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Flashback: Ava Price, 22 Months Old, Mauled by Family Pit Bull
 Mom Blames the Bone
London - In December of 2007, a 22-month old girl received 25 stitches in her face after being bitten by the family pit bull. The girl's mother, Melissa Price, said her daughter Ava had backed the dog into a corner and was taunting the dog with a bone. She believed the dog tried to grab the bone, but instead it clamped down the child's cheek and tore it off.
Price had adopted the dog 8 months prior. She admits that at first, she was skeptical, but she decided to do it anyway. The family and dog originated from Ontario -- a Canadian province that bans pit bulls. Yet, the attack seems to have occurred in London (where the interview takes place). The presumption upon watching the video is that the Price family moved to London and took their dog with them.
The attack occurred when the girl was left alone with the dog, as she had been "100 times before," according to Price. But in this instance, a bone was involved. The 99 other occasions must not have involved a bone. Price added, "We all loved and cherished this dog, and at no point did we think that she was aggressive or going to be aggressive. But now, I truly don't think a pit bull should be a family pet."
Price had the dog euthanized after Ava was injured. She said, "I loved that dog to pieces -- I still wish she was here with us -- and I still do not support [Ontario's] ban on pit bulls." She believes her daughter will miss the pit bull named Mugsy. They were best friends. "[Ava] would hop on her back and ride her like a horse, and they would chase each around the house."
Then one day, Ava's best friend flipped. Related articles:
06/09/08: Spokane Toddler Mauled by Family Pit Bull-Mix, Mom...
01/30/08: Nominated: Mother of the YearLabels: adoption
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Follow Up: Grandfather Shoots Pit Bull Attacking Granddaughter
Family Wants Tougher Laws
Valdosta, GA - Last week DogsBite.org reported that Harold Yates shot a pit bull after it jumped out of some bushes and began attacking his granddaughter. The family had just returned from a boat ride. The pit bulls attacked near the boat landing. The young girl, Shelby Yates needed 18 stitches. Shelby says she threw her arm in front of her face. The dog bit into her arm and pulled her to the ground.
Her father, Terry Yates, told reporters, "My dad, he realized they [the pit bulls] weren't going to stop, so my dad pulled out his pistol and shot at them. Unfortunately he missed. One dog turned and ran away. But the second one kept on coming." He added that while at the hospital, Shelby was weighed at 59 pounds. They also weighed the dog, which was 82 pounds.
The Yates family wants to make sure the same thing does not happened to another family. But currently, there aren't even leash laws in the county. Decatur county officials say they are working on a new animal control ordinance. Like many places, though, they think that by enacting an anti-tethering rule, "mean dogs" will disappear. The pit bulls that attacked Shelby were loose and remain unidentified.
In other news:15-Year Old Attacked By Neighbor's Pit Bull
Charlotte, NC - Elizabeth Stanek, 15, was bitten on her legs by her neighbor's 2-year-old pit bull while outside her home. She was taken to the hospital where she was treated and released. The animal also charged at an officer who responded to a call for help. The officer fired a shotgun, killing the dog. The dog's owner, Phillip Thames, said he was at work at the time of the attack.
"I just don’t understand what happened,” Stanek said, adding she often approached the dog when it freed itself from a tether in the neighbor’s yard. "I said, 'Hey, come here boy. I’m going to put you back on your chain.' And he just sniffed me and started ripping my skirt off,” she said. Thames said he adopted the pit bull from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Animal Control facility.
Related articles:
05/07/08: Pit Bull Busts Chain, Attacks Boy, Drags into Bushes
04/02/08: Family Bull Terrier Attacks Teenager and MotherLabels: adoption, chain snap
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Adoption Disaster; Another Dog Dead to Pit Bulls
 Protestors Want Justice for Bear
Winter Park, FL - In an adoption disaster, a veterinarian adopted out a dog -- that had been rehabbed for 6 months to become a suitable pet -- and failed to do his homework. The dog named Bear was only to be adopted out for a 1-day trial. Still though, Bear was adopted out to a pit bull owner that can only be described as "criminal."
Bear was dead within days due to the man's pit bulls. The veterinarian, Dr. Cannon, adopted the dog out to Stellios Billis. Animal Control reports show Billis had been in trouble before for a dead rottweiler on the property and had also been cited for neglect. Now Cannon wants Billis held responsible (Better late than never?). Over the weekend, protesters gathered outside Billis's property and accused Billis of animal cruelty.
Why isn't it always considered "cruelty" when a pit bull tears to pieces someone's pet? And why aren't protestors clamoring after Animal Control or the vet for that matter? After 6 months of rehabilitating Bear, one would hope the dog was placed out carefully.
