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Sad story all around. That picture makes it sadder, they don’t look like dangerous dogs.

PIT BULLS EUTHANIZED AFTER ATTACK ON WOMAN

Story Published: May 7, 2009 at 5:50 PM EDT

Story Updated: May 8, 2009 at 9:49 AM EDT 

Three pit bull dogs were euthanized Tuesday, as their owner complied with a judge’s order the dogs be killed.

The three – including a puppy – attacked a woman in Theresa in April.

The owner of the dogs wanted to fight the judge’s order, but didn’t have the money to do so.

Linda Wilcox was attacked as she was out walking.

“All of a sudden, they were on top of me,” Wilcox told 7 News at the time.

She was knocked down, hitting her head. And she got at least one bite.

“I just lay there screaming.”

Wilcox struggled with reporting the incident, she said, but ultimately decided she had to.

“I thought this could happen to somebody else.”

But Mary Cook, the owner of the dogs, found the judge’s order to be extreme.

“Just ’cause they’re ‘pits,’ that’s given them a bad name,” she said at the time. “There’s little dogs out here that bite worse than they could.”

She also said her dogs had never before attacked anyone, and thought her animals should get a second chance.

But Tuesday, the judge’s deadline, she took them to a veterinarian who euthanized them.

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State: Cougar killings come down to liability

The debate over what should happen when cougars encounter humans is heating up again. After a New Mexico Department of Game and Fish warden darted a female cougar in the backyard of an Eldorado home April 20 and later euthanized it, angry callers and letter writers lambasted the agency for “trigger happy” tactics. Albuquerque resident Charlotte Salazar thinks just the opposite. Her 5-year-old son was attacked by a cougar last May during a family hike on a popular Sandia Mountain trail. Salazar believes wildlife officers aren’t doing enough to control the cougar population. The debate over what should happen when cougars encounter humans has changed little in 30 years, said Marty Frentzel, public information officer with the state Department of Game and Fish. For the state, the decision over euthanizing a captured cougar comes down to one word: liability. Game and Fish Department officials worry about getting sued if someone is attacked by a cougar that was captured and released elsewhere. That fear isn’t unwarranted. In a 1996 incident in Arizona, a black bear that had been captured, tagged and released into a mountain range near Tucson badly mauled a teenage girl in her tent. The girl’s family sued the Arizona Game and Fish Department, claiming the agency shouldn’t have released a bear when it knew the animal had previously shown no fear of humans. The state settled the case out of court for $2.5 million…Santa Fe New Mexican

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It did attack four people. I don’t see how it could be trusted around people anymore. 

Peabody pit bull that attacked four sentenced to death

By Matthew K. Roy
Staff writer
 

PEABODY — The pit bull that attacked three women and a police officer at a Peabody mobile home park has received a death sentence.

The city’s animal control officer issued an order to have the dog, Bronson, euthanized within 90 days, police Capt. Dennis Bonaiuto said yesterday. Lilian Pinto made her decision after owner Brian Stevens and his lawyer appeared at a hearing last week in the Peabody police station.

Pinto based her ruling on the “totality” of the pit bull’s actions, Bonaiuto said.

Bronson is responsible for more than 50 wounds suffered by Cassandra Osgood, 23, of Danvers during an April 9 attack. The dog mauled her friend Sarah Malave, 24, of Middleton and injured Stevens’ girlfriend, Jamie Brickman, 27. Patrolman William Swaczyk is still recovering from arm injuries the dog inflicted when the officer wrestled it off Malave.

In 2007, Stevens suffered puncture wounds on his forearms, his right thigh and buttocks when the dog turned on him.

Stevens, 27, learned of Bronson’s fate over the weekend in a letter from the city.

“We knew that this was coming,” his lawyer, Jeremy Cohen, said yesterday. “We will appeal it to the chief of police, and we will ready an appeal after that to district court if it doesn’t go well.”

