TX - Mariah Puga, 3, mauled to death by dogs, Hargill, 25 July 2006

[southcitymom]

Pressa Canario (but I don't think I spelled it right).

Thanks - I knew there was one odd case where I couldn't remember the breed. It's all coming back now!

 

[Wudge]

As opposed to parents without kids? :innocent: :innocent: :innocent:

With kids, a superior litter pick for a parent would be a female puppy that likes to be held; this is especially true for goldens.

 

[Wudge]

I cannot stand these dogs, I dont care what anyone says. Jeana, you are absolutly right about them not stopping even being beat with a bat or a shovel. My hubby used to work for Comcast cable and a good friend of his there had pit bulls, well one got ticked and attacked him. He beat him in the face and the dog NEVER let loose of his jaws. They had to basically half kill the dog to get him away! They scare the crap out of me..

If a Pit Bull or Rot has clamped onto you (an adult), you have to gouge out the eye or eyes. Use the thumb of the other hand. A small child really has no chance.

 

[Indy Gal]

Ok so i have never done this before but here i go. The dog in the story is a Pit Bull. I dont know why it doesnt say it. I can not find anything else but it was on the news a couple of nights ago. The news reported that the dog barked and tried to free the boy which he did. I am not saying that all pits are good but the ones reaised and breed right are really great dogs. There are some dumb people in the world but we dont attack the race as a whole. Why should we do it with breeds of dogs. So it didnt work but i can send it by email if you like. The story goes 9 yr old boy in backyard playing, man tries to kidnap him, Pit Bull saves boy. I sure am glad this family had a Pit Bull. IMO I have heard many stories like these as I know a lot of people that have pit bulls.

 

[Indy Gal]

If a Pit Bull or Rot has clamped onto you (an adult), you have to gouge out the eye or eyes. Use the thumb of the other hand. A small child really has no chance.

A unsupervised child usually does something to get the dog aggitated. I AM NOT SAYING IT IS THE CHILDS FAULT. But, when you have such a young child around a new mother and her pups you are asking for danger with any breed of dog.

 

[Jeana (DP)]

With kids, a superior litter pick for a parent would be a female puppy that likes to be held; this is especially true for goldens.

We had six retired GSD K-9s when I was a kid. Never had a better babysitter. Its the only dog I'd have in my home.

 

[michelle]

We always had German Shepards, thats the only kind I will have too. We did have a beagle, lol.....He was so funny and he Howled all the time!!!

 

[Wudge]

A unsupervised child usually does something to get the dog aggitated. I AM NOT SAYING IT IS THE CHILDS FAULT. But, when you have such a young child around a new mother and her pups you are asking for danger with any breed of dog.

Parents should never expose children to such a risk, never.

Pit bulls have the strongest bit of all dogs and use their jaws and molars to tear while biting. They have the biting strength of a hyena.

Pit bulls were bred (Stafforshire bull terrier crossed with a Bullmastiff) to kill other dogs in pit fights.

 

[Indy Gal]

Parents should never expose children to such a risk, never.

Pit bulls have the strongest bit of all dogs and use their jaws and molars to tear while biting. They have the biting strength of a hyena.

Pit bulls were bred (Stafforshire bull terrier crossed with a Bullmastiff) to kill other dogs in pit fights.

I agree but does that mean we shouldnt have them as pets. I cant tell you how many times I have been saved by a pit. My pit and Dobie were my babysitters as well. Someone mentioned Shepherds. These "bad" pets never thought of biting me in fact the pit used to carry me . She had pups and thought I was hers. She treated me like that until the day she died when i was 12. I guess my point is dont let these stories make you think that all pits are bad JMHO

 

[BhamMama]

The right dog, for the right family, in the right enviornment is a wonderful thing. I've had Rotties, Dobies, Chow Chows and a Pit Bull named Sassy Girl. They were all loving, gentle animals until provoked. That's one reason why I had them, living alone I knew I was protected.

Yes, in certain animals even children pulling their ears don't bother them, in some a small child falling down on them when learning to walk will cause them to bite. I found good homes for all my dogs when I had my son. They were so big, he was so little, they were inside dogs and territorial of their domain. No way would I even think about putting my son in that position and it wasn't fair to my dogs to then start chaining them and keeping them outside in our heat etc. It was right for all concerned.