Related articles:
07/11/08: Pit Bulls Bust Through Fence; Kill Beagle
06/12/08: Pit Bull Caught on Camera Killing Cat
Labels: adoption
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Citizens of Surrey Speak Out
Pit Bulls’ Plight Not Our Concern
Surrey, BC - A citizen of Surrey agrees with DogsBite.org. In a recent post, we point out the ridiculousness of the Surrey SPCA blaming the media for the unadoptable pit bulls in the city's dog tank. According to the Surrey SPCA, the media's reporting of the recent pit bull attacks has made people afraid to adopt pit bulls, so they sit and suffer in cement cage "plight."
In the article, the Surrey SPCA does not address the human and animal victims that the recent pit bull attacks targeted, leaving most badly injured and at least one animal dead. Instead, they make a "puff piece," hoping readers will pull out Kleenex boxes and rush in to adopt pit bulls whose histories are unknown...
I am sure I join many readers who read the headline of last Wednesday’s edition of the Peace Arch News with outrage. PAN deemed that the plight of “homeless” pit bull dogs was the most important news of our region by placing the story as the front page lead. If the intent of this exercise was to provoke your readers, I’m sure you’ve succeeded.
First, I doubt if one per cent of the population has any concern for the welfare of this chronically troublesome breed. And second, the main thesis of the story is likely incorrect. Rather than reports of pit bull attacks discouraging adoptions – as contended by the SPCA -- they are more likely to increase interest from the typical owner, scary people with dangerous dogs, and the first choice for drug grow-ops.
I recall the author of this article -- reporter Tracy Holmes -- relating in a November 2001 column her irrational fear of an elderly neighborhood woman at a local craft show talking to Holmes’ son. And now we have her concerned for a dangerous scourge in our community that actually does pose a hazard to her children. Ms. Holmes, the community does not want any more pit bulls in our parks and on our streets.
G. Heath, Surrey Another person chimes in as well:My dog was attacked by a pit bull a few years ago. My three-year-old daughter and I were walking my dog, on leash, when an unleashed pit bull attacked him, completely unprovoked. I managed to pull the dogs apart, sustaining only a few bites myself. My dog required 39 stitches and complete reconstructive surgery on his shoulder ligaments, and almost died.
This could have just as easily happened to my daughter, who was standing right beside me. The only comment I received was, “He’s never done that before. I was worried that he was going for your daughter.” The dog just sat there as if nothing had ever happened.
I am just in amazement that we allow these animals to have free reign of our streets. Every time I see a pit bull, I turn in the other direction for fear that this might occur again. These animals are completely unpredictable and should not be allowed on our streets under any circumstances.
I have been an animal lover my entire life, and now find that I have a fear of these animals and we should not be put in this position. How many more pit bull attacks on children and other innocent animals do we have to endure before we actually take some action?
Angie Kronenberg, Surrey Related articles:
07/04/08: Surrey Jogger Vows to Carry Hatchet After Pit Bull Attack
06/22/08: Pit Bulls Attack in Surrey Again; Owner and Dogs Flee the Scene
05/30/08: Flashback: Surrey SPCA Has History of Troubling AttitudeLabels: adoption, spca, surrey
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Chow Scheduled for Adoption Release Attacks Shelter Worker
 Shelter Worker Seriously Hurt
Albuquerque, NM - A vicious dog attack sent a volunteer at an animal shelter to the hospital with severe bite wounds. The dog, a 3-year old chow-mix named Whiskey, showed no signs of aggression before the attack. But its previous owners had placed the dog in the shelter because it was not getting along with other dogs.A red flag that adopting the dog back out might be dangerous. According to shelter officials, the volunteer took the dog for a walk. They say the woman was following proper procedure walking Whiskey when the dog turned on her. "He lunged at her arm and started biting her -- apparently bit her from the shoulder to the wrist and may have also bitten her along parts of her torso," shelter spokesperson Rick DeReyes said.
The volunteer, who had handled Whiskey in the past without incident, was rushed to the hospital. DeReyes said the woman lost a lot of blood, but her injuries are non-life-threatening. DeReyes says volunteers are trained to handle the animals but there was no way to prepare for what happened Saturday. The victim will recover from her wounds, and Whiskey will probably be put down."A dog like that can no longer be put back into society," DeReyes said. Whiskey was scheduled to be adopted in a week and a half, according to the shelter's website. Chows have a long history of aggression in addition to consistently ranking disproportionately high in human fatalities. Knowing this and that the dog was exhibiting strong dog-aggression before it entered the shelter, one has to question the wisdom of adopting this dog out at all.Labels: adoption, animal shelter
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Family Bull Terrier Attacks Teenager and Mother
Bull Terrier Was Recently Adopted
Smithfield, RI - A family dog attacked a 15-year-old girl and her mother at their home yesterday. The dog, a bull terrier, was adopted about two weeks ago by the mother's boyfriend. The girl was severely bitten in the face and chest. Lt. Michael Rheaume says the girl is likely to need reconstructive surgery. He said that the girl's mother was treated for bites to her hands and has been released.
