Deputies: Grandmother killed by dog while babysitting

[Sheromom]

Years ago while on vacation, I left my cockapoo with my animal loving sister and her family for a week. The dog was gentle enough, so I was shocked to receive a call from her saying that he had bitten her young (6 yr old?) child.

The full story only came out after I got home and pressed my sister for details. It turned out that the dog was lying in the yard, minding it's own business, when my nephew fell on top of him while playing with a football. Startled, the dog swung around and bit in a quick reaction.

As usual, people are quick to blame others (here, an innocent, sleeping animal) for their own mistakes. Her husband forced the boy to hit the dog with a stick because it had been 'bad'! My sister was responsible for keeping both her child and my dog safe. She failed at both and then blamed my dog for her mistake. Sadly, I learned that you can't even trust your own family when it comes to taking 'care' of your animal or giving you the story in it's entirety.

You are serious? My kids rode their dogs....whether they were asleep or not...

 

[formerjerseygirl]

http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20120421/PC16/120429826&slId=3 This is the original story.

 

[Sonya610]

The thing about pits isn't so much that they can be aggressive and dominant (though yes, they can be, sheesh many small breeds are a lot worse but rarely fatal) it is that through evil dog fighting breeding when that aggression gets turned on it does NOT have the normal "stop" button. The normal "opponent submitted stop kill mode" button has been genetically turned off for many of them, instead they get an adrenaline rush and WANT to keep going and never stop!

If pits get banned the scum that did that to them will do the same to other fine dog breeds.

Pits are incredibly intelligent and often incredibly loving dogs, the issue arises when the protection/defense/aggression button gets pushed. When that button gets pushed the dog goes into another realm and often can't stop. I.e. Grandma doesn't get growled at she gets her throat torn out and dog is frothing at the mouth when the police arrive.

 

[CherBearSTL]

I totally agree that dogs bite unprovocted. My mom's dog (a small Maltese) ran across a dog park field to bite a woman that was walking alone, about 150 yards away. It was bizarre.

Sorry, I wouldn't own an animal that could kill me. I have a Mini Schnauzer and a Schnoodle, and I can say with 100% certainty that they have never bitten nor snapped at anyone. A biting dog is totally unacceptable. I got bitten by a Basset Hound when I was a kid....I have been afraid of dogs ever since. I would never trust a Pit to be around my children, but that's just my own personal preference.

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[Ausgirl]

Poor woman. What a horrendous way to die. And imagine the trauma the kids are in, if they witnessed this attack. I hope they're getting the right support.

I bet you a fifty there's some pro-pit folks out there whining about the dog being put down.

 

[keeponsearching]

Dogs need their space. I never let my kids play under the coffee table. Some dogs might be tolerable to letting kids sit on them, but I am not. It is their personal space. Any time my dog lays down away from the kids, they know that she needs her time and space.

I sometimes wonder if its what we feed the dogs..... I know as a human certain foods turn me crazy.

 

[tlcya]

things we can all agree on(?):

A woman, a grandmother is dead

No one knows what triggered the dog to behave this way (except maybe the children, if present, and we are not privy to that info)

A family has lost a valued member and is probably devastated.

 

[Herding Cats]

Alright, kids...let me be Alpha Dog for a mo'.

There are some subtle and not so subtle attacking going on here. Passions are high on all sides. There's a thread down in pets about Pits...should maybe we go there and discuss this further (more private)? We could also start a thread about how we train (which would be valuable and interesting), or about foods that may contribute to aggressive behavior in dogs, too.

But in any case, hold down the bickering. I'd hate to see this thread locked, as a woman lost her life; whatever happened - and we'll never know - a family has been devastated.

Let's just take a breath, retreat to our crates or coffee tables, and just relax. I'll be around with fresh bones for everyone to chew on later.

ROFL.

No, seriously, though, stand down, guys.

Best-
Herding Cats

 

[passionflower]

Was there only 1 baby? I sure hope no children saw this happening..

 

[Tricia]

Everyone Please let's not get testy .