Now we have rescue mutts, boxers and a boston Terrier. But I still have to watch little ones around my boston. He's a bit high strung and jealous of his toys being touched.

On the other hand, we have my neighbors whom I'm in the middle of a court battle with because I turned them in for animal neglect and cruelty. Dogs chained to old cars with no shelter of any kind, no food, no water in 90 degree heat. I've seen them try to get the mother dog to bite them by charging her with a pipe, I saw them baiting the dogs with a puppy and they even went so far as to throw it a dead cat. I'm not sure how the cat died but that was the 4th time I called the cops. Their dogs have bitten two of their children, one badly enough to need stitches in 4 places. They are now breeding these dogs, even though we are going to court over this. The puppies are laying on a piece of carpet on their porch with the mother tied with a rope to the porch railing. I can't even get close enough to check on them. And you can bet they have had no baths, no love, no shots, no care. Pisses me off to no end. I'm fighting them even though I've had my car window broken, nasty racial things spraypainted on my house, dining room windows broken and things stolen out of my yard. Every one of their dogs are pit bulls and they have one huge mastiff.

So, I know about enviornment playing a part, but if you go to someone like this guy next door to buy your puppy...and believe me, someone will, they are not only asking for trouble, they are seeking it out and wanting it.

Please forgive spelling, on new meds and I'm a bit loopy today.

 

[Indy Gal]

The right dog, for the right family, in the right enviornment is a wonderful thing. I've had Rotties, Dobies, Chow Chows and a Pit Bull named Sassy Girl. They were all loving, gentle animals until provoked. That's one reason why I had them, living alone I knew I was protected.

Yes, in certain animals even children pulling their ears don't bother them, in some a small child falling down on them when learning to walk will cause them to bite. I found good homes for all my dogs when I had my son. They were so big, he was so little, they were inside dogs and territorial of their domain. No way would I even think about putting my son in that position and it wasn't fair to my dogs to then start chaining them and keeping them outside in our heat etc. It was right for all concerned.

Now we have rescue mutts, boxers and a boston Terrier. But I still have to watch little ones around my boston. He's a bit high strung and jealous of his toys being touched.

On the other hand, we have my neighbors whom I'm in the middle of a court battle with because I turned them in for animal neglect and cruelty. Dogs chained to old cars with no shelter of any kind, no food, no water in 90 degree heat. I've seen them try to get the mother dog to bite them by charging her with a pipe, I saw them baiting the dogs with a puppy and they even went so far as to throw it a dead cat. I'm not sure how the cat died but that was the 4th time I called the cops. Their dogs have bitten two of their children, one badly enough to need stitches in 4 places. They are now breeding these dogs, even though we are going to court over this. The puppies are laying on a piece of carpet on their porch with the mother tied with a rope to the porch railing. I can't even get close enough to check on them. And you can bet they have had no baths, no love, no shots, no care. Pisses me off to no end. I'm fighting them even though I've had my car window broken, nasty racial things spraypainted on my house, dining room windows broken and things stolen out of my yard. Every one of their dogs are pit bulls and they have one huge mastiff.

So, I know about enviornment playing a part, but if you go to someone like this guy next door to buy your puppy...and believe me, someone will, they are not only asking for trouble, they are seeking it out and wanting it.

Please forgive spelling, on new meds and I'm a bit loopy today.

I 100 % agree with you. I have called on a lot of people mistreating dogs. But because our laws dont put them in jail, they continue to do this. I think we need tougher laws. Such as when one of these dogs attack children, attempted murder with a deadly weapon. I do agree with putting these dogs down, sad as it is, they need not go back and be allowed to do the same thing. But if we had tougher laws maybe it would change. ...just wish we could lock up all these horrible people.JMO

 

[Beyond Belief]

I have had two shepherds in my life. They were great dogs and never bit anyone. My maltese bites me all the time.:doh:

 

[CherokeeKid]

I asked my vet once what he thought about Pit Bulls. And he replied that Chihuahua are the more aggressive dog! Except, that they do not have the potential to kill a person! If they could, they would be on top of the list of the most dangerous dogs.

