Posted on March 31, 2009 by Colleen Lynn

2009 Dog Bite Fatality: 7-Month Old Boy Killed by Great-Grandmother's Pit Bulls in San Antonio

Izaiah Cox, 7-months old, was killed by his great-grandmother's two pit bulls.

Great-Grandmother Named
UPDATE 04/01/09: The grandmother has been identified as the toddler's 58-year old great-grandmother, Irma Barrera.1 Her two pit bulls, Cane and Wrinkle, were both male and unaltered. Barrera said she placed the baby on her bed then went into the kitchen to get a bottle for the baby. That's when the pit bulls broke through the baby gate and attacked the infant. Barrera said she tried to stab her dogs with a knife in an attempt to get them to release the injured baby.

03/31/09: Dog Mauling Victim Identified
The victim has been identified as 7-month old Izaiah Gregory Cox. Police said the deadly attack started in the kitchen area, when the grandmother was warming a bottle of milk for the boy. When she turned around, she saw her two pit bulls viciously attacking him. A separate article said the dogs "broke down the baby-gate" to reach the child. The grandmother grabbed a knife and fought the dogs off long enough to place him into a crib. Then her own family pit bulls turned on her.

Investigators said the baby's grandmother was inside the home preparing a bottle for the baby, when the dogs broke down the baby-gate between the bedroom and kitchen. The dogs attacked Izaiah Gregory Cox. The police report says they "dragged [him] around like a rag doll."

The grandmother grabbed a knife and began stabbing the dogs to try to get them off of her grandson. She was able to get the boy into a crib, but the dogs then began to attack her. - News 4 WOAI, March 31, 2009

When EMS crews arrived at the Ruiz Street residence, they had to climb through a side window to get to the toddler, who later died at University Hospital of San Antonio. The dogs were shot to death by arriving police officers in the backyard -- the dogs' bodies were later taken away by animal control to be tested for rabies. The grandmother was also injured in the attack; she is still recovering at a local hospital. It's still unclear if anyone at the home will face any charges.

2009 Dog Bite Fatality: 2-Year Old Boy Killed by Chained Pit Bull in Luling, Texas

Tyson Miller, 2-years old, was mauled to death by a chained pit bull in Luling, Texas.

Mother Indicted
UPDATE 05/14/09: A Caldwell County Grand Jury indicted the mother of a 2-year-old boy this week who was attacked and killed by a chained up pit bull. Melissa Miller, 24, faces charges of injury to a child and criminally negligent homicide, both felonies, in the March 26 death of Tyson Miller, according to a Caldwell County press release. The grand jury returned the indictment after hearing testimony from Miller and her attorney, Matt Jones of Austin, the release said.

The destruction this chained pit bull has brought upon Melissa Miller and her family cannot be measured. Yet the actions of those involved cannot be excused either. DogsBite.org urges parents to keep their children away from chained dogs, especially if the animal is a pit bull, rottweiler or other powerful breed. Do not ever agree to "watch" one of these dogs for a friend or relative nor allow your children to visit the home of a friend or relative that owns a dangerous breed either.

The mother was later sentenced to two years in a state jail in connection to her son's death.

03/31/09: Mother Shares Story
Melissa Miller told CBS 42 reporters that she woke up at 6 am that morning to dress her 6-year old daughter, Valerie for school. Valerie's great-grandmother picked her up about an hour later. Miller said she forgot to deadbolt the door at that time. Exhausted after what she calls an irregular work schedule, Miller said she went back to sleep and woke up around 12:30 pm to find Tyson gone. She also said that Valerie and Tyson had only been staying at the trailer for five days.

Miller told us the owner of the pit bull was an acquaintance of one of the friends living in the house. Miller just moved into the mobile home two weeks before the attack. She said Valerie and Tyson had only lived there for five days, because they spent spring break with their grandmother.

“I knew there was a dog back there chained up, but I never knew what type of dog, or that it was pregnant or that it was a female.” - Katherine Stolp, CBS 42, March 31, 2009

03/30/09: Mauling Victim Identified
Authorities have released the name of the mauling victim. Deputy Luling Police Chief David Creed identified the toddler as 18-month old Tyson Miller, who had been staying with his mother, Melissa Miller, for about two weeks at a home in Luling, where the attack occurred. Creed said the child awoke before the adults that morning and went into the back yard where the female pit bull was chained. When the mother and her boyfriend awoke (about 12:30 pm), the boy was dead.

About the same time the couple began staying at the new residence, Miller and her boyfriend agreed to "watch" the pregnant pit bull for a "friend." The owner of the pit bull, a family friend named Amanda Ayala, signed a voluntary euthanasia order for her pit bull. Police officials have not filed any criminal charges yet. The case will now go to the Caldwell County District Attorney, whose office indicated to reporters that the case will go before a grand jury as soon as possible.

03/28/09: A Recipe for Disaster
Carol Escobedo said her two brothers were living at the trailer where the attack happened. She said one of her brothers -- whom she did not identify -- "had been keeping" the pit bull suspected of attacking the boy for a couple of weeks for a friend. The core ingredients of a fatal dog attack in this case are overwhelming: 1.) 0-2 year old child 2.) Pit bull 3.) Chained 4.) Pregnant 5.) New dog (at location just a few weeks) 6.) Adult "watching" the dog for a friend. Roy Mendiola, who lives down the street, said the dog, a grayish pit bull, was usually behind the trailer on a long chain.

