Posted on 08/21/2007 8:00:32 PM PDT by paulat
Woman mauled by home-invading pit bulls
07:45 PM PDT on Tuesday, August 21, 2007
KING5.com Staff
Animal control officers say the victim was covered in blood after the dogs attacked PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. - In what deputies describe as the worst mauling they've ever seen, two pit bulls entered a Wauna-area home via the pet door and attacked a woman in her bed.
Pierce County Sheriff's Dept. spokesman Ed Troyer said a neighbor's Jack Russell terrier also entered the home in the 10600 block of 132nd St. Court NW through the dog door and the pit bulls attacked the terrier named Romeo.
The 59-year-old woman was in bed, in her room. Neighbors say she was sound asleep when the attack happened. She managed to get away, run to her car, lock herself in and call 911. Even after fighting off the dogs, she was in pretty bad shape.
Bernard Choi / KING 5 News
Two pit bulls entered a Pierce County home and attacked a woman in her bed.
"Pretty much from head-to-toe, she was covered in blood," said Pierce County Animal Control officer Brian Bowman.
Troyer said firefighters locked the pit bulls in the house until deputies arrived. Officers had to use pepper spray and fight the dogs to get them into custody.
The woman was taken to St. Joseph Hospital, where she was listed in satisfactory condition. The terrier was taken to an animal hospital, where he died Tuesday afternoon.
The pit bulls were taken to the Pierce County Humane Society, where they will remain until the case is resolved.
The pit bulls also attacked a Jack Russell terrier named Romeo.
Troyer said the owner of the pit bulls has been identified and lives on the same street as the victim. KING 5 went to the home, but nobody answered the door. Neighbors say they have had problems in the past with the two pit bulls running wild.
Information will be given to prosecutors, who will decide what, if any, charges will be filed against the owners. Animal control officers say they will recommend gross misdemeanor charges at the very least.
what if ANY charges?....I just don’t get it...
Rule #1--Don't have a pet door. I live in a semi-rural area, and if I had a pet door, every possum, skunk, raccoon, fox, small coyote, ground squirrel, jackrabbit, stray dog and feral cat in the county would find its way into my house. If that poor woman had not had one, her little terrier would still be alive.
This whole phenom of folks acquiring 'bad' dogs is the result of an emasculated populace where 'the state' has decided what you can and cannot do ie. self-defense which leaves you limited options, one of which is to acquire a pit bull (rather than carry a loaded gun and do 5-10 for possession)
As a contractor, I'm required to maintain a million dollar liability insurance policy (up to 3 million per occurance) should someone be harmed by my work. I see no reason at all to exempt pit owners (and any dog with pit blood) from such an insurance requirement. Let the risks associated with this breed be allocated to the owners according to the costs the market will determine. For a couple of hundred bucks a month, they can enjoy the 'companionship' of their pit, while mauling victims will have access to funds needed for reconstructive surgery, pain and suffering, trauma, etc.
Romeo was probably running for his life and headed straight for his 'mommy'. Once there, he probably made his 'last stand' which triggered the attack. The owner of these dogs is in serious sh*t.
Also, having met a few pit bull owners, all I can say is: on a socio-economic scale-- they leave a lot to be desired.
Is this really a case where it's hard to make the distinction?
Siegfried and Roy’s white tiger — the one that mauled Roy.
I’m betting on the cat.
So true. I work with a few of those people, and my best friend's daughter is a pit owner. A person only has to watch Animal Cops, on Animal Planet, to get an idea of the low class of the average pit owner. My husband forgot his breeding and raising one day, came home from a local flea market saying he'd almost bought our girls (a Jack and boxer) a brother. A half bull dog, half pit. I told him it was good he didn't because he'd have to take it back. I wanted nothing with pit in it. He said it looked more like a bull dog than a pit. I told him I didn't care. Sometimes I think he has lost his mind.
There are wonderful dogs out there people can have for protection. There's no need running the risk you'd run keeping pit bulls. I feel the same about wolf hybrids.
How about a law permitting one to kill a roaming pitbull w/o fear of lawsuit or criminal charges?
Come on now. They're undocumented pets.
Maybe the cops have gotten tired of all the bitching about the infrequent times they shoot a dog during a drug raid.
or vice versa.
Eight out of nine Jack Russell Terriers are killers? There is no reason for them other than sick dog fighting?
Really?????
LOL!
Then pass a local law for your local area by your local politicians and keep the feds out of it.
Hey watch what you say ! They are in fact a peaceful breed that are more the victims than the perps. Why can’t the rest of the doggy world get along with them ? So says CAPBR or the Council for American - Pit Bull Relations. If you criticise these gentle, wise creatures they will eat you !
You’re right. This kind of news story is all too common: someone’s “pet” pit bull mauls a neighbor. The desire to fight and kill has been so deeply bred into these animals that they can’t be trusted around people. If this breed became extinct, the world would be better off.
I have an Akita that would make short work of a pit bull.
I suspect if it were a revolver and she could get to it she could have easily shot them with one hand as close as they were. The shot didn’t have to be centered if the dog is on top of you anywhere will do and even the noice might cause them to quit, but a shot anywhere would have helped.
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