Victim Reveals Facial Injuries; Amended Petition Filed
Jacqueline Durand, 22-years old, suffered catastrophic injuries in a violent dog attack.
Victim Gives Interview
UPDATE 03/20/22: On March 16, 2022, one day after the Amended Petition was filed, CBS Mornings aired a segment featuring Jacqueline Durand, a 22-year old college student, who was nearly killed by two dogs she had agreed to pet sit. The vicious attack occurred on December 23. The dogs inflicted over 800 bites, resulting in catastrophic disfigurement. She was released from the hospital in February. The segment also aired parts of police bodycam footage at the scene.
The two dogs pinned her down and tore off her nose, ears, lips and cheeks to the bone. The dogs, as the CBS correspondent states, nearly erased her face. Bloody crime scene images are shown in the segment as well. Durand was attacked as soon as she opened the front door. The dogs then drug her into the living room, where they mauled her extensively. By the time responders entered the residence to rescue her, 37 minutes after arriving, she had lost 30% of the blood in her body.
Durand's parents said that after she arrived at the trauma center, she had to be "resuscitated on the trauma table multiple times." She was placed into an induced coma for over a week. Durand states during her interview, "I feel like I did not ask for this. So, I think that it's time to show who I am now, and I can't be scared of it." She is seated in a wheelchair and the injuries to her face are devastating to witness. Durand does not want to be seen as a victim, but rather as an example.
The Instagram Chat
CBS correspondent David Begnaud also hosted a 54 minute Instagram Live with Durand and her father, where Begnaud responded to people's questions. We encourage readers to watch it in full. Durand is breathtakingly courageous and inspiring. At 27:50, Durand shares that she had a near death experience four times while on the operating table. At 29:00, Begnaud addresses how police were notified of the attack, what they knew when they arrived, and the "37 minutes" delay issue.
"Now, I want to do a little bit of reporting here," Begnaud said. "I called the Coppell Police Department and I asked them, 'Why did it take 37 minutes?' ... It's a relevant question to ask, because they had a gun, the dogs didn't.
The cops knew the following things when they arrived. That the neighbor had been bit. That the dog sitter was likely the person inside. That there was no one else inside, but the dog sitter ... and the dogs were clearly being vicious toward the police officers. Again, the cops had a gun. They could have shot the dog. And there is a moment in the video where you hear the officer say, 'I see her feet.' And there are points at which they're asking Jacqueline questions and Jacqueline is moaning the answer. She's clearly in pain ...
Anyway, the police sent a statement to CBS News and basically they said they did not go in because they didn't know how bad her injuries were.
Not the most sufficient answer to Jacqueline and her family," Begnaud said. - CBS correspondent David Begnaud
The Amended Petition
The Amended Petition against the owners of the dogs, Ashley and Justin Bishop, was filed on March 15. Additional defendants include: Big Dog Haven, Inc., the Tennessee-based legal owner of "Lucy," a German shepherd-mix the Bishops were fostering; National Veterinary Associates, Inc.; and NVA 1-20 AMC Veterinary Management, LLC. The latter two, referred to as the "NVA Defendants," were responsible for treating Lucy's severe wounds after getting into a dog fight.
14. Upon information and belief, Defendant Big Dog Haven -- a canine-rescue organization located in eastern Tennessee -- took legal ownership of Lucy and assumed financial responsibility for her, thereby paying the NVA Defendants several thousand dollars for Lucy’s 11 days of intensive care and treatment. In exchange, Big Dog Haven exploited Lucy by using graphic images of her wounds on social media to raise money for its continued operations. - Durand v. Bishop, Amended Petition
The crux of the allegations against Big Dog Haven and the NVA Defendants comes next. Lucy never made it to Tennessee; she was not a transport dog either. On November 16, 2020, Dallas Animal Services picked up Lucy, "who had sustained a severe, infected leg wound following a fight with another dog," states the Petition. That same day, Lucy was transferred to an NVA animal hospital, where she would continue to receive treatment in intensive care over the next 11 days.
15. Despite this, upon information and belief, Big Dog Haven never took possession of Lucy; she never made it to the mountains of eastern Tennessee. And, despite having been wounded in a vicious fight with another dog, neither Big Dog Haven nor the NVA Defendants made any effort to assess Lucy for aggression. Upon information and belief, any scientifically-sound assessment protocol would have identified Lucy as a dangerous and behaviorally-unsound dog who was not suitable for placement as a foster or adopted pet.
