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Friday, May 30, 2008


Pit Bull Burrows Under Fence; 5-Year Old Boy Gets 2,000 Stitches

Who Will Pay Medical Bill?
Cimarron Hills, CO - In an area struggling with a surge in pit bulls, a new mauling has occurred with a magnitude that is a heart stopper. The boy had been playing in his own backyard. The pit bull burrowed under a fence to get to him. The 5-year old child was airlifted to Denver were he received 2,000 stitches in two surgeries and will need his nose reconstructed.
Pit bulls scale fences, dig beneath them, bust out of cages and snap chains to attack children that are off the dog's property.
Neighbors blame the same dog for at least three recent attacks on pets, two of them fatal. The pit bull's owner, Michael Brown, 20, was cited with ownership of a dangerous dog, which is merely a misdemeanor. A roommate who lives at the little boy's house said the child will be "okay." He'll need "lots and lots of surgery over lots and lots of years." Does anyone think 20-year old Brown has the means to pay for half a million dollars in medical bills?

According to the local Humane Society spokeswoman, pit bulls and pit bull mixes have accounted for more dog bites than any other breed in El Paso County this year. They were involved in 216 bites, about 18 percent of the 1,381 attacks reported. Labrador retrievers were second on the list, with 157 attacks, and German shepherds were third, with 93 bites. And how many lab attacks ended in 2,000 stitches and a LifeFlight helicopter?

Related articles:
12/21/08: $250,000 Dog Insurance Policy Not Always Sufficient
12/04/08: Flashback: What Pit Bull Attack Victims Suffer, Alan Hill

posted by bitbypit  |  permalink  |  5 comments  |iconemail  |iconsubscribe 
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5 comments:

Anonymous Anonymous  |  5/30/2008 2:37 PM  |  Flag  
"McGee said the same pit bull got out of his owner's yard and "tore up" her 3-year-old blue heeler, Rosie, shortly after she moved to the neighborhood in September. She didn't report that attack, saying that she didn't want problems with her neighbors."

Important safety tip for neighbors Pit Bull owners...

Don't feel obligated to be a good neighbor to a pit owner, they already made the calculation that your dog is expendable. This attrocity may have been prevented by reporting the previous incidents!

Anonymous Anonymous  |  5/30/2008 3:13 PM  |  Flag  
I agree with the above.....attacks on other dogs/animals often happen before a pit bull attacks a human.....particlarly a child. Society has got to start taking dog on dog attacks seriously; I know plenty of dogs that "don't like" other dogs, which will growl and snap if a strange dog gets in their face; but most of these dogs will not attack another dog. They just want their space, or to be left alone, or are fearful of others dogs and want to warn them away. However, a dog that attacks and mauls another dog, unprovoked, is a very dangerous animal.

We also have to start distinguishing between a bite and a mauling. Toy poodles may bite, but pit bulls maul. All dog bites cannot be lumped together...I get tired of people comparing the bites of small breed dogs to the sustained attacks/maulings that are typical of pit bull. Public health officials should come up with a system of reporting bites on a scale of 1-5 that would specifically indicate the severity of a bite; from bruising/scratching to broken bones, deep tissue damage. We also need statewide, consistent reporting system of dog attacks by breed; the information should be used to make public policy.

Anonymous Jersey  |  5/30/2008 7:59 PM  |  Flag  
Great idea with the scale. I too have seen the pit bull owners claim that anything from a lab to a Cocker Spaniel is the dog responsible for the most bites. But most bites don't cause injury and are not even reported. But they will say anything to confuse the issue and misinform the public.

Anonymous Anonymous  |  5/31/2008 2:25 AM  |  Flag  
The other misnomer is interchanganging "Viscous" with "Dangerous".

A biting mosquito is viscous,yet only considered dangerous if carrying disease..... A viscous chihuahua rates a Public danger rating of 1. A viscous Pit pegs the meter at 10.

Equating the two, and threatening to overregulate Aunt Millie's neurotic chihuahua is a common nutter tactic.

Anonymous Anonymous  |  6/01/2008 6:03 AM  |  Flag  
Update from the dog killer/kid mauling family:

The family of the dog's owner tells NEWSCHANNEL 13 they feel awful about the situation and plan to pay for the boy's medical expenses. They are taking full responsibility but say they never meant for this to happen. The family has another dog and believes they are responsible dog owners.

http://www.krdotv.com/Global/story.asp?S=8404222

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