If you need to please take a break from the computer.

Thank You,
Tricia









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[Sonya610]

We could also start a thread about how we train (which would be valuable and interesting), or about foods that may contribute to aggressive behavior in dogs, too.

A thread about how we train would be fun HC.

 

[Linda7NJ]

http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20130111/PC16/130119828 Here is another South Carolina story. Bad dogs or bad owners?

A 7 year old describes her parents engaging in a threesome and watching homemade *advertiser censored* and CPS determined it to be "unfounded" are you freaking kidding me??


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[tlcya]

I agree Sonya, that would be a good thread. As someone posted upthread, training, for the human owners and pets never really ends. I would make use of a thread like that. Good resource for the many animal lovers and pet owners who are members.

Maybe you and HC could spearhead that since you are both very passionate about animal rescue and animals in general?

 

[formerjerseygirl]

www.cdc.gov/homeandrecreationalsafety/images/dogbreeds-a.pdf Very informative article.

 

[Linda7NJ]

You are serious? My kids rode their dogs....whether they were asleep or not...

Dogs are not ponys! Good grief! That is never appropriate!






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[Linda7NJ]

I totally agree that dogs bite unprovocted. My mom's dog (a small Maltese) ran across a dog park field to bite a woman that was walking alone, about 150 yards away. It was bizarre.

Sorry, I wouldn't own an animal that could kill me. I have a Mini Schnauzer and a Schnoodle, and I can say with 100% certainty that they have never bitten nor snapped at anyone. A biting dog is totally unacceptable. I got bitten by a Basset Hound when I was a kid....I have been afraid of dogs ever since. I would never trust a Pit to be around my children, but that's just my own personal preference.

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The truth is, anything with teeth can bite and dogs can't speak nor can they sign a contract.


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[CherBearSTL]

The truth is, anything with teeth can bite and dogs can't speak nor can they sign a contract.


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Exactly. They are DOGS...not humans! And to think that dogs are always predictable would be irresponsible. I don't trust any animals except my own, and sometimes that's even a stretch...especially when I find heels missing from my shoes.

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[Herding Cats]

Yes, please start a thread on training!!! I would absolutely LOVE to know more than I do. I'm blessed with some very compliant and easy-going dogs, but they're big, and they're dogs, and things happen...training *me* would be really good!

Please?

Best-
Herding Cats

 

[Linda7NJ]

Yes, please start a thread on training!!! I would absolutely LOVE to know more than I do. I'm blessed with some very compliant and easy-going dogs, but they're big, and they're dogs, and things happen...training *me* would be really good!

Please?

Best-
Herding Cats

If someone starts one, can you please link it here? Thank you in advance!


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[Reader]

www.cdc.gov/homeandrecreationalsafety/images/dogbreeds-a.pdf Very informative article.

Thanks for the link! Excerpt:

Results—During 1997 and 1998, at least 27 people died of dog bite attacks
(18 in 1997 and 9 in 1998). At least 25 breeds of dogs have been involved in 238 human DBRF during the past 20 years. Pit bull-type dogs and Rottweilers were involved in more than half of these deaths. Of 227 reports with relevant data, 55(24%) human deaths involved unrestrained dogs off their owners’ property, 133 (58%) involved unrestrained dogs on their owners’ property, 38 (17%) involved restrained dogs on their owners’ property, and 1 (<1%)involved a restrained dog off its owner’s property.

Conclusions—Although fatal attacks on humans appear to be a breed-specific problem (pit bull-typedogs and Rottweilers), other breeds may bite and cause fatalities at higher rates. Because of difficulties inherent in determining a dog’s breed with certainty,enforcement of breed-specific ordinances raises constitutional and practical issues. Fatal attacks represent a small proportion of dog bite injuries to humans and,therefore, should not be the primary factor driving public policy concerning dangerous dogs. Many practical alternatives to breed-specific ordinances exist and hold promise for prevention of dog bites. (J Am VetMed Assoc2000;217:836–840)