16. But there is no money to be made in the responsible euthanization of dangerous dogs. As a result, neither Big Dog Haven nor the NVA Defendants made any effort to determine whether Lucy was behaviorally sound or fit to be placed as a foster animal. Instead, with donations flowing to Big Dog Haven and the NVA Defendants’ bills paid, Lucy was simply recycled back into an unsuspecting community of dog lovers -- where this preventable attack occurred -- ultimately coming into the possession of the Bishop Defendants as a foster pet. - Durand v. Bishop, Amended Petition
The NVA Defendants and Big Dog Haven are being sued for negligence, in part, for: failing to assess and classify aggression thresholds for Lucy; failing to conduct any behavioral or sociability assessment of Lucy; failing to evaluate and document Lucy’s prior adoption and rescue history; failing to warn of Lucy’s dangerous propensities; failing to conduct sufficient due diligence regarding dogs received from animal services; and failing to euthanize a dangerous dog.
They are also being sued under "joint enterprise." The entities are "jointly liable herein for the negligence alleged above, pursuant to the doctrine of joint enterprise," because "an express or implied agreement existed" between them; they had "a common purpose to carry out together;" the entites had "a community of pecuniary interest in that common purpose;" and each "had an equal right to a voice in the direction of the enterprise, arising to an equal right of control."
Jacqueline Durand seen before the vicious dog mauling and about 10 weeks afterward.
02/01/22: Petition: Durand v. Bishop
Dallas County, TX - On January 25, a Petition was filed in a Dallas County court against Ashley Jo Bishop, individually and as trustee of the Bishop Family Trust, and Justin Avery Bishop, MD, individually and as trustee of the Bishop Family Trust, after their two dogs inflicted catastrophic injuries to Jacqueline Durand, a 22-year old college student. Durand had been hired to dog sit the Bishop's dogs over the Christmas and New Year's holidays at the Bishop home in Coppell, Texas.
How this pleading was explained to us is the following: The victim is suing the dog owners who resided in the home and the family trust, which owns the residence. So there are technically (conceptually) two different defendants. The owners or harborers of the dogs, who caused the accident by allowing the dogs to reach the victim and the other being an "entity," which knew that vicious dogs resided on the property, but did nothing to eliminate the danger posed by these dogs.
Petition SummaryJacqueline Durand loves dogs. She loves dogs so much that she started working as a dog sitter and walker to earn extra money while a full-time student at the University of Texas at Dallas. But Jacqueline never expected that her love of dogs would cost her so much.
On December 23, 2021, Jacqueline went to the home of Ashley Bishop and Dr. Justin Bishop to walk their dogs -- including Lucy, a German Shepherd mix-breed, and Bender, a Pit Bull mix-breed (collectively, the “Dogs”). As soon as Jacqueline opened the front door -- without provocation -- the Dogs, who the Bishops had left out of their kennels, pushed the door open and brutally attacked Jacqueline.
The Dogs knocked Jacqueline off balance, causing her to fall and drop her cell phone. Then, the Dogs violently attacked her head and face -- mauling her catastrophically. The Dogs were so violent and blood thirsty that they pulled all of Jacqueline’s clothes off, including her blue jeans. The Dogs tore off and ate both of Jacqueline’s ears, her nose, her lips, and most of her face below her eyes. In their prolonged attack, the Dogs left puncture wounds over most of her entire body. When she was finally pulled out of the house, Jacqueline was taken immediately to a Level 1 trauma center where she has since undergone multiple surgeries.
Despite their Dogs’ vicious attack and mauling of Jacqueline, the Bishops continue to defend their Dogs. However, an ominous sign on the Bishops’ front door shows that they actually knew or reasonably should have known of the Dogs’ dangerous propensities. - Durand v. Bishop, CC-22-00369-D
A sign hanging on the Bishop's door warned of "Crazy Dogs." Please don't knock or ring the bell.
Reviewing the Petition
Texas is a "one bite rule" state. Victims of dog attacks have to prove the owners knew, or reasonably should have known of the dogs' vicious propensities in order to recover compensation. It is a two-part rule, as explained on Dogbitelaw.com. "This doctrine holds that a victim can recover compensation from the owner, harborer or keeper of a dog if (a) the dog previously bit a person or acted like it wanted to, and (b) the defendant was aware of the dog's previous conduct."
"If either of those conditions are not met, however, the victim cannot employ this doctrine as a ground for recovery." - Kenneth Phillips, Dogbitelaw.com
There are three causes of action in this pleading. The Petition cites premises liability as the first. "Defendants created and maintained an unreasonably dangerous condition on their premises," states the Petition, "by -- among other negligent acts or omissions and without limitation -- (i) maintaining, possessing, and exercising control over the dogs, (ii) failing to warn Plaintiff of the dogs’ dangerous propensities, and (iii) leaving the two dogs unsecured outside of their kennels."
Texas also permits dog attack victims to recover compensation on the ground of negligence. "The owner of a non-vicious animal can be 'subject to liability for his negligent handling of such an animal,'" states Dogbitelaw.com. Negligence is the "absence of the kind of care a reasonably prudent and careful person would exercise in similar circumstances," states the site. The defendant owed a duty to exercise reasonable care and the defendant breached that duty.