At the hearing last week before Pinto and Capt. Joseph Berardino, Cohen argued that Osgood and Malave provoked the dog. He accused them of using illegal drugs, wrestling inside the mobile home and falling on top of the animal. Osgood has denied using drugs and disputes Cohen’s claim that Brickman yelled at her and Malave to stop wrestling.

“Obviously, I believe, under the circumstances, that it is the right decision,” said Kevin Barry, Osgood’s lawyer.

The dog will continue to be kept at the Borash Veterinary Clinic in Peabody during what could be a lengthy appeal process.

“There is a life at stake here,” Cohen said, “and (Stevens) wants to pursue this as far as he can.”

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Pit bull victim says attack not her fault

By Alan Burke
Staff writer
 

PEABODY — Cassandra Osgood is angrily denouncing a strategy of blaming the victim — herself — for a vicious attack by a pit bull.

Osgood, of Danvers, singled out especially the accusation by the dog’s owner, Brian Stevens, and lawyer Jeremy Cohen that drug use was involved in the incident at a Peabody mobile home. She denies using drugs or alcohol prior to the attack.

Three women and a police officer were injured in the incident, with Osgood suffering the worst, sustaining up to 50 wounds and extensive scarring. A hearing was held Tuesday before Peabody police Capt. Joseph Berardino and Animal Control Officer Lilian Pinto to consider the dog’s fate. A decision is expected within 72 hours of the hearing.

“There is no doubt that the dog did this, but he was agitated into doing it,” Cohen told the hearing in an effort to save the animal. Rough play between Osgood and another woman set the dog off, he suggested.

Osgood, who says her wounds are not healing well, contrasts this strategy of blaming her for the attack with her own initial reaction to the ordeal. At first, she expressed sympathy for the dog and accepted an apology from Stevens.

“Now he’s accusing me of illegal drug use — No! (The dog) got me everywhere but my face. Now something’s wrong with my right arm. People need to see this. I’m feeling this dog needs to be put to sleep.”

She also denies the version of events presented by Stevens’ girlfriend, Jamie Brickman, who said she yelled at the girls to stop wrestling prior to the attack.

“This was just a bullet that missed me,” Osgood says. “Thank God he didn’t get my throat. Or my face. I’m scarred for life.” She adds that she now needs plastic surgery and doesn’t believe that she should have to pay for it.

Cohen has acknowledged that he expects an order to euthanize the animal, but that can be appealed to the District Court within 30 days.

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Considering just how rare Mountain Lion attacks are, it seems like lately officials are euthanizing way too quickly.

Cougar killed after
entering courtyards

Updated: Thursday, 23 Apr 2009, 4:23 PM MDT
Published : Thursday, 23 Apr 2009, 3:35 PM MDT

• Web Producer: Todd Dukart

ELDORADO AT SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – Game wardens have killed a cougar who entered the courtyards of two Santa Fe-area homes.

The 100-pound female cougar was captured and euthanized after she was found Monday at the homes in the Eldorado subdivision.

Game warden Desi Ortiz said the cougar showed no fear when he arrived at the first home. The animal stared back at him as he positioned himself with a tranquilizer gun.

Ortiz said he hit the mountain lion in the hind leg with a tranquilizer dart. She jumped over the wall to the courtyard and went missing.

A short time later, Ortiz was called to another home where a cougar was seen staggering into the courtyard.

New Mexico Department of Game and Fish officials said the original plan was to move the animal to the Jemez Mountains, but she was euthanized after officials determined she was too dangerous to people.

Dan Williams with Game and Fish said in a news release the cougar appeared to have lost its fear of humans.