03/27/09: Pit Bull Pregnant and Chained
New information has been released about the fatal pit bull mauling of a young boy reportedly named Tyson. One neighbor, Carol Green, said she saw the horrific attack with their own eyes. Police said the chained pit bull attacked the boy in a wooded area, where two other dogs still remained Thursday night. "There were some adults present (during the attack)," Luling Police Chief, John Cochran said. "But who and their relationship with the kid, I have no idea," he said.

“It was pretty bad, the dog, the pit bull mauled the baby and kept going for its head until he killed him,” said neighbor Carol Green ...

Friends of the family walked in and out of the mobile home hours after the attack, only a few, would stop to briefly talk with us.

“It was somebody else’s dog,” an unidentified man told the swarm of media.

“The dog was pregnant so they thought it would be fine,” Escovedo said.
The friends also told us about the deceased two year old boy, who they called Tyson. - Katherine Stolp, CBS 42, March 26, 2009

03/26/09: Owner of Dog Remains Unclear
Luling, TX - Authorities believe a 2-year old boy was killed by a pit bull in the backyard of his home. Shortly after noon on Thursday, 911 dispatchers received a call about a dog bite. When Luling police officers arrived at the home in the 900 block of Hackberry, they found the child's body with a female pit bull dog next to him. Investigators say the bite marks on the boy are consistent with being attacked by a dog. An autopsy is planned to determine the exact cause of death.

The boy and the female pit bull were reportedly found in the boy’s backyard, but police aren’t certain if this was the family’s dog. Family members told reporters that they "didn't know" where the animal came from and it was not theirs. Currently, police are interviewing family members to learn more -- including the identity of the 911 caller. The animal has been picked up and is now in the custody of Luling animal control officers. Police continue to investigate the boy's death.

Posted on March 25, 2009 by Colleen Lynn

2009 Dog Bite Fatality: 3-Year Old Boy Killed by Neighbor's Dog

Dustin Faulkner, 3-years old, was mauled to death by his neighbor's husky.

Wolf-Hybrid Noted
UPDATE 03/25/09: A person under the username "family" left a message about the death of Dustin Faulkner indicating that the dog that killed the little boy was a wolf-hybrid, specifically a "half husky-half wolf." The last response written (March 23), said that the dog had been put down. No other details were provided. DogsBite.org will try to locate more information about the involved breed, in addition to whether or not the attack occurred "on-property."

03/24/09: Victim: Dustin Elijah Faulkner
Wayne County, GA - 3-year old Dustin Elijah Faulkner was killed by a neighbor’s dog this past Sunday. Investigators are still puzzled as to why the dog, a pet husky that had played with Eli before, suddenly attacked. The dog was shot by its owner Aaron Ralph who attempted to rescue Eli at the scene. According to Detective Bruce Williams of the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office, the dog had to break free from her collar on her chain before she could attack.

"Basically, what happened was the little boy and his neighbor were walking between the houses away from the dogs," Williams said. "The dog that attacked could not have gotten to them if he hadn’t gotten off his leash." Eli was walking with another child, a 5-year-old girl who lived next door. He got a sand spur in his foot, and was crying out as his friend tried to remove it when Tasha, the dog, suddenly broke free from her collar and attacked.

Williams said that she ran inside and got her mother’s roommate. He pulled the dog off and "shot the dog." Williams would not say at this point in the investigation whether or not negligence was involved in the case. Sheriff John Carter said that to the best of his knowledge, there have not been any problems with this dog showing vicious tendencies before. Carter also said that at this point, the case does not seem likely to lead to criminal charges.

Eli's mother had allegedly been reported to the Wayne County Department of Family and Children Services on more than one occassion. The incident is still under investigation.

04/23/18: Fatal Wolf-Dog Hybrid Attacks - The Archival Record - DogsBite.org

01/21/09: 2009 Fatality: Brianna Shanor, 8-Years Old, Killed by Chained Dog in Hanover
04/08/08: 2008 Fatality: Abraham Jonathan Tackett, Killed by Chained Dog

Posted on March 19, 2009 by Colleen Lynn

Ridgeland, Mississippi Passes Pit Bull and Wolf-Hybrid Ban

Ban Passes 6-0
Ridgeland, MS - In a 6-0 vote, the City of Ridgeland, Mississippi (population 21,000) passed an ordinance this week that deems pit bulls and wolf-hybrids "vicious." The new law also limits these dogs (and all dogs deemed "vicious") to one per household. Owners of these dogs must microchip their animal, pay a $100 registration fee, meet other national registration, training and enclosure requirements and consent to unannounced inspections as well.

Under the new law, any dog owner caught unlawfully harboring a banned dog could be fined up to $1,000 and jailed for 90 days. Talk of prohibiting specific dog breeds -- pit bulls and rottweilers -- began last year after resident April Scott complained about a neighbor's dogs. At the time, Gloria Grantham and her husband, Pete, housed four pit bulls, a rottweiler and a Jack Russell terrier. Officials have since ordered the couple to remove three of the dogs.

DogsBite.org praises Mayor Gene McGee, the Board of Aldermen and City Attorney Jerry Mills, who helped create the new law. The ordinance will undoubtedly prevent future victims of serious attacks by these dogs and require existing pit bull owners to be more responsible. The new law takes effect in 30 days. Ridgeland now joins the City of Greenwood, and Leflore and Bolivar counties in passing pit bull laws. View all related Mississippi ordinances:

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