Under the negligence cause of action, the Petition cites multiple items, including: maintaining and possessing dangerous dogs; failing to warn Plaintiff of the dogs’ dangerous propensities; failing to kennel the dogs while unattended; failing to conduct sufficient due diligence on their foster animals; owning, keeping, or harboring more than four animals over six months of age; failing to exercise ordinary care and prudence; and failing to provide a safe environment for their invitees.
Prior to Durand arriving at the Bishop home on December 23, Bishop texted and informed Durand that -- "inconsistent with the Bishop’s normal practice -- they left the dogs outside their kennels," states the Petition.
The third and final cause of action is negligence per se, which is negligence based on violating an animal control law. "To prevail on a claim, the litigant alleging negligence per se must show that there was a violation of a statute or an ordinance," states Dogbitelaw.com. "The plaintiff must prove that the violation was the cause of his injuries," states the site. The Petition cites the violation of two regulations, § 9-1-5 -- Registration, License and § 9-1-18 -- Dangerous Dogs.
The Bishop's "Crazy Dogs"
Court records pertaining to the seizure of both dogs and the dangerous dog hearing, state the male pit bull, "Bender" was owned by the Bishops. The female German shepherd-mix, "Lucy" was under the care of the Bishops through a foster program at the time of the attack. The owner of Lucy is Big Dog Haven, Inc., of Greenville, Tennessee (page 34). Lucy is seen on the Big Haven Facebook page in a March 25 post. Both dogs are still being held at the Coppell Animal Shelter.
It is unknown why Big Dog Haven, Inc., is not named as a defendant in the Petition or why the Petition was filed so quickly after the attack.
According to affidavits filed for the seizure of the dogs, veterinary records stated that "Bender" had black and white coloring, weighed about 90 pounds and was 4-years old. "Lucy" had tan coloring, weighed about 65 pounds and was 5-years old. Both dogs were observed to have blood evidence on their neck and muzzle. A third smaller dog was not observed to have blood evidence. The Bishops told investigators there was no previous bite history for any of the dogs (page 6).
"Crazy Dogs" Bender and Lucy seen in court documents filed in a Dallas County court.
Victim and Dog Owners
Jacqueline Durand is a 22-year old college student at the University of Texas at Dallas, who earns extra money by dog sitting and walking. Prior to December 23, 2021, Durand met with Ashley Bishop at the Bishop’s home to discuss a potential dog sitting job. With Bishop present, Durand met the dogs without incident. Other than the “Crazy Dogs” sign on the front door of the Bishop’s home, Durand was not given any warning about the dogs' vicious propensities, states the Petition.
We located the inquiry that Bishop posted to the Pet Owners of Coppell Facebook group on December 7. "Hey guys. I am in desperate need of a dog sitter for my 3 dogs from Dec 23-Dec 31," Bishop states. After securing Durand as a dog sitter, Bishop wrote, "This is the first Christmas vacation I have taken with our entire family in almost 20 years." Both statements might indicate that Bishop knew she could not send her "Crazy Dogs" to a kennel. A sitter was her only choice.
The demographics of the people who responded to Bishop's "desperate" dog sitting inquiry for the Christmas and New Year's holidays are also telling. All visible responders were females about 35-years and older, except for Durand, who was only 22 and still a student. One of the responders asked Bishop to share a photo of her dogs. Bishop did not do so on the thread. It is by chance that Bishop picked the youngest and most inexperienced female to dog sit her "Crazy Dogs?"
The December 7 inquiry posted by Bishop in the Pet Owners of Coppell Facebook group.
Prayer from Family Friend
On January 8, a prayer from a family friend was left on Durand's Facebook page, which included the possibility of a facial transplant. "Oh good Father, we can't imagine this travesty! We hurt for Jacqueline and all those who care about her. Please give the medical staff acute knowledge of what they need to do to restore the face of this young woman. If a face transplant is Your will, please provide the perfect size face and skin tone to match Jacqueline's coloring," states the post.
In a pale and somber face, John Durand, Jacqueline's father, told news outlets that as soon as she opened that door that day, the dogs immediately took her down. She was "dragged throughout the home," he said. Her "clothes ripped off. 800 to 1,000 bites around her body. Her ears, nose, upper lip and face, from cheek bone to cheek bone, were pulled off of her face," he said. Below is the video clip that is featured on Jacqueline's GoFundMe, which has so far raised over $68,000.
"My daughter was on a pet sitting assignment," her father said. "She opened the door. Immediately, she was taken down. Dragged throughout the home. Clothes ripped off. 800 to 1,000 bites around her body. Her ears, nose, upper lip and face, from cheek bone to cheek bone, were pulled off of her face," he said.
