Pit bull bites off portion of child's cheek in Winters

Daily Democrat (Woodland, CA) ^

[Chet 99]

Pit bull bites off portion of child's cheek in Winters

By Democrat Staff

Created: 06/11/2010 08:24:44 AM PDT

A pit bull dog has attacked a Winters child, biting off a portion of the youth's cheek. The dog responsible for the attack on the evening of Sunday, June 6, has since been destroyed, according to Vicky Fletcher business service manager of the Yolo County Animal Control Department.

Fletcher reported late Thursday, that county sheriff's deputies responded to calls for assistance after learning of the attack. Fletcher did not provide information on where the attack occurred, or the identity of the child.

She did say the dog bit the child in the face, "removing a portion of the cheek tissue."

The youth was taken by ambulance to receive medical care. At the time of the attack the child and family were accessing an alley behind the dog owner's residence, Fletcher stated, and the child was riding a bicycle.

The dog, a female 2-year-old pit bull got into the alley from the owner's property through an unsecured gate.

Animal Services contacted the owner of the dog, Charlee Gonzalez of Winters, who relinquished the dog to the custody of Yolo County Sheriff's Department Animal Services for quarantine.

Mr. Gonzales was later issued a Notice to Appear for violation for having an animal at large.

The dog was euthanized on Tuesday and tested for rabies virus, since there was no proof the animal had been vaccinated.

"Yolo County Sheriff's Department Animal Services would like to remind dog owners to take the responsibility of keeping their pets contained on their ownproperty or on leash, keeping them currently licensed, vaccinated for rabies and wearing tags; all a requirement of law," Fletcher reported. Dog owners are currently being provided with an opportunity to bring their dog licenses current with no penalty fees until July 31. License fees per year are $10 for spayed or neutered dogs and $25 for unaltered dogs.

Rabies vaccinations are available at Animal Services by appointment on Saturday's for $8 per vaccination and DHPP vaccine for an additional $10. Owners of cats are also recommended to have their pets vaccinated against the rabies virus; this is a migratory area for bats which are high risk carriers for the rabies virus.

[Col Frank Slade]

Every day there is a pit bull attack on here.

Jeez.

[arrogantsob]

A day without a pit bull attack would be real news.

[gundog]

Take your pitbull hunting instead of hunting for your pitbull.

[Grunthor]

“the child was riding a bicycle.”

Obvious provocation.

[verity]

See if you can find a story about a child biting a pit bull.

[ScottinVA]

Next up: lawsuit.

[Pessimist]

“Every day there is a pit bull attack on here.”

And every day it’s posted by Chet99.

Just like train stories by WillyGreen

[John O]

“Every day there is a pit bull attack on here.”

And every day it’s posted by Chet99.

Just like train stories by WillyGreen

The difference is that Chet has a valid point. Pit bulls are an unsafe breed.

(Willie's just so hooked on the fantasy of high speed rail seats that he can't see the reality that it will never work here)

[Dayman]

A good reminder to always be armed.

[Chode]

not sticking up for PB's just looking at the arithmetic.

what's the most popular "breed" of dog in America???

the MUTT / Mixed Breed, i.e. DOG...

there are more DOG bites in America than anything other "breed" but i guess pitbull is easier to spot

[solosmoke]

“The difference is that Chet has a valid point. Pit bulls are an unsafe breed.”<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Not according to experts that have studied dog bites and animal behavior. Pit bulls are just as safe as other strong breeds built for work, with responsible owners.

The problem right now is that they are the most popular dog in this country in most places, and many are owned by people that shouldn’t own any dogs at all. The history of the breed shows that before they became popular with idiots, they were once popular with regular people wanting family dogs or working dogs, and there weren’t maulings. Dogs are what you make of them. If young people, thugs, or criminals want a tough dog, they will seek out and breed/train what they think fits the description.

The vast majority of pit bulls (literally millions in this country) never make headlines, despite the fact that a great many of them are owned by people who neglect them in various ways. Look at this story compared to Chet’s others. Most of them involve dogs running loose, chained up, or somehow left alone with small children. Those are the same examples of irresponsibility found in dog attacks from other breeds.

[goat granny]

Chet is not the only one that posts pit bull warnings...a couple of other freepers have also taken up the banner to warn others of the viciousness of these dogs.. Thanks Chet.

[Joe 6-pack]

"The dog, a female 2-year-old pit bull got into the alley from the owner's property through an unsecured gate...The dog was euthanized...since there was no proof the animal had been vaccinated."

Clearly a negligent owner who violated one of the most basic rules of responsible dog stewardship. Blaming the dog in this case (as with most) is roughly the equivalent of blaming a firearm for going off accidentally when a human being should have had his finger off the trigger.

[solosmoke]

It is just plain silly for people to believe putting stories like this out (without putting them all on here) is a public service. It isn’t like the media is trying to cover up pit bull incidents! For God’s sake, people, when are you going to realize that the media reports what makes them the most money!

If you don’t believe this, please explain why we are seeing a couple of pit bull attack stories published every day, yet public health records show about two THOUSAND attacks happening every day that require hospitalizations (out of the 13 THOUSAND that happen daily). There is a HUGE discrepancy between the few pit bull stories that are published and the other, far more numerous incidents involving serious injury that seem to be unaccounted for!

All it takes is about two hours to read the reputable studies out there that say it isn’t ANY BREED of dog, but irresponsible ownership that causes dog attacks, but most would prefer to have their heads auto-filled with nonsensical media rhetoric and the rantings of a few attention-starved pit bull haters. How sad that we live in such a supposedly enlightened, educated country, but there are still so many willing to vehemently stand up for false information instead of accepting the proof that what they believe is not true.