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In what is believed to be the first fatal dog attack in Philadelphia in more than a quarter-century, a pit bull sank her teeth into the neck of a 38-year-old Fishtown woman and killed her yesterday.

The victim, Christine Staab, had been arguing with her mother in their Oxford Street rowhouse and fell backward. At that point, the dog leaped on Staab, said her mother, Barbara Erb.

Erb, 59, said she tried frantically to pull off the dog, Jade, but could not get the pit bull to relax her grip on Staab’s throat.

The dog “was in some kind of protection mode,” Erb said.

After struggling with the dog, Erb let go and darted to confine her other dogs and call police. Arriving about 7 a.m., officers shot and killed Jade. They then shot and killed Bear, a second pit bull that lunged at them after he jumped over a barrier that had penned him and four other pit bulls in the kitchen.

The four surviving dogs were taken to the SPCA’s Animal Care and Control Team shelter on Hunting Park Avenue and quarantined.

Erb said she would like them back. “It was just a horrible, horrible incident,” she said.

Detectives in the East Division are investigating.

Erb said no one had suggested to her that she might face arrest.

A spokesman for the Philadelphia Medical Examiner’s Office said the death was being investigated as a fatal dog attack. An autopsy is to take place today.

Despite about 70 million dogs in the United States, fatal attacks are relatively rare.

According to the organization Dogsbite.org, dogs killed an average of about 30 people a year nationwide over the last three years. According to a review of Inquirer archives, the previous fatal attack in Philadelphia occurred in 1981, when Mary Logan, 81, was killed by several of the mongrel pets she kept in her house in Northern Liberties.

Dogsbite.org advocates breed-specific legislative action to control violent dogs. According to the group, pit bulls make up only 5 percent of the dog population in this country, but account for more than 40 percent of deadly attacks.

Erb spoke with an Inquirer reporter yesterday as she stood on her street moments after police gave her clearance to return to her home.

According to Erb, her daughter – the mother of a teenage son who lives with his father – had long fought a battle with drugs, shaking her addiction only to succumb again. Staab came into their house about 6:30 a.m. and appeared to be high, Erb said.

“I said to her, ‘I can’t deal with that anymore. You have to go,’ ” Erb recounted. “She was telling me where was she supposed to go?”

She said the dispute had not escalated into a physical fight and that their voices had not been raised.

As they argued, Erb said, her daughter took a step back and tripped over a mirror on the floor. She fell back, taking a lamp down with her. Erb said she was clutching at Staab’s sleeve as she fell.

This enraged Jade, who went “nuts” and attacked, Erb said. “I couldn’t get her off.”

At some point, Erb said, she rounded up the other five dogs and put them in the kitchen, blocking the doorway with a three-foot-high barrier. She called police.

Erb said she found the attack hard to explain because Jade, 6, knew her daughter well.

“I never had a problem with a dog,” she said, describing the six pit bulls as “house dogs” that were well cared for and even had microchips installed for identification.

“They were spoiled rotten,” Erb said. “They were not neglected in any way.”

A neighbor agreed, saying, “The dogs were very sweet. They never had a problem with them.”

The door of the house had one sign that read “Beware of dog,” and another saying that in the case of fire, rescuers should save the six dogs inside. It listed their names: Paige, Peaches, Maggie, Satan, Bear, and Jade.

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Killer dog was banned pitbull breed

The dog that savaged John-Paul Massey to death was an illegally-held pitbull-type dog banned for being too dangerous to keep, it has been revealed.

The four-year-old boy was attacked by the dog in the early hours of Monday morning at the home of his grandmother, Helen Foulkes, 63, in Liverpool.

The animal, called Uno, also savaged her as she tried to protect the boy she was babysitting at her home on Ash Grove in the city’s Wavertree area.

Merseyside Police admitted they were told months ago that a banned pitbull-type dog had been seen at the house.

A forensic examination was carried out on the animal and the dog was confirmed as being an illegal breed, said the force.

Deputy Chief Constable Patricia Gallan, of Merseyside Police, said on Tuesday: “Following extensive examinations and a post-mortem, an independent expert has confirmed that, in his opinion, the dog involved in the incident in Ash Grove, Wavertree, yesterday is a pitbull terrier-type dog which is classified as a dangerous dog under the Dangerous Dogs Act (1991).

“Our thoughts remain with John-Paul’s family at this time following his tragic death. A child’s life has been lost and it is essential that we determine the exact circumstances surrounding the attack. Investigations into the incident are continuing.

“Ascertaining the type of dog involved in this attack has been a complex issue. It has taken some time to complete the examinations and post-mortem before we have been able to confirm that it is an illegal type of dog. We are conducting a criminal investigation.

“On behalf of Merseyside Police, I am deeply concerned and very disappointed that our policy was not followed in February when we received a call alerting us to the possible breeding of pitbull terriers at the house where the attack took place.

“This is clearly unacceptable and we are sorry that Merseyside Police did not take the appropriate course of action at that time. Given the seriousness of this situation, and our failure to follow our own procedure, we have referred this case to the Independent Police Complaints Commission, who will be carrying out an independent investigation.”

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JOHNSTON CITY– Investigators say the family of a toddler– killed in a dog attack– will not face any criminal charges.

The death of 3 year-old Gabrial Mandrell has been ruled an accident.

Around 8:00 Saturday night, dispatchers in Williamson County received a distressed call regarding the toddler.