We read a lot about Pit Bulls biting and killing people. But on the other hand, they can also be the most sweet and gentle dog. I believe, it all depends on the pet owner, how they raise, train and socialize their dog. If they are responsible owners who do the right thing or if they are very irresponsible people who neglect their dogs and even train them to be aggressive. I don't blame the dog. I blame the owners.

Dogs and children:

I just recently researched some links for a friend. Here they are for those interested:

Rule number one: NEVER leave your child (under age 12) and the friends of your child unsupervised with a dog!!!!!!!!!! Any dog!!! Even small dogs can do some damage.

And here are some very helpful links:

http://www.goodpooch.com/MediaBriefs/GPcanineprimer.htm

http://www.dogwatch.net/education/index.html

http://www.familypaws.com/links/linksdogbiteprevention.html


And an excerpt from an interesting article:

Experts say implementing regulatory measures for breeders and trainers as well as spaying and neutering aggressive breeds may be the answer to limiting dog attacks. But they say some of the onus is on dog owners to understand their animals a little better.

"The average dog owner doesn't have a really good appreciation of the initial signs of aggression in their dog," says Vinson. "They tend to rationalize it or pass it off. I deal with this all the time - people say, 'Oh, it's OK for the dog to growl at me if I walk by him and he's got his food bowl, because it's his food, isn't it?' Well, no, it's not OK because this can progress to much worse behaviour."

Also important is teaching children to recognize aggressive cues. "We go to schools and have discovered that most of the kids, when shown a diagram of a dog just about to attack, interpret the image as a dog wanting to play," says the SPCA's Barnoti.

Summer Ebinger, whose son Ashton was viciously mauled, is determined that other families avoid the horror hers experienced because of a vicious Akita. "I started a program called Dog Awareness for Everyone and Youths (DAFEY). . I take Ripley with me - he's our male golden retriever, and we demonstrate for children why they can't do certain things with dogs - why they can't put their face way down in front of a dog, . if you're running around screaming and yelling around a dog, the dog may come up and nip you just to make you be quiet - so to respect their space."

http://animaladvocates.com/cgi-bin/newsroom.pl/noframes/read/4603

 

[CherokeeKid]

And here is a study about dog bites:

http://www.dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/statistics.html

And an excerpt:
[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In recent years, the dogs responsible for the bulk of the homicides are pit bulls and Rottweilers:[/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"Studies indicate that pit bull-type dogs were involved in approximately a third of human DBRF (i.e., dog bite related fatalities) reported during the 12-year period from 1981 through1992, and Rottweilers were responsible for about half of human DBRF reported during the 4 years from 1993 through 1996....[T]he data indicate that Rottweilers and pit bull-type dogs accounted for 67% of human DBRF in the United States between 1997 and 1998. It is extremely unlikely that they accounted for anywhere near 60% of dogs in the United States during that same period and, thus, there appears to be a breed-specific problem with fatalities." ([/font][font=Arial,Helvetica]Sacks JJ, Sinclair L, Gilchrist J, Golab GC, Lockwood R. Breeds of dogs involved in fatal human attacks in the United States between 1979 and 1998. JAVMA 2000;217:836-840.) [/font]

​

[font=Arial,Helvetica]Other breeds were also responsible for homicides, but to a much lesser extent. A 1997 study of dog bite fatalities in the years 1979 through 1996 revealed that the following breeds had killed one or more persons: pit bulls, Rottweilers, German shepherds, huskies, Alaskan malamutes, Doberman pinschers, chows, Great Danes, St. Bernards and Akitas. (Dog Bite Related Fatalities," Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, May 30, 1997, Vol. 46, No. 21, pp. 463 et. seq.) Since 1975, fatal attacks have been attributed to dogs from at least 30 breeds. [/font][font=Arial,Helvetica][/font]

[font=Arial,Helvetica]The most horrifying example of the lack of breed predictability is the October 2000 death of a 6-week-old baby, which was killed by her family's Pomeranian dog. The average weight of a Pomeranian is about 4 pounds, and they are not thought of as a dangerous breed. Note, however, that they were bred to be watchdogs! The baby's uncle left the infant and the dog on a bed while the uncle prepared her bottle in the kitchen. Upon his return, the dog was mauling the baby, who died shortly afterwards. ("Baby Girl Killed by Family Dog," Los Angeles Times, Monday, October 9, 2000, Home Edition, Metro Section, Page B-5.)[/font]

http://www.dogbitelaw.com/PAGES/statistics.html#Thedogsmostlikelytobite

 

