Most of the Expected, Longtime Killing Culprits
Photographs of six fatally attacking dogs in 2014 obtained from multiple sources.
Jump down to view all 2014 breed identification photographs or read our analysis first.
DogsBite.org - Last year we began the tradition of publishing breed identification photographs of fatally attacking dogs when available through news reports, owner supplied or social media websites. Of the 42 total recorded deaths last year, 24 fatalities, 57%, had breed identification photographs.1 Take a good look at these dogs, as they dominate attacks resulting in human fatalities and include the predictable culprits: pit bulls, rottweilers, mastiff-types and their mixes.2
Of all dog bite fatalities with identification photographs, 58% (14) were provided by the news media, 46% (11) were located on social media websites of the dog's owner or family members and 8% (2) were supplied by the dog's owner. Three attacks also had photographs in two categories (news media and social media).3 Florida had the most photographs (4) followed by North Carolina, Ohio and Texas, each with three -- the same four states that overshadowed all fatalities in 2014.
Are All "Large Breeds" Equal Killing Machines?
Not all large dog breeds are equally as likely to kill, which is why Labradors, Standard Poodles and 50 plus others are not represented below. Dog breeds that disproportionately kill people in the U.S. and across the world are medium to large-sized molosser dogs -- mastiff-type guard dogs and war dogs, the types that were used to create "baiting" bull breeds and fighting breeds. Form follows function, thus the group shares visual similarities in their weighty jaws and head shape.
We point out the "large breed" issue after KIII-TV failed the citizens of Texas and the American public by refusing to name the dog breed(s) involved in the death of Rita Woodard who was fostering 17 dogs on her property when she was attacked. Woodard's extensive Facebook page showed that 90% of the dogs she fostered were pit bulls. Failure to report dog breed in cases of human fatality, or hedging it under the "large breed" scenario, is dangerous and incompetent.4
2014 Fatal Dog Attack Breed Identification Photographs
Christina Bell, 43-years old of Houston, Texas, was brutally killed by two loose pit bulls on January 5, 2014. Seven months later, Harris County prosecutors charged two of the dogs' owners under the Texas state felony dog attack law.
Kara Hartrich, 4-years old of Bloomington, Illinois, was savagely killed by at least two of her family's pit bulls on January 17, 2014, her 4th birthday. Her mother, Roxanne Miller Hartrich, later gave a heartfelt interview about that horrific day.
Braelynn Coulter, 3-years old of Highpoint, North Carolina, was killed by one of her family's two pit bulls on February 24, 2014. Just a few months earlier, both pit bulls had broken through a fence and attacked a dog being walked by its owner.
Mia DeRouen, 4-years old of Houma, Louisiana, was killed by her family's 130 pound pit bull on March 25, 2014. Police categorized the dog as a "monster" and were forced to gun down the aggressive animal by firing 13 shots into it.
Christopher Malone, 3-years old of Holmes County, Mississippi, was mauled to death by two pit bulls owned by family members. The dogs had been secured in a chain-linked pen, but somehow escaped and fatally attacked the boy.
Dorothy Hamilton, 85-years old of Kaufman, Texas, was killed by her son's two pit bulls that he kept inside the home they shared. Her son usually kept them locked in a room, but the dogs broke through the door and fatally attacked his mother.
Jessica Norman, 33-years old, was discovered dead with her clothes stripped away in a ditch on her property in Sebring, Florida. Canine bites were a contributory cause of death. Police concluded that her neighbor's pit bulls inflicted them.
Katie Morrison, 20-years old of Smiths Station, Alabama, was viciously attacked by three pit bulls on April 28, 2014 while visiting the home of the dogs' owner. The dogs ripped off her whole scalp in the attack. She died of her injuries on May 3.
Johnathan Quarles, Jr., 7-months old, was mauled to death by his babysitter's pit bull while visiting Dayton, Ohio with his family on July 20, 2014. The dog had previously attacked a neighborhood dog and charged a letter carrier.
