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Posted on January 20, 2023 by Colleen Lynn

2022 Fatal Dog Attack Breed Identification Photographs

Nonprofit Captured 75% of Breed Identification Images in 2022

Photographs of six fatally attacking dogs in 2022 obtained from multiple sources.

Jump down to view all 2022 breed identification photographs or read our analysis first.

DogsBite.org - In 2013, we began the tradition of publishing breed identification photographs of fatally attacking dogs when available through news reports, animal control agencies, police departments, social media and public information requests. Of the 54 dog bite fatalities recorded in 2022, 44% (24) had some form of an identification photograph. Our nonprofit was responsible for capturing 75% of them. Pit bulls and their mixes represent 63% of images collected in 2022.

Of the 24 cases with breed identification photographs, 42% (10) comprised images captured or republished by news media; 79% (19) comprised images located on social media pages of the dog's owner or family members; and 75% (18) comprised images that were the result of DogsBite research and otherwise may have gone unpublished. Police and animal control agencies released breed images in 3 cases, yet 65% of all deaths (35 of 54) involved dogs taken into quarantine.1

(Percentages are higher than 100% due to a single death containing multiple dog images, each attributed to a different source, as well as images that fall into overlapping publishing categories.)

Identification Photographs (2013-2022)

From 2013 to 2022, images captured by our nonprofit have risen from 26% to 75%. Images captured by media have fallen from 79% to 42%.

Chart shows 10 years of breed identification photograph collection between 2013 and 2022.

Unreleased Breed Data 2022

The most controversial aspect in 2022 is that authorities did not release breed information in one-third of all cases, 33% (18). We were able to obtain breed photographs in 5 of these cases, but photographs for 2 had to be suppressed from this post. Of the 18 cases where breed data was not released, 56% (10) involved restrictive data, such as, fatal attacks on Indian reservations and unwitnessed attacks. For this reason, the quarantine status in 7 deaths in 2022 is "unknown."

About 22% of the fatally attacking dogs were shot at the scene in 2022, which often diminishes the ability to collect breed identification images.

Additional characteristics of the 18 cases where authorities did not release breed data include: 78% of victims are adults ≥ 25 years old; 67% of victims are classified as marginalized; 61% of attacks occurred in or near a city with a population of less than 10,000; 72% occurred in the Southern United States; 17% occurred on Indian reservations and 3 cases involved pit bulls. In 10 other cases, pit bulls were suspected. Thus, 72% of these cases could have involved pit bulls.

Breed Misidentification Conflicts

Several breed identification conflicts arose in 2022. They began with "Gladys of the Glades," a 125-pound mastiff-type dog that killed a volunteer at a southern Florida rescue facility in February. Authorities identified the dog only as a "mixed-breed," despite the dog's weight, coloring (blue) and physical characteristics. One volunteer at the rescue identified the dog as an American bully (XL), which makes sense, given that the XL can be a mixture of pit bull and Neapolitan mastiff.

XL bully breeders in southern Florida should also be taken into account, especially given the female dog's extreme size. For example, note this "Rockefeller" line and his large offspring at this Miami area breeder, who aims to "create the biggest, widest XL bully puppies with massive bones and heads." The Neapolitan mastiff influence is quite pronounced in some of these dogs. Gladys is certainly a mixed-breed, but it is a disservice to remove "mastiff" or "bully" from her breed-type.

Double Fatal Mauling in Alabama

We may never learn the breeds involved in the back-to-back fatal dog maulings of two women in Franklin County, Alabama, who were killed by the same dog pack 1.5 days apart. The owner of the dogs, Brandy Dowdy, reportedly had upwards of 25 dogs on the property and was a devoted pit bull advocate. Dowdy is currently facing two counts of manslaughter, and a slew of other offenses in connection to the deaths of 58-year old Summer Beard and 44-year old Michele Sheeks.

Further, Beard's estate is now suing Franklin County, two animal control officers, four officers from the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, the Franklin County Emergency Communications District and the Franklin County 911 Center due to their bungled investigation. The attacking dog pack should have been seized after the first attack. According to the lawsuit, Beard went to Dowdy's property the day after Sheeks was attacked under the belief that authorities had already seized the dogs.