Tips to avoid encounters with mountain lions and other large predators, according to Game and Fish:

• Do not feed wildlife. Use native plants, not non-natives, so as to not attract deer, which are the primary prey of lions. Remember, predators follow prey.
• Do not let your pets roam around outside. Bring them in at night. If you keep pets outside, provide a kennel with a secure top. Do not feed pets outside where the food can attract lions or other smaller animals which lions prey upon. Store and dispose of all garbage securely.
• Closely supervise children. Make sure they are home before dusk and not outside before dawn. Make lots of noise if you come or go during times when mountain lions are most active — dusk to dawn. Teach your children about lions and what they should do if they encounter one.
• Landscape or remove vegetation to eliminate hiding cover for lions, especially around areas where children play. Make it difficult for a lion to approach unseen.
• Install outdoor lighting, especially in areas where you walk, so you can see a lion if one were present.
• Close off open spaces below porches or decks.
• Place all livestock in enclosed sheds or barns at night. Close the doors to all outbuildings so that an inquisitive lion is prevented from going inside to look around.
• Also, if you encounter a mountain lion:

Stop or back away slowly if you can do so safely.

• Stay calm when you come upon a lion talk calmly yet firmly to it and move slowly.
• Immediately pick up all children off the ground and tell them to stay calm.
• Do not run from a lion as fleeing behavior may trigger the instinct of the lion to attack.
• Face the lion — do not turn your back — remain in an upright position and look as large as possible (raise your arms, open up your coat, if your wearing one).
• Carry a walking stick and use it to defend yourself by keeping it between you and the lion. If the lion approaches closer or behaves aggressively, arm yourself with the stick, throw rocks or sticks at the lion, and speak louder and more firmly to the lion. Convince the lion you are dominant and a danger to it.
• Fight back if a lion attacks you. Use any possible object within reach as a weapon, such as rocks, sticks, jackets, a backpack or your bare hands. Lions have been driven away by prey that fights back. Stay standing and if you fall down try to get back up on your feet.
• Call police if you feel you are in danger.

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It’s not really clear whether if the bear was even chasing the woman, but it got put to sleep. Why couldn’t they just relocate it?

Pregnant Woman Hit By Car Running From Bear

Posted: 1:46 PM Apr 23, 2009 Last Updated: 8:29 PM Apr 23, 2009 Reporter: McKenzie Martin  PLAY VIDEO: Pregnant Woman Chased By Bear RAW VIDEO: DOW Tranquilizes Bear

Police say the woman was walking when she saw a bear and she thought the bear was coming after her. The woman reportedly screamed and ran into the street. “I heard a rustle behind me and a bear came out of the creek, I was about 2 feet away from the bear,” Ashley Swendsen said. She says when the bear started following her she screamed and ran away. “I went up a gravel hill and you have to cross a bridge, there’s no pedestrian walk and I was trying to cross the bridge and this lady hit me.” Police say Swendsen, ran into the street near 6700 Vincent Drive, three blocks away from Dublin and Vincent. The driver of the car reportedly took off. Swendsen was taken to Memorial Hospital, where she was treated for a bruised leg. She is 5 months along in her pregnancy and the baby was unharmed. Police say they found a bear a while later in the area, at 1443 Rock Ridge, near Rock Ridge and Turret. The Division of Wildlife euthanized the bear after Swendsen identified her in a picture. The DOW says the bear had become a danger to the area, becoming too comfortable around humans.

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That they euthanized this Mountain Lion seems crazy to me. First, if a crowd of people had gathered to watch it, it probably was not a real threat to any people (certainly no more than your random Pit Bull!). And second, according to comments on the original article, apparently a Mountain Lion Sanctuary was actively trying to get the Mountain Lion to live with them. This does not seem like a good decision.

Without Home in Zoo, Mountain Lion is Killed

By Myers Reece , 04-22-09

Officials for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks were unable to find a suitable home for a mountain lion captured in Columbia Falls over the weekend and were forced to euthanize the animal, according to a press release from regional FWP spokesman John Fraley. Here’s the full press release:  

A 120-pound adult male mountain lion that was captured Saturday evening in Columbia Falls was euthanized Tuesday night after it became clear that no accredited zoo could receive the animal. A local veterinarian assisted in euthanizing the cat.

According to FWP Wildlife Manager Jim Williams, mountain lions in urban areas potentially pose a significant threat to public safety, so FWP policy prohibits relocating captured lions into occupied lion habitat. Lions caught in urban areas are normally killed for reasons of public safety. In this case, FWP personnel in Helena conducted a search to locate an accredited zoo but none could take the animal.