Cindy Whisman, 59-years old of Middletown, Ohio, was brutally killed by her daughter's pit bull while babysitting her 2-year old grandson. Her daughter, grandson and the male pit bull had moved into Cindy's home two months earlier.
Joel Chirieleison, 6-years old, was killed by two pit bulls while visiting his aunt's home in Fanning Springs, Florida on August 7, 2014. The babysitting arrangement with his aunt had been in place for weeks and Joel was familiar with the dogs.
Javon Dade Jr., 4-years old, was killed by up to six family dogs -- one pit bull and five pit bull-mixes -- while visiting his father's home in Goulds, Florida. Miami-Dade authorities later charged his father and his father's girlfriend with manslaughter.
Alemeaner Dial, 83-years old of Rowland, North Carolina, was attacked and killed by her granddaughter's four pit bulls. Other family members had repeatedly called authorities about the dogs concerned about the elderly woman's safety.
Post Publication Identification Photographs
Breed identification photographs discovered after the publication of this post on January 7, 2015. These photographs are not included in our overall analysis; they were unavailable at that time.
2Wolf-like northern breeds, predominantly huskies, were notably missing this year.
3The three photographs falling in two categories produces a total of 112% instead of 100%.
4KIII-TV was on scene when the dogs were confiscated. They also stated, "There was at least one animal that came out with blood it. We chose not to show the video of it because of its graphic nature." That is understandable, but does not remove the reality that they witnessed the dogs being seized, mainly shot footage of pit bulls being seized, yet still failed to state any breed name in all of their coverage. KIII-TV "should" be aware that Texas leads all states in fatal dog attacks and has for over a decade. KIII-TV "should" be aware that Texas has a much higher rate of pit bull fatalities than most other states and the national average. KIII-TV "should" be aware that Texas doctors now lead the nation in medical research about fatal pit bull attacks. Finally, KIII-TV "should" be aware that accurate reporting -- not hedging or withholding information -- will help save Texan lives and elevate this issue statewide.
Related articles:
08/31/15: Who Can Identify a Pit Bull? A Dog Owner of 'Ordinary Intelligence'...
01/03/14: 2013 Fatal Dog Attack Breed Identification Photographs - DogsBite.org
05/05/09: Alexandra Semyonova: Heritability of Behavior in the Abnormally Aggressive Dog
No surprises in this lineup, except for the Schipperke – that one just doesn't fit somehow. It's not in their nature, and there are no other accounts of such an attack by a Schipperke. I just have to wonder if there is something else going on there that we aren't privy to.
I'm assuming you're referring to the dog pictured in the story above about 91yr old Antanaitus of Stratford, Connecticut? That pic is of a Keeshound "mix" (it is stated above the pic), and not a little Schipperke. Who knows what the Keeshound was mixed with.
Looking at these particular dog faces reminds me of a quote from Werner Herzog's film Grizzly Man, from Herzog himself in the voiceover: "And what haunts me, is that in all the faces of all the bears that Treadwell ever filmed, I discover no kinship, no understanding, no mercy. I see only the overwhelming indifference of nature. To me, there is no such thing as a secret world of the bears. And this blank stare speaks only of a half-bored interest in food. But for Timothy Treadwell, this bear was a friend, a savior." Although really, in reference to pit bulls, this is an insult to nature, who is not so cruel or without reason as these dogs were bred to be.
When I read about the "Keeshond mix" I suspected we'd see no pointy nose, prick eared doggy. I hate it when mixes are not correctly described.
Very similar look and butt ugly too. I can't understand what makes the owners of dangerous breed dogs so deep in denial and vicious in defense of the indefensible.
My aunt got a pit in 2013. While she is a beautiful animal, I am still very weary of becoming to comfortable and lacking awareness of her strength. My boyfriend and I walked her just a block from the house when she smelled and heard another dog BEHIND A WOOD FENCE. She would have torn a plank from that fence and killed that dog if it were not sturdy as it was. I was shocked to see her so angry -the dog had done nothing! My aunt left my 12 y/o son home only with her once, which pissed me off into space, chalking it off like the pit was a big baby. It's simply untrue. I don't want her put down, but she should not be bred.