Double Fatal Mauling in Tennessee

There was no breed identity controversy after a pair of family pit bulls killed two children, 5-month old Hollace Bennard and 2-year old Lilly Bennard, and left their mother with severe injuries. The father had previously called his two XL pit bulls, "house lions," and both parents advocated for the pit bull breed on their social media pages. What was controversial, and remains so today, is that these XL pit bulls, both likely papered, and their bloodlines were not scrutinized in media reports.

The female pit bull, "Mia," came from the King Lion bloodline, a dog that is billed as "the Godfather of the XXL Movement," serving as the foundation stock for many kennels. The owner of King Lion advertises his dogs as "lions on leashes." Thus, the father's reference to "house lions," was descriptive, but also may have been a reference to the bloodline in one or both of his dogs. After two children were killed by these dogs, their bloodlines should have been publicly scrutinized.

Summary

In 2022, 44% of dog bite fatality cases had some form of a breed identification photograph, the lowest percentage recorded by our nonprofit since 2013, and a fall from the 9-year average of 63% (2013 to 2021). Certainly, the 18 cases in which authorities did not release breed information heavily contributed to our lowered collection of breed identification images in 2022. Of the 24 cases that did have breed identity photographs, our nonprofit captured three quarters of them.

The Covid years (2020 to 2022) show a continued decline in capturing breed identity photos, falling from 84% collection in 2019 to 44% in 2022.

Finally, likely due to 10 cases where authorities did not release breed data in 2022, and pit bulls were suspected in each one, based upon information we obtained about the dog's owner or other case details, the pit bull death count fell from 36 deaths in 2021 to 25 deaths in 2022. That is a significant drop and can be seen most easily on the breed identification chart (2013-2022). The green line sharply falls in 2022. There may not ever be a way to capture this breed data either.

2022 Fatal Dog Attack Breed Identification Photographs

Charlotte Hollman - Gulf Breeze, Florida

Photo of fatally attacking family French mastiff-mix, "Roxy" (social media & dogsbite)

FOIA Only: | Charlotte Hollman, 3-months old, was killed by a family French mastiff-mix, "Roxy," on January 25, 2022 in Gulf Breeze, Florida. Prior to the attack, the mother was lying in bed with her baby, who was sleeping. She got up to use the bathroom and about a minute later, after hearing noises, she returned and saw her baby's head in the dog's mouth.

Saad Al-Anazi - Las Cruces, New Mexico

Photos of two fatally attacking male German shepherds (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post | Saad Al-Anazi, 56-years old, died after being attacked by two chained German shepherds on January 28, 2022. One of the dogs had apparently jumped the fence and was left hanging on the other side, choking. The other dog also escaped the yard. Al-Anazi may have attempted to free the dog on the fence, when both dogs attacked him.

Olivia Floyd - Waynesboro, Virginia

Photos of fatally attacking male family rottweiler, "Ranger" (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post |

Olivia Floyd, 7-years old, was killed by a neutered rottweiler while visiting a relative's home on January 29, 2022 in Waynesboro, Virginia. Police charged the dog's owner, Stephen Kachmar, and Penny Lee Bashlor, Olivia's paternal grandmother, with five felony offenses. Olivia's parents were charged with one count of felony child cruelty.

Lola Farr - Columbia, Mississippi

Photo of fatally attacking male family pit bull, "Ace" (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post |

Lola Farr, 1-year old, died on February 6, 2022 at a hospital in Jackson, Mississippi after being mauled by her aunt's pit bull five days earlier. "She got attacked by my sister's pit bull. I'm on the way to the hospital," her mother Wendi Oxner wrote on February 1. "They are about to fly her to Jackson." Lola did not survive her injuries.

Pam Robb - Oakland Park, Florida

Photos of fatally attacking mastiff-type rescue dog (news media, social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post | Pam Robb, 71-years old, was killed by a mastiff-type dog while working with the dog at a rescue facility on February 17, 2022 in Oakland Park, Florida. The attack occurred at 100+ Abandoned Dogs of Everglades Florida. The group had rescued the 125-pound dog, "Gladys of the Glades," after it was abandoned in the Everglades on January 18.