"She remembers everything about the attack," her father said. "She has been forever changed and disfigured by the results of this vicious mauling by these two dogs," he said. "We just hope that she can return to whatever her normalcy will be one day. We will be with her every step of the way."
Summary
This is so clearly a case where the owners of two vicious dogs created the conditions for this catastrophic injury attack of a college student. If a neighbor had not been alerted and called 911, Durand would have died in the Bishop home after being dragged throughout the residence, stripped naked by the dogs and bitten up to 1,000 times. It is a miracle this attack did not result in Durand's death. Now Durand faces the lifelong aftermath of devastating, disfiguring injuries.
We encourage readers to donate to the Jacqueline Durand GoFundMe page to receive updates to it, to follow her Facebook page and to remember her in your prayers. She will need community support for years to come. We also caution all young women and the parents of young women about the dangers of "dog sitting" at multi-dog homes involving large dogs. There are very serious safety issues involved when visiting a dog owner's home without the presence of the owners.
John Durand, the victim's father, states in this video that Jacqueline suffered 800 to 1,000 bites.
Related articles:
08/23/21: Lawsuit Filed After Los Angeles Animal Services Failed to Disclose a Dog's Bite History
08/07/20: Teenager Suffers Critical Injuries, Crushed Trachea, in Violent Pit Bull Attack in Georgia
That poor girl .I can’t imagine the pain she suffer being bitten by 2 vicious dogs. Those evil dogs bit both her ears off part of her nose half of the bottom of her eye. I hope she wins the lawsuit.pitbull are dangerous dogs no matter how those pitbull advocate claiming they are the sweetest dog ever.
I can never believe it when even after their mutants maul an innocent person unprovoked, the crazy owners still support their beasts! The owners deserve jail time, they didn’t secure those mutants even while knowing they were aggressive and allowed someone to be alone with them.
The now proven danger they pose towards to any innocent person who happens to come into contact with them should call for their immediate euthanization.
The owners need much more than a financial lesson taught to them. They should be sentenced to having no contact with pro-pit social media cultists, feeding them encouragement and support for their poor choices in pets.
After seeing the devastated father on the news clip, I cannot believe how an owners {an MD at that} would want to hold on and keep their maulers.
Not the first time I’ve heard of an MD owning a pit bull. Matter of fact, I was the house guest of such a doctor, not once but twice.
During the second visit, the wife was about to give birth to their first child. During one of our conversations, she told me that Gator (yes, that was the dog’s name) pulled a curling iron cord out of the wall.
According to this mother-to-be, Gator did this because he was “protecting” her from the curling iron. Yeah, right.
Truth be told, I was very wary of Gator, especially his habit of taking my arm in his mouth. According to the aforementioned lady of the house, he was doing this in order to get me to play with him.
I do hope that, after the child was born, Gator went bye-bye.
I guess this years “Dr. Josef Mengele” award isn’t such a sealed deal.
Jacqueline lost her face to these 2 ‘pet’ dogs, what a shocking situation to go through, her life is forever changed..
She will have MANY surgeries in front of her, possibly 50+ or 100+ who knows?
I couldn’t feel more sorry for an unsuspecting victim if I tried but these young women/men need to be up to date on dog attacks too, some people never blame or expect a pet dog to bite but millions of North American people are bitten each/every year! Some, like Jacqueline are nearly mauled to death, she would have been if she wasn’t saved, the dogs were trying to kill her!
The truth is if you are attacked and seriously injured or killed by an animal in the US that animal is not likely to be a shark or bear or puma, but is most likely to be DOG and that dog is most likely to be a pit bull or mix.
This, people, is why I USED to be a dog sitter.
I simply don’t feel safe around dogs anymore. Matter of fact, I go out of my way to avoid them.
I agree. Too many “mixed” breeds, and the more dangerous a dog is, the more the owner will lie about how “sweet” the dog is.
This story really makes me sick, I have a daughter the same age. Jacqueline was likely looking forward to graduation and a bright future, perhaps marriage and a family of her own. Her entire life ruined because of a selfish, evil person who only care about getting a “vacation” no matter how risky it was for the dog sitter.
Same here! I used to dog sit at people’s houses and would stay in the house with them. Like you, I now try to avoid dogs.
I am currently a professional pet sitter, and I will only sit small dogs or cats. I was severely bitten by a potential clients “nice” pit bull dog. I have permanent scars and damage on my hand. I was able to collect my loss of wages and medical expenses from the clients homeowners insurance.
Unfortunately, the oldest and most popular pet sitting organization, Pet Sitters international, is pro pit bull, and NEVER publishes any warnings or advice to its members regarding safety around dangerous breeds.
I’ve worked as a professional pet sitter for 12 years and do love my job. I recently requested to not have any more assignments with pit bulls after our pastor was attacked by his next door neighbor’s pit bull when he reached over the fence to pet her , as he had done without problem many times . This breed is just too unpredictable.