[dr dona]

We had 3 litters of Springer Spaniels - and Chloe was very gentle. I never left my kids unsupervised around any mom and her pups. The child can go to pet them and the maternal, protective instinct will take over. The may attack the child. Also a newer dog was outside with the child- it takes a while for a new animal to become part of the pack- it may attack a child!!! A three year old child should never be left unsupervised with a pack of dogs!!!!!!!!!

 

[kahskye]

Labs, golden rereivers, etc., are very protective of children. A great choice for parents with kids.

Another great choice is an Australian Shepherd. We got Shiloh at 7 wks, when our dd was 1 yr old. We never left them alone, but he took to being her bodyguard as tho that was his mission in life. He would walk circles around her, protecting her in the yard (I was always there). Even now at 9, our Aussie is an incredible dog, still very protective of our dd. We also have a Lab who is great w/ our dd, and a great playmate. He's our 2nd Lab, and certainly won't be our last.

I'm so sorry for this little girl's family. From what I read, the mother didn't know the uncle left. My thoughts and prayers are w/ them.

 

[YadaYada]

Hi you guys..
This family had a Pit Bull chained up with puppies. Of course she would be aggressive protecting her pups. If you chained a poodle to a tree with her puppies she would become aggressive too.
Its very unfortunate but Rotties and Pits get a bad rap from irresponsible owners. I have bred Rotties and had them as part of my family for 13 years. I used to babysit and had up to 7 kids at a time in my house daily. Not once has a dog of mine bitten anyone.
You can not own any dog and make them a backyard dog. Especially these breeds. They need to be part of your family. So many people get these breeds for protection ect. And realize they are a lot of work, they end up being backyard dogs that have no rules or manners.
I believe anyone that owns these animals and something like this happens, well they should go to prison.
These dog attacks are so irresponsible and so unnecessary.. It just makes me sad for the breed, they really are taking a bad rap from having bad owners.
I have a Pug also, and she totally runs my 150 pound Rottweiler.
Hes a wonderful dog.

 

[kgeaux]

I've been here at Websleuths for more years than I can remember. In all that time, I don't remember ever seeing an article or thread about a toddler, baby or an adult, being killed by a Labrador. There are at least 10 a year though, where the person was killed by a Pit Bull. I don't honestly care whether the problem is breeding, stupid lazy adults who don't know how to train them, or the ones who just think they're sooooooo cute, they would NEVER hurt anyone. This is the ONLY breed of dog that will not stop fighting no matter what you do to it. The only way to get them to stop is to kill them. Now, you may get a Rottie, a Lab or a GSD that may bite, but they'll stop if you hit them with a shovel or a baseball bat. We've seen time and time again when a pit bull didn't even stop then.

There is a difference in breeds which have a propensity to bite and breeds who cause fatalities with their bites. I've seen some published studies which show that cocker spaniels are more likely to bite than a pit or rottie---HOWEVER, the bite of the pit and rottie are more likely to result in death.

There are several breeds responsible for the majority of death by dog bite each year--pits, rotties, German Shepherds, dobermans, etc.

I have a pit which we watch very carefully. He is never unmuzzled around children, ever. He is never out of the house unleashed. He is given the canine good temperment test (I think that's the name!) every year at the vet, and every year he passes. He does better on the test than my Yorkie! But he has great power, and knowing that, we treat him very carefully around youngsters. That's the least any dog owner should do, and it's for the protection of little ones as well as protecting your dog!

This little family we're discussing here, it sounds as though the mother, uncle and grandmother were very loving caregivers who made a mistake when "handing over responsibility" That is so unfortunate, and so sad.

 

[Delores]

poor little kid

 

[Amraann]

We have visited this subject many times here at WS.

It has often become very heated. The truth remains that pitbulls are a dangerous breed. I am very sure that these parents and most other owners of this breed swear their dogs are sweet natured and would not harm anyone until something like this happens. It happens to often. Although labs have been known to bite I don't think they are commonly known to kill.