Drué Parker - Baytown, Texas

Photos of one of four fatally attacking family pit bulls belonging to relatives (news media)

See: Full blog post |

Drué Parker, 4-years old, was killed by a pack of pet pit bulls while visiting his aunt's home on February 23, 2022 in Baytown, Texas. Parker had spent the night with her and was supposed to return home the next day. But after waking up that morning, he encountered the pit bulls. Nearby surveillance cameras captured part of the horrific mauling.

Serenity Garnett - Martinez, Georgia

Photos of fatally attacking American bulldog-mix, "Blade" (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post | Serenity Garnett, 7-months old, was killed by an American bulldog-mix, "Blade," while under the care of her great-grandmother, Migdelia Guadalupe, on March 22, 2022 in Martinez, Georgia. The large dog belonged to Donna Mills, who was incarcerated at the time. Guadalupe was charged with second-degree murder and felony drug possession.

Debbie Boyd - Seymour, Tennessee

Photo of family rottweiler used as victim's Facebook profile (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post |

Debbie Boyd, 70-years old, was killed by one or both family rottweilers on June 3, 2022 in Sevier County, Tennessee. Authorities determined that Boyd had been inside the home with the dogs at the time of the attack, as was a small child, who was not injured. Boyd's Facebook profile depicts a rottweiler lying down inside a home.

Nicolas Vasquez - Harris County, Texas

Photos of two of three fatally attacking pit bull-mixes (news media & animal control)

See: Full blog post |

Nicolas Vasquez, 51-years old, died on June 19, 2022 in Harris County, Texas, after suffering catastrophic injuries by three dogs on June 9. A neighbor had discovered Vasquez that night lying in a ditch with life-threatening injuries. On June 27, Matthew Leroy Satchell, 32, was charged with felony dog attack in connection to his death.

Apollo Duplantis - New Orleans, Louisiana

Photos of family bull breed-mix seen on mother's Facebook page (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post |

Apollo Duplantis, 13-months old, was attacked and killed by a family bull breed-mix dog on July 11, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana. When an animal control officer entered the backyard of the home to seize the animal, the dog viciously attacked the officer, who began "screaming for help," at which point a police officer shot the dog, killing it.

Freddy Garcia - Fort Bend County, Texas

Photos of two pit bull-mixes involved in the pack attack (news media, social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post |

Freddy Garcia, 71-years old, was killed by a pack of up to seven vicious dogs on July 18, 2022 in Fort Bend County, Texas. Garcia had been walking to the store when the dog pack attacked. The attack was captured on a security camera. Samuel Cartwright, 43, was later charged with a second-degree felony in connection to his death.

Marina Verriest - Albertson, New York

Photos of fatally attacking family pit bull, "Zeus" (news media, social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post |

Marina Verriest, 70-years old, was mutilated and killed by a family pit bull on July 27, 2022 in Albertson, New York. The victim's husband discovered his wife's body being dragged around the backyard by the dog. The first officer on the scene, a 15-year veteran, was so traumatized by what he witnessed, he was taken to a hospital for treatment.

Richard "Hutch" Barry - Selma, California

Photos of two of five fatally attacking English bulldogs (news media, social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post | Richard Barry, 59-years old, was killed by a pack of AKC registered English bulldogs while walking in a neighborhood on July 31, 2022 in Selma, California. Police officers used bean bags and tasers to subdue the dogs that had escaped from a nearby yard. The dogs belonged to breeder Victor Carranza of Four Brothers Bulldog Kennel.

Joan Caffiel - Las Vegas, Nevada

Photos of fatally attacking male family pit bull, "Buc" (news media, social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post |

Joan Caffiel, 89-years old, was attacked and killed by a family pit bull on August 9, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Caffiel's caretaker, Gelena Kelly, who had been in the kitchen at the time, left the kitchen to check on Caffiel and saw the dog, "Buc," attacking her. "He had her by the neck and was dragging her body into the second room," Kelly said.

Mindy Kiepe - Rossie, Iowa

Photos of a female great dane seen on victim's Facebook page (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post | Mindy Kiepe, 43-years old, died to due to multiple dog bite injuries from her own dogs. She was found dead lying in a ditch a short distance from her farm's driveway. It was first believed that she had been involved in a motorcycle accident. Upon further investigation, it was determined that five great danes owned by Kiepe had caused her death.