I love dogs but not Pitt bulls, Rotweilers, and Doberman Pinschers, they are too dangerous and very unpredictable, one minute they are very friendly and playful the next minute they are in attack mode, nope not for me give me a Golden retriever, Germen Shepherd, or Husky any day.
I love german shepherds too and trust my own GSD mix with me implicitly but I’m not so trusting of other people’s GSD and I don’t trust mine with strangers.
I have French Bulldogs. Bred to sit in laps and look cute, which they do exceedingly well.
My thoughts in no particular order:
1. I believe Lucy is a Belgian Malinois pit cross. I base this on the images of these crosses. They tend to have super short fur (hers is much shorter than stock images of the BM), shorter neck (like hers), and many of them tend to have toned-down pitbull facial features. Studying her photo, you do see the lateral jowls protrude more on her than a BM. Her lower canines are also wider set like a PB.
2. Is it possible 4yo Bender came from a Dallas Dog – Rescue.Rehab.Reform. ? The wife did a birthday fundraiser for them on 4/5/2018. A pit bull was the cover photo on that website at the time. From her FB: “For my birthday this year, I’m asking for donations to Dallas DogRRR – Rescue.Rehab.Reform. I’ve chosen this nonprofit because their mission means a lot to me, and I hope you’ll consider contributing as a way to celebrate with me. Every little bit will help me reach my goal.”
From the DDRRR website: “Every animal deserves a chance. We never give up. If we have not found them a home then we have not tried everything yet. We take the unwanted, we take the broken, and we do what others call impossible no matter what the cost.”
After reviewing this website, I am appalled at the animals that they do not euthanize, poor creatures with massive tumors and severe infections. If not from this website, where did Bender come from?
3. I am very disappointed in this Hopkins-trained doctor. Surely, in residency, he heard about severe pit bull mauling victims?
4. Mrs. and Dr. Bishop should have to look at Jackelyn’s face. A real hard look without looking away or closing their eyes.
5. I hope the Bishops become pariahs. They certainly deserve it.
Wow, that shelter is full of idiots, clearly. And I don’t mean the dogs. “We don’t care how many volunteers, foster doggers or workers get mauled…THE DOG LIVES!”
Maybe I’m off-base here but if it’s ONE bite law, then *after* that one bite, all bets should be off. And clearly these dogs bit this young woman and destroyed her life with more than one bite–so shouldn’t that be euthanasia right there?
This woman’s life is destroyed and these yobs are keeping the dogs. Jaysus.
Christy, aren’t the legs shorter like a pitbull too? Or is it the angle of the photo?
Yes, I think they are. I also notice that on the website of the shelter she was in she is only described as a “shepherd” and not a German shepherd. The Belgium malinois is also called the Belgium shepherd and it is a shepherd breed. The family likely made this designation because it is a more likable breed than a malinois. Also, anyone who knows GSDs knows that they do not bite, hold, shake, regrip like a malinois does. The attack she had from Lucy is more consistent with a BM, BM + pit mix, or GSD + pit mix. I do not think this dog is a GSD + pit mix because these look very different from her and look a lot more pitty.
Colleen, any comment you may have on the “German” being added to the shepherd would be appreciated.
Christy, I am now convinced from your data that the two attacking dogs are pit bull mixes. And wouldn’t you know, the pitnutters are at it again. A friend who has a Westie sent me a photo story today of a Malinois befriending a tiny animal.
Doesnt look like a malinois mix to me, looks like a GSD mix or even a working line GSD or backyard bred GSD. Super short coats are possible in GSD in the working lines and the colouring (clear sable with a mask) is also totally possible and common in GSDs.
It’s possible there’s malinois or pit in her but if so it’s not really evident from the photos.
GSD have been bred for generations for police work – ie to bite humans, and they are known to be wary of strangers and very territorial so it’s not a surprise when under socialized GSD turn on people they don’t know (especially if those people are in their territory without being let in by the owners).
It’s very sad and I hope she wins some kind of settlement and can heal from her horrific injuries.
I used to petsit as a teenager. All the dogs were sweet and loving “old-fashioned” dogs. By old-fashioned I mean dogs who were obedience trained, house broken, well-socialized, and reputable breeds or mixes. Good dogs that were easy to keep and a pleasure to be around. There were no special rules or rituals required for their care.
Now, two decades later I have progressed from a dog lover to extremely cautious. So many dogs have vicious pit bull heritage now and dogs tend to be spoiled, with owners making excuses rather than properly training.
What happened to this precious young girl and many other pet sitters is simply unthinkable. When similar horrific injuries were performed by a chimpanzee, the news was alive with the story. You’d be hard-pressed to mention a pet chimp without someone bringing up that story and saying “I’d never go near one.” If only the pit bull stories were so well-known. This girl would probably never have taken the job. It is so, so disturbing when stories like this go basically unheard. No one should ever have to go through this again. No one should ever be mauled by a pit bull again.
