Man dies after being attacked by his own bull terrier

The Independent (U.K.) ^ | 05/17/03 | Matthew Beard

[Pokey78]

A man found dead at home was savaged to death by his Staffordshire bull terrier, police said yesterday.

George Dinham, 45, was found on the floor of the home he shared with his brother, his head and neck covered in blood. Police believe the four-year-old dog, called Ben, may have panicked and attacked its owner after he passed out. A post-mortem examination confirmed that Mr Dinham's injuries were caused by dog bites. There were suggestions that he may have suffered an epileptic seizure.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "The unusual aspect of this incident is that the man died specifically from the bites. We often find that pet owners are mauled by their pets once they are already dead, but this was clearly not the case here."

The incident happened on Friday night last week in Wandsworth, south-west London. Mr Dinham's brother, Fred, had been out for the evening and returned shortly after midnight to find him dead. A police spokeswoman said the incident was initially treated as suspicious.

An inquest into Mr Dinham's death was formally opened on Thursday at Westminster coroner's court. The dog has been put in kennels while police decide whether he should be put down. Neighbours said they were frightened of the dog, which they claimed had attacked a nine-year-old girl three months earlier.

The RSPCA said it was highly unusual for a Staffordshire bull terrier to attack anyone. "It is remarkable," a spokeswoman said. "We have not heard incidents involving this sort of breed before. A lot of people like this breed because they are good with children." Chris Laurence, the society's chief vet, said: "It is possible for a dog to be spooked by its owner in some way. Any dog presented with an unusual change in its owner's behaviour may react equally unpredictably. It might run away or even attack."

[Pokey78]

[joesnuffy]

satan is alive an well on planet earth.....

[CdMGuy]

"We often find that pet owners are mauled by their pets once they are already dead..."

Hmmmm, can one conclude that dogs may not like their masters and take revenge in those cases where they know he/she cannot "bite back"?

[Ipse Dixit]

That story really bites.

[white trash redneck]

I've always wondered how long it would take before my cat took a nibble if I keeled over dead.

[dwilli]

The only reason that cat hasn't already dined on you is it's not as big as some of it's cousins.

[menajake]

The RSPCA said it was highly unusual for a Staffordshire bull terrier to attack anyone. "It is remarkable," a spokeswoman said. "We have not heard incidents involving this sort of breed before. A lot of people like this breed because they are good with children." Chris Laurence, the society's chief vet, said: "It is possible for a dog to be spooked by its owner in some way. Any dog presented with an unusual change in its owner's behaviour may react equally unpredictably. It might run away or even attack."


Why do these types always like to blame the dog owner. Why not just admit that the dog went nuts. Some dogs do that, ya know.

[Pagey]

This reminds me of the thread from last year.Dog bites 50 yr. old Husband.Husband calls wife at work and says I'm going to kill your dog.(Newly married you see)He hangs up.Goes outside, severly beats the dog w/ the butt end of the Shot-gun,it goes off, hitting him,he falls to the ground and hours later they find his body,dead covered by dogbites,which surely happened after that beating.That was definitely a "Hold muh Beer" Thread.Imagine bleeding and fading to black w/ that dog biting you after all that. ( DOH! )

[nightdriver]

"The RSPCA said it was highly unusual for a Staffordshire bull terrier to attack anyone. "It is remarkable," a spokeswoman said. "We have not heard incidents involving this sort of breed before."

Duhhh!

Oh, gee, he was a naughty, NAUGHTY doggie, wasn't he? (/sarcasm)

Actually, he's one mean-looking sonofabitch, if you ask me.

[Pokey78]

For clairification, that pic is not of that particular dog. It's just a generic pic of that breed.

[tenthirteen]

Thank you. Pokey, for that New York Times update. Clarification is the gear wheel of fair and honest journalism.

[George from New England]

Could this be a death due to English citizens being unable to own guns?

What am I crazy?

Since they cannot protect themselves with guns in their homes, more people are owning dogs, vicious dogs to attack intruders. This one backfired!

[Nachoman]

If the dog kills you he's domesticated. If he eats you, he's wild.

[nightdriver]

"For clairification, that pic is not of that particular dog. It's just a generic pic of that breed."

OK, then. That BREED is one mean-looking sonofabitch, if you ask me.

[VOA]

A lot of people like this breed because they are good with children.

I wonder if this is a Pravda-style way of saying these dogs like a challenge and thus
rarely attack smaller humans.

And people wonder why I get a bit concerned when I meet yuppies walking their pit bulls
WITHOUT A LEASH here in trendy parts of West Los Angeles.

Of course, I guess I should be philisophical...if you can't carry a gun, the leash
is just a piece of rope that will snap if one of these dogs wants you for exercising
their jaw muscles.

[frodolives]

And I'll bet this fellow never raised a hand to this 4 year old dog. Yep, completely unprovoked.

[Pearls Before Swine]

satan is alive an well on planet earth.....

Speaking poetically, I'd say He takes many forms. I can think of two fuller embodiments than the Staffordshire Terrier: Hyenas and Hillary.

[U S Army EOD]

When I had heart problems 3 years ago and went to the floor, my Aussie tried to get me up. Then he laid next to me until the EMT's arrived. They finally had to throw him out of the house because he kept trying to get in between them and me while they were trying to get the IVs in. When they carried me out on the streacher both of my dogs and the neighbor's started howling like wolves. My neighbor said this lasted for a full three to four hours.

The cats also sat around in a circle and watch all of this. To my knowledge, none of them were drooling or anything like that. All cats and dogs were glad to see me come home from the hospital.