Pamela Rock - Putnam County, Florida

Photos of fatally attacking American bulldog-mixes and pit bull-mixes (sheriff's office)

See: Full blog post |

Pamela Rock, 61-years old, a rural postal carrier, died after being attacked by a pack of dogs on August 22, 2022 in Putnam County, Florida. Deputies applied three tourniquets until rescue units arrived. She was airlifted to a trauma center in Gainesville in critical condition. She died the next day. Police released a blurry photograph of the dogs.

Rusty Burris - Polk County, Tennessee

Photos of fatally attacking male family pit bull (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post |

Rusty Burris, 32-years old, was killed by a family member's "alligator" pit bull, referring to the dog's bloodline, on September 11, 2022 in Polk County, Tennessee. Deputies found Burris behind the family's home unresponsive. The dog had been on a cable prior to attacking and had a history of aggression. A deputy dispatched the dog at the scene.

Mary Gehring - Golden, Colorado

Photos of one of two fatally attacking family pit bulls, "Knoxy" (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post | Mary Gehring, 88-years old, was killed by a pair of family pit bulls on September 17, 2022 in Golden, Colorado. Arriving officers found a "blood trail into the home" and observed both dogs attacking the woman in the backyard. Officers "used themselves as human shields" to rescue her. Both dog owners were later charged with multiple offenses.

Hollace Bennard - Millington, Tennessee

Photos of two fatally attacking family XL pit bulls (social media & news media)

See: Full blog post |

Hollace Bennard, 5-months old, and his older sister, Lilly, were killed by a pair of XL pit bulls on October 5, 2022 in Millington, Tennessee. The family dogs, who the children's father called "house lions" on social media, also attacked their mother, who suffered critical injuries trying to save her children. Both children died at the scene.

Lilly Bennard - Millington, Tennessee

Photos of two fatally attacking family XL pit bulls (social media & news media)

See: Full blog post |

Lilly Bennard, 2-years old, and her younger brother, Hollace, were killed by a pair of XL pit bulls on October 5, 2022 in Millington, Tennessee. The family dogs, who the children's father called "house lions" on social media, also attacked their mother, who suffered critical injuries trying to save her children. Both children died at the scene.

Rosetta Gesselman - Troup County, Georgia

Photos of female pit bull and offspring on owner's Facebook page (social media & dogsbite)

See: Full blog post |

Rosetta Gesselman, 80-years old, was killed by her daughter's three dogs, a female pit bull-mix and two pit bull-mastiff mixes, on October 7, 2022 in Troup County, Georgia. Her daughter knew the dogs had killed family pets before and had also bitten a person. She was charged with reckless conduct and felony involuntary manslaughter.

Samuel Sullivan - West Memphis, Arkansas

Photos of two of 14 dogs seized from the dog owner's property (news media)

See: Full blog post | Sam Sullivan, 56-years old, was found lying in a ditch covered in bite wounds on November 8 after being attacked by dogs. A woman was attacked by dogs in the same area November 16. Sullivan died of complications related to the attack on November 21. On November 29, animal control took custody of 14 suspected dogs at a nearby home.

How We Track Photograph Sources

We track the identification photograph's original source. There may be multiple images of a dog, thus multiple sources may be attributed to a single death. We also track where the image was published. For instance, after Richard Barry's attack, local media outlets obtained video footage of the dogs being captured. We obtained an image of one of those dogs, "Chelsea," on the breeder's Instagram page. Thus, the images were sourced to news media, social media and DogsBite.org.

What is simpler to measure in our tracking and analysis is the rising number of breed identification photographs located on social media, from only 16% of all collected images in 2013 to 79% in 2022, a 394% rise. It is also easy to see the routinely low number of images provided by law enforcement even though the majority of dogs after a fatal attack are held in a quarantine facility. Police released identification photographs after 3 deaths this year, 13%, of cases with images.

Photograph Tracking Categories

DogsBite.org published only; no news media republished the photograph
U.S. news media supplied original photograph and/or republished photograph
Social media website supplied breed identification photograph
Law enforcement or animal control department supplied photograph
Canines shot to death at the scene of a fatal dog attack
Canines held in a quarantine facility after a fatal dog attack

1Technically, that number is higher than 65% too. In 7 deaths, quarantine information was unreleased or unknown. When factoring in the 7 unknown cases, 74% of all deaths (35 of 47) involved dogs taken into quarantine.