These loons all think they’re rescuing the economy version cast-offs of Tiger King.
Pretty sure most people would agree that snake handling religious groups are cults. If the snow bootie fits…
The dogs aren’t the only crazies in this story.
I agree, this is profoundly sad on every level. What Jacqueline suffered and will continue to suffer the rest of her life is unthinkable. There was a tiny piece of me that thought that her fate is almost worse than death. But as a mother, I know I would pray with all my heart that my child would live no matter what. Today, a beautiful two-year-old girl died after her aunt’s pit bull attacked her. The mother begged desperately for prayers in the face of severe brain damage and massive loss of blood. When will this pit bull plague ever abate? It seems to be getting worse.
Yes, it’s definitely getting worse, and I think it will get worse still before the pendulum swings the other way. The promotion of pit bulls and feel good messaging for rescuing known dangerous dogs is the default in our society right now. It’s persuasive and it’s powerful.
I know people who I’ve shown this website, and they still chose to buy a pit or similar breed type. You just have to do your best to keep yourself and your own family safe, such as not allowing your children to play at a home that includes a risky dog.
When a woman’s face was torn off by a crazed chimp it was on Oprah and ALL over the news outlets. Mauling (s) and death by dog are hopelessly under reported. As a former TV journalist, I do my best to call media outlets and encourage them to cover these stories, usually to no avail. The news is in bed with advertisers and the pet industry is a multi-million $$$ juggernaut. As is the ASPCA. They run endless PSA’s with staged scenes with (mostly) pit bulls shivering in the cold with some sappy music in the background. Most of their money goes to their top executives, while suckers keep the money rolling in.
You nailed it Theresa, it is all about the money.
Exactly. Follow the money. I’ve been saying that for over a decade about dog “rescue”.
Used to be you bought from a breeder or the local pound or in some areas there might be a Humane Society Shelter. Dogs came in one door, went out the other and any that showed aggression was euthanized because nobody wanted to get sued or take the risk. Mongrels were cheap as chips. Makes me wonder how much of this spay/neuter pushing had more to do with shoving up the cost of dogs while providing less choice.
Now people are “importing” (who knows if any of the bullspit they spew is actually true) from so-called street dogs in other countries. Friggin things cost $800-1.5k for mutts.
It’s a racket. Pure and simple. Also, many would rather you pay them to care for the dog they keep in foster care–than physically adopt one.
It’s upside down.
“Makes me wonder how much of this spay/neuter pushing had more to do with shoving up the cost of dogs while providing less choice.”
This is a very good point. It likely didn’t start out this way but it has resulted in purebred and designer bred prices to skyrocket. This has resulted in the rapid proliferation of pits because pit owners tend to be irresponsible and/or hopeful they can get-rich-quick on a litter.
The pit bull ownership isn’t simply irresponsible or money-hungry, they’re asocial. Their unique resistance to speuter is rooted in the same instincts that draw them to pit bulls – the fighter fans like the criminal nature of dogs that kill other dogs, and the victim fans like the “I’m a rebel and only God can judge me” fantasy they concoct about the dogs. Criminal dogs don’t get sterilized; rebels don’t subscribe to the norm that is speuter.
The doctor who co-owns these vicious dogs has prolific authorship of articles, books and speaking engagements. At 41, Dr. Justin Avery Bishop has published more than 200 journal articles, 35 book chapters, and 9 books, and lectured extensively both nationally and internationally. He has a long and lucrative career ahead of him as a distinguished surgical pathologist of the head and neck.
Yet Dr. Bishop and his wife could not remember their promise to Jacqueline to kennel their dogs. They did not represent the true danger of the dogs at their appointed meeting. They did not have their dogs professionally kennelled. A man and his wife too busy w their careers to extend even common courtesy to a young person. Errors of omission, misrepresentation, carelessness, and bad judgment. Profound negligence!
As far as I’m concerned the alibi that they weren’t in their kennels can be set aside. They probably would have sprung on Jacqueline the instant they had the chance to do so. And they did!
That “doctor” needs a swift boot up the…
The “Doctor” needs his license revoked.
“First, do no harm!”
Something I missed on first viewings on YT.
David Begnaud of CBS reported,
“When the dogs rushed her, the door was left open and that triggered a security alarm at the home of Justin and Ashley Bishop.”
Shouldn’t the Bishops have been cognizant that the front door alarm would trigger overexcitation in their dogs when Jacqueline was taking them out for walks? Or if she had difficulty w the locks or getting inside, which we know she did. Dogs’ hearing is 2-4X greater than that of humans.