The two-year-old dog is being quarantined at the Smithfield Animal Shelter. Rheaume says it's not known whether the dog had a history of aggressive behavior, but police or animal control will investigate. (They should investigate which agency the dog was adopted from. Reconstructive surgery for the 15-year old victim will be extremely costly and that agency may be liable.)
In other newsPit Bull Attacks Bull Terrier in Collier County
Naples, FL - After trying to break up a fight between his bull terrier and the neighbor's pit bull, Bill Summers said the pit bull's teeth went through his finger and out the other side. Now he wants the neighbor's dog declared dangerous. He's worried about the kids and other animals on the block: "If that dog attacked me and will attack my dog, it will attack them too."
Domestic Animal Services (DAS) is investigating, but say it is unclear whether the incident happened on Summers property or his neighbors. It’s also unclear which dog actually bit him, which means either or both dogs could be declared dangerous. DAS warns that when two dogs are fighting and you put your hand in the middle of it, you are probably going to be injured by both dogs.
The owner of the bull terrier plans to sue his neighbor, which should make for a fine barbequing summer.
Related articles: Labels: adoption, boyfriend's pit bull
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Peter Strauss Attacked by Pit Bull on Ranch
 Actor Peter Strauss Injured in Pit Bull Attack
Ojai Valley, CA - Actor and citrus rancher Peter Strauss spent nearly half an hour in a confrontation with a raging pit bull. Strauss survived, but is left with injury and trauma. He describes the attack to Ojai Valley News:
While inspecting his orchards on Sunday, he saw the brown pit bull mix banging against the boards that separated his neighbor’s yard. Strauss could see the dog pull his head through, and thought, "My God, this dog is going come for me." The dog did -- he charged the 32-foot distance in seconds. Strauss hit the dog with his only available weapon, a clipboard.
The dog grabbed Strauss’ leg, furiously shaking his head. Strauss knew that if he went down to the ground, he was dead. He thought, "I’m going to die on my own farm like this." Strauss was able to grab a piece of wood to swing at the dog and fend him off. "I hit the dog as hard as I could," he said. "It just wasn’t enough. I would hit him, and he would just shake his head."
After 20 minutes of biting and lunging, the dog finally backed off. But the attack did not end here. When Animal Control officer, Mark Wisma, arrived 25 minutes later, both he and Strauss went searching for the errant dog. "The dog flew out of a different corner of my property," Strauss said. As the dog continued lunging and snarling, both Strauss and Wisma were vulnerable.
The dog, a neutered male adopted from a Los Angeles County Shelter, had no previous record of attacks, though Kathy Jenks, director of Ventura County Department of Animal Regulation, reported that it bit someone else that day. The dog will be euthanized. Strauss was treated and released from Ojai Valley Community Hospital’s emergency room with lots of stitches.
He said he was determined to keep an appointment to make a presentation to the Ojai City Council Tuesday night.Labels: adoption
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2007 Fatality: Tori Whitehurst, Killed by Family's American Bulldog
 4-year Old Mauled and Killed by Family Pet
Phoenix, AZ - 4-year-old Tori Whitehurst was playing in her backyard when the family's American bulldog, Kane, suddenly attacked killed her. The attack occurred at the family's rural home near Happy Valley Road. Authorities say the dog grabbed the girl's arm first then bit her neck. Tori died in a medical helicopter en route to the hospital.
Both parents were at work at the time of the attack. A 59-year-old, live-in nanny was watching Tori and her older sister. Dani During, a family friend, says the nanny went inside for a couple of minutes when the dog attacked. The nanny tried to break up the attack by stabbing the dog with scissors and hitting him with a pool cue. Neither worked.
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio says deputies arrived approximately 10 minutes after the 911 call. They saw the dog lying next to the fatally wounded child. When the dog became aggressive toward the deputies, the sheriff says they tased the animal, which did nothing. So they shot it seven times, which finally killed it.
Kane was surrendered to the Arizona Humane Society (AHS) in March of 2007 and adopted to an unnamed person the next month. This person allegedly gave the dog to the Whitehurst's in June. The AHS does not know how Kane ended up with Tori's family. They report that when Kane left their facility, "he was fully evaluated by three behaviorists and showed no sign of aggression."
Somehow, in a period of 6 months, the dog went clinically insane.
Related article:
11/06/07: Arizona Humane Society StatementLabels: adoption, Fatality
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