Baseline reporting requirements:
Law enforcement departments across the United States should release consistent "baseline" information to the media and the public after each fatal dog mauling, including these items.

Posted on January 7, 2023 by Colleen Lynn

2023 Dog Bite Fatality: Man Charged with Negligent Homicide After His Unleashed Pit Bull Killed Child in Baton Rouge

Sadie Davila, 7-years old, was mauled and killed by a neighbor's unleashed pit bull.

Child Killed by Dog
Baton Rouge, LA – The owner of a dog that killed a 7-year old girl faces a count of negligent homicide, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office confirmed. Erick Lopez, 20, was taken into custody Saturday morning, according to EBRSO spokeswoman Casey Rayborn Hicks. On Friday, emergency responders were dispatched to a home in the 25000 block of Kendalwood Road near Hoo Shoo Too Road shortly after 6:30 pm in response to a child being attacked by a dog.

According to arrest documents, the child had been playing outside of a relative’s home when a neighbor’s dog, identified by authorities as a pit bull, attacked her. A relative tried to intervene by hitting the dog with a walking cane, but the dog continued attacking. She was rushed to a local hospital, where she later died. "This is an awful, heart-breaking tragedy," Sheriff Sid Gautreaux said in a statement. "My heart goes out to this family, and they will remain in my prayers."

On Saturday, the East Baton Rouge Parish School System identified the girl as Sadie Davila, a first-grader at Woodlawn Elementary School.

The Advocate reports that medical staff at the hospital who treated her injuries said she suffered from "numerous dog bites to her face and substantial damage to her skull." EBRSO deputies and East Baton Rouge Animal Control officers located and impounded the dog, which was observed to have blood around his face and mouth area, according to the arrest affidavit. A "substantial" amount of blood was also observed in the yard where the young child had been playing.

The property where the dog resided is about 150 yards away from where the animal attacked. Lopez told investigators he was not home when the attack occurred and that he routinely allowed his dog to roam freely in the neighborhood. The affidavit also states there is no fence of barrier between the two homes. Investigators determined that Lopez "failed to confine or restrain his dog” which unlawfully entered a neighboring property and attacked a child resulting in her death.

In 2009, after the mauling deaths of Luna McDaniel and Michael Blaise Landry, legislation proposed by Rep. Rickey Hardy, known as The "Luna McDaniel and Michael 'Blaise' Landry Act," would allow prosecutors to charge all dog owners with negligent homicide after a fatal attack -- a crime that carries a prison sentence of up to five years and a fine of up to $5,000. The Louisiana legislature passed the bill unanimously in both chambers. Lopez was booked into Parish Prison.

A statement from the East Baton Rouge Parish School System says in part, “Sadie’s teacher, Grace Feucht remains heartbroken about the loss of a student who has made such an impact on her life. ‘Sadie was fierce and spunky, but she was also tender hearted and kind,’ Feucht reflected. ‘She brought energy and joy into my class every single time she stepped in the door.’" Feucht expects "our classroom to feel considerably emptier Monday without her precious presence.”

Read the full statement from the East Baton Rouge Parish School System.

A statement from the family’s attorney, Samuel ‘Chuck’ Ward, Jr., of Ward Law, says in part, “this particular canine had been reported to authorities on previous occasions.” Ward added, “East Baton Rouge is no stranger to problems with pit bull proliferation. In 2006 the parish failed to pass breed specific regulation(s) of pit bull canines. The data shows that in 2007 56 pit bulls accounted for 61% of reported dangerous dog incidents, with the next highest being Rottweilers with 4."

Read the full statement from the family’s Baton Rouge-based attorney at Ward Law.

View the DogsBite.org Google Map: Louisiana Fatal Pit Bull Maulings.

Posted on January 7, 2023 by Colleen Lynn

In Memory of Richard Buffalin, a Prolific Commenter on the DogsBite Blog, a Victims' Advocate and a Cherished Friend

Remembrance Video Released on the First Anniversary of his Death

From the start of the murmuration to the end, the footage depicts the path of the birds at Lady Bird Lake on their final flight at dusk in the fall of 2021. Like these birds, Richard now lives in the sky.

