Hats off to Mary for attention to the following. Most of the serious maulings are done by pit bulls considered to be "family dogs."
Boy's arm amputated after family dog attacks
WorldNow and WoodTV Posted: July 26, 2008 04:42 PM
Updated: July 27, 2008 03:06 PM
PAW PAW, Mich (WOOD) - A 10-year-old boy had his arm amputated Saturday after the family dog attacked him.
It happened in the 52000 block of Brachetto Drive in Paw Paw around 11 a.m. Saturday.
Deputies from Van Buren County say the child was left home alone for a short time.
His brother arrived home to find the family dog, a two-year-old a pit bull named 'Torco' attacking the child.
The boy was taken to the hospital where he was listed in critical condition.
Authorities say the child had several puncture wounds and sustained injuries so severe that his right arm had to be amputated.
Neighbors in the area tell 24 Hour News 8 that they saw emergency crews at the same home earlier this summer because of the dog attacking another person in the home.
"We actually confronted him about it because we were very concerned for our own children," said Dave Bos, who lives across the street from where the attack happened. "It breaks my heart to see that a young child like that...had to lose his arm as a result of it. It's very depressing," he said.
Another neighbor, Doug Resman, says he even tried contacting law enforcement about the dog.
"They just said you have to wait until something else happens," said Resman.
The neighbors say that the man injured in the earlier incident had to have stitches and that animal control was called but the family refused to get rid of the dog despite their concerns.
"They are animal lovers, they have more than one animal and they just wanted to keep him," said Bos, "He (the dog owner) is a very nice guy and he didn't mean for this to happen. Unfortunately it did and you cant take back the inaction that you didn't take before."
The boy's parents were in Indiana at the time of the attack.
They were notified and police say they made their way back to West Michigan Saturday afternoon.
The dog was put down after being taken to the Van Buren County Animal Control Shelter in Hartford.