expressed regret about what he called an "unfortunate accident" when visited at his home on Monday.
"I'd rather get hit by a car myself than have that kid go through that," he said.
There was a 4-foot chain link fence around the property and two "beware of dog" signs posted. Several small bicycles were in the yard.
There was another pit bull on the property, but Collard said that is not a concern for Animal Control.
"That (other) one didn't do anything," he said. "Dogs aren't any different than people. Certain dogs will do certain things, and other dogs won't."
Lindsay Kunert said she plans to get a lawyer this time.
"We may never see a dime, but it's just the principle of it," she said. "I'm going to make it my mission to try to make some changes to laws in town."
Pit bull attacks child 2nd time; Animal Control will euthanize dog this time.
They need help? I’d make the trip.
I made it an issue.
Any dog gets one bite.
Then, a bullet in its head.
No second chances and no do-overs.
Dog owners who object to their dog being put down might as well get the second round. Engraved, for posterity.
“Suing is mostly a waste for these people because they usually have no assets and if it weren’t for food stamps (debit cards now) to subsidize their lifestyles, then they would be able to afford dog food. Their pickup trucks are usually one payment from the repo man, and any spare cash they have the spend on beer, lotto tickets, cigarettes, and occasionally a self indulgent vacation.”
Did you mean to omit Meth?
“Probably rode his bike back and forth gettin him mad.”
You’re probably right. Damn kids! Probably rode past the house several times laughing and carrying on! What right do they have to ride their bicycles anyways? The dog owner should sue the kid’s parents for keeping annoying children in the neighborhood!
(Do I really need a sarc tag?)
I have been told, repeatedly, that attacks like this are rare.
Mr. Padilla should be put to sleep with his dog.
Amen! Wyatt is a brave young boy, protecting his little brother that way.
“He was a GOOD dog. He fathered a litter of puppies last spring and was just starting to get his life together. He was even talking about getting his GED from obedience school.”
They are probably not bred well by responsible breeders. I think a lot of backyard breeding goes on with pit bulls. A responsible breeder would not breed for agression in a dog. I think this breed is bred for the most part by yahoos who just want a vicious dog.
When I walk my little corgi, I am always armed in case a pit bull should attack him (or me).
And I bet those puppies were born out of wedlock, too!!!
Yes I ommited weed and other recreational chemicals so as not to offend those losers here who have pit bulls.
Actually, what you say is probably true, but you don’t necessarily need breeding to make a dog mean.
“Based on what I can see ... we did what we were supposed to do,” Collard said of the first attack.”
Apparently, “what we were supposed to do” was to issue the owner of a dog a fine, collect the fine, and do nothing further. A gross failure to prevent further attacks. This guy should be fired by his municipality and new procedures put in place
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