Why wouldn’t the Bishops have calibrated the alarm or turned it off completely to protect Jacqueline? Despite their fear they might be robbed. Their sign exhibits the Bishops’ awareness their dogs were overexcited with visitors. Why didn’t they take the next step w the alarm?
More negligence added to the fact they did not honor their civic and employer responsibility to Jacqueline by not crating their dogs as promised.
It’s a good job they didn’t disable the alarm as apparently the alarm going off is what alerted anyone to the attack in the first place and caused police to be called out.
This made me sick to my stomach to read. I hope the dog “owners” are drained of as much money as possible for this girl and her family.
Also, did you see this yet? /:
https://www.reddit.com/r/BanPitBulls/comments/sjoyc0/yesterday_a_toddler_was_mauled_by_a_family_pit/
I just read about Joslyn Stinchcomb yesterday, who was attacked by a pitbull 1.5 years ago in ATL. I thought about a campaign we can each do “Ban pitbulls by 2030 in the USA.”
I “just happened” to be approached by a city councilwoman and emailed by my US Senator yesterday. So I let both know my priorities.
BTW, both Jacqueline Durand and Joslyn Stinchcomb have issues w their eyes area. I am including in my daily prayers now that their eyes are irrigated normally again. This sounds like it may be an issue for many victims of pitbull attacks given they are usually attacked on the head and face.
This poor young victim, along with most dog ‘lovers’ are just simply unaware that a dog is capable of causing this type of damage… it must be reported, the reality of it shown so the average person is aware that this happens! She didn’t actually die but folks don’t care even if she did, the actual gruesome pics of her injuries should be allowed to be shown everywhere! Yes, folks, this is what domestic, family dogs can and do, to 1000s of people each/every year in the US alone..45 people don’t survive these vicious maulings and are actually killed, each year in the US…
This poor girl is going home after 2 months in the hospital. She’s alive, but still in horrible shape. God bless this gentle soul. I wish her only good. So, what happened with the dangerous dogs??? This latest release only refers to a “tragic incident.” Usually, we hear “accident.” This was completely preventable. Last I read, the owners of the murderous mutts were trying to keep them alive.
Thanks, Colleen. Similar to the dogs that killed the 7-year old whose mother worked for the TV station. Unbelievable these killers are still alive and need to be examined. BTW, I was happy to see a Miami TV station refer to your website for statistics and info. The more people who can be educated by your research the better.
I watched this graphic and incredibly heartbreaking story. National media is the only way to get people’s attention. What I found so disturbing was the rescuers (cops & EMT’s) waiting 37 MINUTES while these monsters tore this tiny, young woman apart. Why didn’t they shoot their way in? There’s footage of these aggressive dogs going after them at the front door.
Colleen, I remember your saying the saddest thing in this horrific story was, “they saw her legs.” It seems they knew someone was in the house with these blood-thirsty dogs, but they waited for back-up. I’ve seen stories lately of cops and armed civilians shooting attacking dogs. The aftermath is often, why did you have to shoot the poor thing? (This is where I want to scream!)Yes, why did they wait? We’ve seen regular folks with baseball bats, knives or whatever trying to save a victim. It’s unthinkable how much agony this girl could have been spared had they beat these dogs off immediately and gotten to her.
Jacqueline Durand’s admirers can read this story on her as well. The amount of blood shown in this NY Post article is heinous. The police struggled to get the dogs under control? Why didn’t they just shoot both of them dead immediately?!!
https://nypost.com/2022/03/16/college-student-who-was-disfigured-in-vicious-attack-by-dogs-reveals-her-face/
When I initially saw the photo Christy linked, I was overjoyed that her face was still w her. Her legs looked so spindly, though, looking tattooed and skin grafted.
Thanks, Colleen, for posting the newer coverage.
Jacqueline is so tiny but a giant in bravery. I will be praying for her daily for the rest of my life. She is a miracle!
I’m praying for her and her family, too. The dog nuts who try to defend or rationalize this attack will have a hard time with this one. This girl is such a goodhearted animal lover. I’m sure these dogs had a temperament test at the shelter before they were “rescued” by this couple who happen to have children in the home. (One is 3 years old!) There goes that theory about predicting aggressive behavior.
Thank you, Colleen, for your excellent March 20, 2022, update.
The dogs are having blood tests to determine Lucy’s mix breed, right? Some of us were speculating that it might be Malinois-pitbull. Would someone kindly share that info w us here when revealed?
I was surprised to discover that a pleasant low-key response to someone a few days ago on Tubeyox generated a cancelled comment when I wrote 1 sentence about the owners’ dogs as pitbull mixes.
Colleen, I hope you will allocate lots of space here for comments as we follow this case which may last years. Thank you for providing comment space so we can talk w and learn from like-minded citizens.
