The property where Michael Winters lived with his father.
Breed Info Released
UPDATE 06/16/10: A report issued later in the day presented even more disturbing information. The nine dogs involved in the attack included: 5 bullmastiffs,1 1 rottweiler and 3 pit bull-mixes. It is important to point out that Kywa (who said "my dogs" in the 911 call) was not "rescuing stray dogs." He was only rescuing dog breeds known to be dangerous. As was put to us in a recent email, "The victim could have had a machine-gun and still have been in desperate trouble."
When deputies arrived, they shot and killed one bullmastiff and the rottweiler. Kywa had managed to coral the remaining seven dogs into the garage. The dog warden then tranquilized the dogs through a window and a vet later euthanized them at the scene.2 The tenth dog was not put down. This dog was a yellow Labrador that was inside the family's home during the horrific attack. This dog appears to be the only true family dog and likewise was kept inside the residence.
A subsequent news article by The Morning Journal posted parts of the 911 call:
Warning: Disturbing content.
06/16/10: Photos of Scene Released
In a disturbing update, the Chronicle-Telegram has published quotations from the 911 call that Kywa made upon finding the victim's body. The group also published photos of the crime scene and deputies posed to shoot aggressive dogs. County Dog Warden Jack Szlempa Sr. said his office was called out to the home about a year and a half ago after several dogs attacked another dog. No report was taken on the incident because it occurred on private property.
06/16/10: Family Rescued Stray Dogs archived
The Plain Dealer reports that Michael Winters and his father Michael Kywa rescued stray dogs and cared for them at their home on Ohio State Route 511. The two tried to find homes for the dogs in their care. They had about a dozen dogs of various sizes and breeds including a 200-pound mastiff. Kywa found his son lying in the driveway heavily bleeding with hundreds of bite wounds covering his body. His clothes had been ripped off by the attacking dogs as well.
Authorities believe multiple dogs were involved in the attack, but have declined to provide "breed information" thus far. Though clearly a fatal pack attack scenario, it is important to point out that such scenarios usually involve a pack of roaming dogs that attack strangers, not on-property dogs who attack and kill their keeper. Authorities eventually caught all of the dogs. Police shot and killed two of the dogs because they were aggressive toward officers.
06/15/10: Victim Dies Violent Death
Henrietta Township, OH - In a developing story, 30-year old Michael Winters was killed earlier today by a group of dogs his family kept in a fenced-in yard. Investigators said around 11:30 am, the father left the house and then returned at about 12:15 pm. At some point during that period, his son came home and was attacked by the 8-10 dogs in the driveway. His father Michael Kywa called 911. Winters was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency personnel.
2Only in the most horrific fatal attacks are the dogs "euthanized at the scene" by animal control or veterinarians.
Related articles:
01/18/10: 2010 Fatality: 56-Year Old Man Killed by Daughter's Six Pit Bulls
08/18/09: 2009 Fatality: Senior Couple Killed by Pack of Dogs in Oglethorpe County
Photo: Cleveland.com
http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/news/local_news/report-man-killed-in-possible-dog-attack
neighbors say they were fearful of the dogs and even altered their own behavior in order to avoid the dogs. a landscaper who works at the property next to the dogs also reports that he was afraid of them. i don't know what possesses people to want to own dogs like this but i am glad the dogs killed the owner and not one of the neighbors or other innocent people who were just going about their daily business.
What a horrible way to go!
Lorain County seems to love them some big, mean, nasty dogs.
Just 7 months ago two horrific looking Cane Corso mixes were wandering at large, bit a veterinarian, and caused mayhem.
http://chronicle.northcoastnow.com/2009/11/13/vet-attacked-by-dogs-had-tried-to-save-the-animals/
"Rescued" dogs?
As time goes on, thanks to No Kill, we are having more and more of these hoarding situations, and more and more people taking in dangerous dogs because the No Kill people tell them they can be fixed.
They never can.
If these dogs attacked this man, what were some of them doing to the smaller, weaker dogs?
Letting large numbers of aggressive dogs roam around in packs is NOT properly taking care of dogs, and I fear that we have another No Kill disaster here that the county should have been involved with long ago.
Rescues and shelters need to be licensed and inspected too.
There need to be some ground rules, for the health and safety of all, man and animal.
(I also wonder if Lorain County is not a dumping ground for unwanted dogs, perhaps because people's local animal control and shelters have gone No Kill and won't take them in, or have a ridiculous "waiting list." Wherever this No Kill insanity is in place, trouble follows. No Kill has killed so many in brutal, uncivilized ways.)