Prescott, AZ - Richard Buffalin, who began commenting on the DogsBite Blog in 2019, passed away on January 7, 2022 in Prescott, Arizona. We did not learn about his death until late March of that year. During the last five years of his life, Richard had walked over 12,500 pedestrian miles, about 50 miles per week. In his time of walking residential streets in Prescott, he experienced several "ambush charge attacks" by aggressive dogs. He believed that dangerous canines had more rights than pedestrians. DogsBite.org eventually became his home page, and he became a vibrant voice commenting on our blog.

It was not until he began walking seven miles a day that he became aware of dangerous canines bolting off-property and their cavalier owners -- both often excused by local authorities. "For more than five decades, I have engineered my life to evade two things: the hostility of the surface of this earth, and dangerous people," Richard wrote in 2019. "Only when I started walking seven miles a day, every day, did both of these things come crashing down upon my head in the form of people who let their dogs ambush attack pedestrians."

A memorial service was held for Richard on his birthday, March 21, 2022, according to his obituary notice. "In memory of Richard 'Richie' Buffalin," states the notice. "He will forever be in our hearts. He is remembered for his scientific knowledge, his humor, and his love for music. He is responsible for saving thousands of lives during his time here with us. He had 27 years of sobriety at the time of his passing. We love you and miss you Richie."

In late March, after not hearing from him in three months, we ran a search on Facebook and found the notice. That is when we first became aware of his death, and became more aware of his life outside of the context of dangerous dogs. In 2019, Richard stated in a comment: "I operate a church property that is being used for multiple daily meetings, and I interact with over a hundred people every day…" No doubt referring to some of the lives he saved during his lifetime.

Richard had corresponded with our nonprofit over the last few years, chiefly when he found a typo on the site, when a link was broken and when he became aware of a troll in comments. During 2021, we started communicating by phone, regarding separate legal matters that both he and our nonprofit were facing. It is that fall when the founder began filming the murmuration that occurred just before dusk at Lady Bird Lake each night. Our remembrance video of Richard ties four of these filming episodes together. His sister kindly provided the personal photographs of him.

It has taken our nonprofit a long time to finalize our remembrance video and this post because we miss Richard so much -- his voice is so clearly no longer present on this website. Comments are not the same without his barbed humor either. Once, after a mother was passed out on medications when her dog attacked her baby, he asked: "What kind of medications? Well, we can rule out anti-narcissism medications." Or his blunt, critical thinking ones, such as after voters repealed Denver's pit bull ban, "Human beings are the only species that forces another dangerous species on itself," he wrote.

Richard could always see through the chronic blame games that play out after attacks, obscuring the underlying problem, as well. After an 8-day old baby was killed by a relatively new family pit bull, Richard identified the factor that ties together many of the attacks documented on this website. “It is not a matter of lack of correct information, or lack of knowledge, or lack of learning, or lack of thinking, or lack of training, or improper raising," he wrote. "It is a matter of risk-taking behavior." He did not assign blame, he simply identified what the behavior was.

It wasn't until we wrote about Sebewaing Police Chief Steven Repkie in late July of 2022 that we even mentioned his death. Repkie had issued a "community advisement" about a neighborhood "living of fear" of a vicious pit bull named "Lucifer" that had attacked a child in the face, but police did not have the legal grounds to seize the dog. Richard would have appreciated Repkie's sentiment, who stated in the advisement: "I will NOT allow my community to be held hostage by a dog. People should NOT be afraid to walk through their neighborhoods."

Richard will be remembered most by our nonprofit for his love of humanity, his love of God, his wit and intellect and his deep genuine caring for people. He will be remembered for always stating the obvious, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," and for stating the inconvenient truth, "The only good thing about dangerous breed canines is that they result in medical innovation." Richard will always be remembered for being a generous donor and loyal supporter of this nonprofit, who also encouraged other people to donate. And for every future murmuration we see, we will always be reminded of Richard, who now lives in the sky.

We selected some of his comments to share. Our prayers go out to his family members and friends as they struggle with his loss. Especially today, on the first anniversary of his death.