The British news site Daily Mail provided a comprehensive article on the live Q&A interview w Jacqueline. The Daily Mail often provides more data than I have seen in American media, especially regarding pitbull attacks.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10619515/Texas-student-22-bitten-800-TIMES-dog-reveals-face-time-attack.html
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Jacqueline is a very brave and courageous young lady indeed. She will need alot of financial help with her surgeries, and rehab, and starting a new life, even if she wins this lawsuit. Another young lady who lost her lip to a pitbull is getting a new one for $400k. These surgeries aren’t cheap. Many small donations and sharing her story far and wide will help I’m sure. Owners/handlers of large, potentially aggressive dogs need to be more responsible. I don’t know her personally but you can tell from her social media she is a kind and loving person and didn’t deserve this.
I can’t find any news of what happened to the dogs. I see that they were ordered to be euthanized but also the “the order is being appealed.” Note the use of passive voice – who was or is appealing to keep the dogs alive? The Bishops? The rescues?
The media focus has been on Jacqueline and her recovery – the Bishops and the rescue are not getting much attention. Apparently keeping quiet is working in their favor.
I would like to see news that the dogs have been destroyed.
They were put down after a specialist evaluated them for behavior purposes. That was the only reason that euth was delayed.
Oh good – thank you.
Colleen, I found this document on your website: https://blog.dogsbite.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/durand-v-bishop-dog-mauling-amended-complaint.pdf
Is there any update regarding the lawsuit? Who is paying for all the expensive surgeries that poor Jacqueline is having to endure?
It’s complicated — as lawsuits always are. The case is ongoing. Lots of depositions have been taken, Discovery is ongoing, and a jury trial is scheduled for March 2024. If a significant development occurs, I am sure that there will be a media report about it. Anyone can see the docket for her case (CC-22-00369-D) by typing in her name, DURAND, JACQUELINE, at the following URL:
https://courtsportal.dallascounty.org/DALLASPROD/Home/Dashboard/29
I had a look again today and see that the jury trial is set for November. Wow, it might be three plus years before the poor girl finally gets some justice for all that she has suffered.
CL: Your comments are always so reasonable and well informed. Thank you. Are there any updates?
I am seeing a serious power imbalance in this case, too. Among all the heartbreaking injustices of it.
Perhaps Dr. Bishop was perceived by the police as an authority figure and all our society’s reverence for that power played a role in the 37 minute delay before the police began protecting her.
Protect and serve–but maybe protect and serve some more than others. I have seen that. We all have seen that.
Maybe the police didn’t want to damage the Bishops’s property by breaking in.
I have dealt with sneering police who represent the arrogance of a town’s elite. Those who respect some people’s property more than they respect the lesser human beings who also pay their salary out of their property taxes.
I hope the young lady’s lawsuit is successful and that she is awarded more than she asks for. Nothing can compensate for her losses. She will never have the life she would have had if she had not gone to work for the Bishops.
I agree with all those who see their warning sign as proof they knew the dogs were easily triggered.
We live in a privilege and status-worshipping society. Jacqueline Durand is on the lower end of the teeter totter from the Bishops.
“Who has the best-paid lawyer” is frequently the winning game in court. I hope for the best for her but I doubt she has the assets they have.
I have been terrorized by dogs over the course of my life, and my children and dogs have too.
With a PhD education in psychological theory, I think I see narcissism on the part of some dog owners.
In the case of pit owners–and owners of other latently aggressive & under-trained dogs– the choice of such a pet despite its horrible reputation suggests to me anti-social narcissism, or social antipathy, maybe psychopathology.
To me it often seems that an intimidating dog expresses what the owner feels but does not want to own. The dog does that mean “talk” for them. They continue on with their friendly demeanor while their dog lunges at you or your dog or it attacks your children off leash in a public place while the owner stands helpless. (That happened.)
I’m not talking drug dealers and dog fight enthusiasts here. I am talking about nice, upper class McMansion-dwelling suburbanites.
Like my town, full of pit and pit bull mix owners walking around with halos on their heads: “Aren’t I great for rescuing this dog?” Or apologizing when they have bought from a breeder. Or they look at my purebred and comment with moral superiority.
–My dog weighs 10 pounds and literally would not hurt a fly. She amuses herself catching snowflakes and falling leaves. She is the kind of dog I think most people should own: A gentle, well-trained companion. She will bark when someone approaches the house but she would not dream of attacking.
Another person may be drenched in pit propaganda, but if sensitive, responsible, and thoughtful, would not invite that risk to live in their home and scare their community.
There is a serious, dangerous social disconnect going on. Surely there is some mental derangement involved as well.
Bring up the problem and some pit lover will immediately say they are the best and mock your concern. One class I could not return to when the pit subject came up and a pit lover bullied me for stating the facts (from this website).
I am very grateful to this website for its support. It is not easy to find sanity in a society where human life is treated as less valuable than a dog’s right to bite.