This is from the Topix board:
i work at the hospital down the road from where this happened(and from where the ambulance was dispatched) and was told by a co-worker that EMS had been on scene for about 20 minutes and had yet to get to the victim because of the dogs. apparently they were all growling and barking at the EMS crew…
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http://www.topix.net/forum/source/fox8/TH456JIEP3LUG916B
Oh God. Oh God. Read this:
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http://chronicle.northcoastnow.com/2010/06/16/man-killed-by-dogs-in-horrifying-attack/
In the years that I had a sanctuary, I never had a problem with dog on dog aggression. The only time would be at night and the dogs would "spar" a little to determine who would get to sleep with the cat. If a dog came in new and went after the cat, the other dogs would put it in it's place and that dog would never go after the cat again. Each one was fed separately so no problems with food aggression either. I studied this "pack" of dogs, ever changing, and never had to break up a fight. But then again, never had a pit or anything close in that pack, mostly hounds of some type. And they roamed freely, always coming home at dusk. We lived in the middle of no where, no other neighbors, just woods. And they were all altered when people had never heard of spay/neuter. I wonder if any of these dogs were altered. I can't imagine the horrors of being attacked by several dogs.
And yes, this can be contributed to "No Kill". Hoarding is becoming out of hand and all under the guise of "No Kill". In California, all you have to do to get animals from the shelters is PRESENT yourself as a rescue, you do not have to be a 501c3. And now the Whino is pimping the Hayden in New York as the Oreo bill. I want rescues regulated, not given free rein. They are out of control with this "No Kill" movement.
1 rottweiler, 3 pit bull/boxers and 5 bull mastiffs. nine powerful dogs. it is amazing to me that they could identity this body at all.
Hours long.
The neighborhood on lockdown.
The cost of cleaning up this bomb that had been waiting to go off (which eventually did) was big for the Lorain County taxpayer.
And what if that emergency personnel had been needed at another urgent call? Someone else could have died because all hands were dealing with this insane situation that never should have been allowed to go on on.
The only family pet was living in the house.
The vicious dogs were out where they could have escaped and killed a neighbor. Or several.
I wonder if these dogs were not previous bite cases that made it through the underground to end up at this place instead of being properly euthanized where they originated?
WHERE DID THESE DOGS COME FROM? THEIR HISTORIES BEFORE THEY CAME HERE? WHO GAVE THESE DOGS TO THIS DISASTER OF A "RESCUE"?
Was this one of those sorts of places that Best Friends wants vicious dogs sent to? Or that irresponsible towns agree to let vicious dogs get sent to?
The sort of place that abuses and endangers when adults don't want to be RESPONSIBLE and do the RESPONSIBLE thing and euthanize vicious dogs.
Howwever, one of the articles intimated that this man placed some of these vicious dogs in new homes. The thought is frightening.
There are many questions here that needs answers, because there are more places like this out there.
At first when I read this story, I was thinking about the various unidentifiable mutts that are always dumped out in the country and breed like crazy. That's what I thought they were "rescuing" at first, so I was a little surprised.
Then I read the update. Now I'm not surprised. Thankfully an innocent person wasn't injured or killed because of their stupidity. I bet I can't say the same for the various normal dogs that were dumped or the local wildlife.
The man cared for his dogs, but apparently did not spay/neuter them.
Barker said several months ago one of the dogs had a litter of puppies and Kywa obtained licenses for all of them. Four of those animals have since been given to Kywa’s friends and family.
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http://chronicle.northcoastnow.com/2010/06/17/experts-mauling-death-a-result-of-%E2%80%98pack%E2%80%99-behavior/
QUESTIONS BEING ASKED:
In the past two years, the Erie Shores Humane Society received three anonymous calls about dogs fighting or being beaten with a 2-by-4 board at the property, said Shannon Moss, a humane investigator for the society. A rescue worker for neglected animals, Moss sometimes will care for 10 or 20 dogs in kennels at his Oberlin home. Moss visited the Kywa-Winters home three times after the complaints. “They did not seem sickly or malnourished to me,” Moss said. “They did seem overly aggressive.” He said he once spoke to Kywa through the fence and Kywa stated his dogs were well cared for. “Why did he have this kind of dogs? Why did they have this kind of aggressive dogs of this nature?” Moss said. “This didn’t just happen out of a fluke. These were some mean dogs there. Why were they there?”
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http://www.morningjournal.com/articles/2010/06/17/news/mj2899080.txt
LITTERS?
Yet again, this seems to be a BREEDING OPERATION breeding and selling vicious dogs, and using the cover of a fake "rescue."
I wonder if he was not using the emotional bait and false misnomer of "rescue" to get people to buy dogs, when he was breeding them all the time.
Also to avoid paying taxes.
But the really disturbing thing is that there was a history, a history of aggression, abuse, dangerous dogs. Why did no one deal with this problem?
These dogs could have escaped from that shoddy operation and killed a neighboring family.
Why didn't anyone step in?
These operations need to be licensed and inspected. There need to be some rules, and they need to be required to follow them.
Aggressive dogs living outdoors in packs? The results of this were as clear as day.
It's a miracle that an innocent party wasn't killed- a delivery man, a neighbor, the mailman, a child walking to school down the road.
The pathetic thing is that if this guy had been running a junkyard there would have been more rules, inspections, and enforcement. And junk doesn't kill people.