Recent Comments

"The police said that it was not a random attack? That is so nice of them to let us know that. If it was not a random attack, then what kind of attack was it? It was a non-random attack. Better than a scheduled attack, or a planned attack, or a training attack, or love attack or an erroneous attack. It was an artificial selection attack, is my best take on this. Just did what it was simply primarily bred to do. Thank Goodness that it was not a random attack. Such a comforting thought." - R. Buffalin, 09/26/2021

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"The horror of America’s most hushed-up public health crisis is in the living room." - R. Buffalin, 01/01/2022

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"They did not raise it to kill. They did not train it to kill their own selves. Therefore, it is not how they are raised. It is what they were bred for … Until dangerous breed canines are declared by law to be dangerous animals, it will be legal to force them on other people, their own children and their own selves." - R. Buffalin, 12/17/2021

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"The dog’s enclosure was not child resistant. The child’s flesh was not dog resistant. What can possibly happen in a few seconds?" - R. Buffalin, 11/26/2021

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"After 12,500 pedestrian miles in Prescott in five years, and after three dogs sicced themselves on me in ambush charge attacks in that time frame, I marvel at pedestrians who are on the public street completely, totally vulnerable. I am just amazed at such a sight." - R. Buffalin, 06/14/2021

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"The backyard did not also have to be full of fast food wrappers, cigarette butts, empty alcoholic beverage containers and spent cartridge shell casings. The two family pet dangerous breed canines were more than sufficient to effect the expected outcome." - R. Buffalin, 06/10/2021

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"It’s comforting knowing that the veto survived an attempt to overturn. I am sure that the Dangerous Animal Industry will outspend victims on its advertising campaign in the months leading up to the November ballot initiative. The DAI generates megabucks that they will spend on campaign advertising, while the victims do not generate money; instead, they spend their money picking up and repairing the pieces of their shattered lives." - R. Buffalin, 02/26/2020

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"It is not a matter of lack of correct information, or lack of knowledge, or lack of learning, or lack of thinking, or lack of training, or improper raising. It is a matter of risk-taking behavior, because ‘We love our dangerous breed canine, and we love our newborn child, so therefor our dangerous breed canine must love us and our dangerous breed canine must love our newborn child.’" - R. Buffalin, 11/10/2021

first anniversary Richard Buffalin death

Richard Buffalin passed away on January 7, 2022 in Prescott, Arizona. He is dearly missed.

Posted on December 21, 2022 by Colleen Lynn

2022 Dog Bite Fatality: Newborn, 4-Days Old, Killed by Pet Husky in Cave Springs, Arkansas

A newborn was bitten on the head and killed by a husky in Cave Springs, Arkansas.

Dog Kills Newborn
Cave Springs, AR - Benton County prosecutor Nathan Smith confirmed today that a dog killed a 4-day old infant last week. On December 14, 2022, a pet husky “put its mouth on the baby’s head,” reports 4029 TV. “The husky's tooth penetrated the baby's head.” The baby girl was transported to Arkansas Children’s Hospital, where she died. The identity of the infant was not released. Police continue to investigate the baby’s death, according to Cave Springs Mayor Randall Noblett.

In a news video update, 4029 TV reported that police investigators characterized the baby’s bite injuries as “severe injuries to her head.”

KNWA/KFTA published the complete statement by prosecutor Smith: “On Wednesday, December 14, my office was notified by the Cave Springs Police Department that they were investigating the death of a 4-day-old baby girl. Based on the statements of witnesses and the opinions of medical professionals, it was determined that the fatal injuries were inflicted on the child by the family dog.” The family's husky has been euthanized, according to Cave Springs Police Lt. Keith Lawson.

The infant’s death marks the third dog mauling death in Arkansas this year, following the deaths of a 1-year old baby girl and 56-year old Sam Sullivan. Authorities did not release dog breed information in either case. The newborn’s death by a husky follows a similar pattern by the breed, whose most common victims are infants. From 2005 to 2017, huskies were involved in 13 fatal attacks. 62% (8 of 13) were infants ≤11 months old and 92% (12) were ages ≤5 years old.

We added in a footnote that: “In comparison with the other top-six killing dog breeds, only 15% (3 of 20) of German shepherd victims were infants ≤11 months old, 13% (6 of 45) of rottweiler victims, 10% (28 of 284) of pit bull victims, 7% (1 of 15) of American bulldog victims, 0% of mixed-breed victims, and 0% of mastiff/bullmastiff victims were infants." During the husky-inflicted infant attacks, the baby is often sleeping too, as was the case in the 2019 fatal husky attack in Georgia.