The mountain lion was captured over the weekend. On Saturday evening, April 17, the lion was reported in a tree within the city limits of Columbia Falls at the intersection of 5th Avenue West and 12th Street. FWP Wildlife Conflict Specialist Erik Wenum received a call on the incident at 5:20 p.m. and responded. When Wenum arrived, a crowd had gathered to see the lion, which was about 30 feet up a tree. The Columbia Falls Fire Department arrived with a lift bucket to assist. FWP officials used a tranquilizer dart to capture the animal and the Columbia Falls Fire Department brought the tranquilized lion to the ground.

Wenum then transported the lion to a holding facility. The lion probably entered Columbia Falls via the nearby Flathead River corridor, ending up high in a tree in the middle of the residential area.

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Girl Recovering From Dog Attack

By GABE WELLS

The rottweiler that mauled a 5-year-old girl Saturday in Bethesda was not on a leash, according to village Police Chief Tim Zdanski, who will interview attack witnesses today.

Zdanski said the Barnesville girl who suffered lacerations and bruising to the head, left shoulder and wrist in the attack Saturday afternoon on Judson Street in Bethesda has been released from the hospital. She initially was taken to Barnesville Hospital before being transported to Children’s Hospital in Columbus.

The dog was taken to New Horizon Animal Hospital before it was euthanized. Zdanski said no one else was injured in the attack, but the dog’s owner also sought treatment at Barnesville Hospital for unspecified reasons.

Zdanski said there is a potential for charges against the dog’s owner, but that determination will be made by a Belmont County prosecutor. He said investigators also are working to determine whether the dog had previously attacked people. Zdanski said he does not believe the rottweiler was on a leash at the time of the attack, though law requires dog owners to “have control” of their animals at all times.

“We have to find out if the dog has been vicious before or if this is the first instance,” Zdanski said. “It (a potential charge) may simply be not having the animal under control. This week we will meet with everyone involved for details. Once we have those facts, we will present them to the prosecutor for evaluation.”

According to Zdanski, the attack was not provoked by the girl. He said he suspects the dog attacked the girl because the animal believed her to be a threat to its owner.

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Hog wild: stampeding sow on the attack

> Posted by Barbara Hijek on April 21, 2009 07:50 AM

It was a hog, it was angry, and Cassandra Frank, 26, hadn’t even had her morning coffee yet, reports the St. Petersburg Times.

The 200-pound sow came charging at her. Frank tried to get out of the way, but the hog barreled into her.

Its white tusks pierced the skin on her left calf, and its weight pushed her against a tree.

The wild hog stampeded on. Someone called 911.

The hog bolted up the street, cut across a grassy lot, went through some more back yards and doubled back on the dead-end street.

Nine men — Robinson, other rescue officials and animal control officers —cornered the hog.

She charged again.

St. Petersburg Fire Rescue Lt. Dan Robinson had hunted wild hogs in north Florida as a boy.

But this 15-year veteran jumped over a six-foot wooden fence to get out of the way — cutting his forearm in the process.

Finally a pole with a lasso was used to capture the hog, which was later euthanized.

After the ordeal, Frank had a tetanus shot — and her coffee.

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Pit Bull Attacks Boy

By 

Jon Lewis 

@ April 21, 2009 6:52 AM Permalink | Comments (13)

(WSB Radio)  A four year old Rockdale County boy is recovering after undergoing surgery following an attack by a pit bull.

Nathaniel Stafford’s stepfather says the 4 year old is an animal lover. 

A friend left the dog, named Chaos, chained in the backyard.  When the boy wandered by, the dog went after him.

“I’ve never seen anything like it in my entire life,” says the stepfather, Brian Caron.  The dog ripped off the boy’s scalp and parts of his face.

“Right now they don’t if they’re going to be able to save his ear or not,” Caron says.  “They said if they can’t save it they’ll put an ear on for him.  Whether it’s fake or not, he’ll still have an ear.”

No charges will be filed against the dog’s owner.  The pit bull will be euthanized.