Family members had found Gabrial outside his home on Willow Pond Road in Johnston City, and the child was in serious condition.

(From the 911 tape)
Caller: “His eyes are set and his lips are white. I don’t know how long he’s been out here.”
Dispatch: “Continue to give him CPR until I can get somebody out there.”

As an ambulance was on its way to the scene, family members tried to figure out what had happened.

(From 911 tape)
Caller: “We think the dog got him.
Dispatch: “We think what?”
Caller: “A dog attacked him.”
Dispatch: “A dog attacked him?”
Caller: “He’s got puncture bites in his throat, around his groin… everywhere.”

Less than an hour later, Gabrial was pronounced dead.

Investigators say Gabrial had been sleeping at his home, then woke up, pushed out the screen in his bedroom window, and crawled outside.

It was there he was apparently attacked by the family’s three dogs.

The animals– a collie mix and two pitbull mixes– were taken from the home. They were brought to the Williamson County Animal Control facility. It’s not clear what will happen to the dogs.

Deputies say there were no other children inside the home at the time of the attack. They also say there had been no prior complaints about the animals.

An autopsy conducted Sunday determined that Gabrial died as a result of blood loss from multiple dog bites.

Visitation for Gabrial Mandrell will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 Wednesday night at the Murman-Wilson funeral home in Johnston City. A memorial service follows at 8:00 also at the funeral home.

By: Jackie McPherson
jmcpherson@wsiltv.com

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Woman Survives Attack By Two Pit Bulls

A Cortez woman attacked by two pit bulls survives.

 

The Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office said Nancy Thomas went to visit her friend, Jonathan Wilson, on CR 29 outside of Cortez Wednesday morning. 

They said when she knocked on the door, Wilson’s two pit bulls attacked. 

Wilson’s girlfriend called 911 and Action 7 News obtained the tapes. 

“What’s wrong?” the dispatcher asked. 

“This lady came over to tell us something and my boyfriend’s dogs attacked her,” Wilson’s girlfriend said. 

“Ok, does she need an ambulance?” the dispatcher asked. 

“Yes she does right away,” Wilson’s girlfriend said. “I brought her into my house to get the dogs off of her.” 

“Where are the dogs right now?” the dispatcher asked. 

“They’re outside, I’m scared to go outside,” Wilson’s girlfriend said. 

Deputies arrived within minutes. 

They said the dogs would not allow them near the house. 

“He tried everything, he Maced the dog, one of the dogs ran away, the other dog just stayed there, he even took his training bite sleeve out to help get the dog to bite so he could guide it away,” Montezuma County Sheriff Gerald Wallace said. 

Wallace said deputies shot at the dog, but the bullet ricocheted off its skull, scaring it enough to run away. 

As for Thomas: 

“She did fracture her wrist when she got knocked down and she got a lot of stitches,” Wallace said. 

Thomas’ family said she is back home and is doing fine. 

Wilson had both dogs euthanized. 

He was cited with misdemeanor ownership of a vicious animal. 

It’s his first offense.

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Highland Park mulls pit bull ban after attack

May 4, 2009 11:00 PM

Highland Park Mayor Michael Belsky called for a citywide ban on pit bulls today, three days after a 14-year-old girl was bitten on the face and arm, requiring hundreds of stitches, he said.

“I am very concerned about what happened,” said Belsky, who said the child’s injuries were not life-threatening.

“These are mercurial dogs, they are unpredictable and they are lethal,” Belsky said. “I think we need to lead by example here, and maybe other communities will follow suit and create a groundswell, like the smoking ban.”

Belsky had already been working with state legislators and several concerned residents about amending Illinois law so that the home rule community would be able to prohibit breeds, he said.

Regardless of what legislators do, “my feeling is we should be proactive and do it anyway,” said Belsky, who visited with the girl Saturday.

The girl was petting the dog as she sat with its new owner in his front yard within the 100 block of Edgecliff Drive about 4:45 p.m. Friday, said Deputy Police Chief David Schwarz.

The owner, a 17-year-old boy, had brought the dog home the night before, Schwarz said.

“He and his sister and this other young gal were with the dog walking it and sitting in his front yard,” Schwarz said. “The dog turned and bit the young girl on the face and about the upper arms.”

Because the dog was leashed, the owner was able to pull him off the girl, he said. The 9-month-old male dog has been impounded at the Lake County Animal Care and Control facility, where it will be monitored for 10 days as required by law.

Police declined to identify the people involved, but said the dog’s owner was cited with violating city ordinances regarding a biting dog, as well as failure to have a dog license or rabies vaccination. Officials do not believe the dog has rabies, Schwarz said.

Belsky said that he has been working to strengthen the city’s dog ordinance for more than a year. Twice he has worked with neighbors who asked for his help in persuading dog owners to give up their pit bulls, he said.

“In one case, pit bulls moved into a neighborhood,” he said. After neighbors filled Belsky’s office to express concern, the “homeowner who was new was kind enough to move the dogs,” Belsky  said.

A new ordinance would be more effective, said Belsky, who said pit bulls already in the community would likely be allowed to stay but held to more restrictions.

He plans to propose the ban on pit bulls as early as the next City Council meeting Monday with a public hearing to be scheduled at a later date, he said.

Belsky said he felt the girl could have been hurt worse.

The bite “was about an inch from her eye. She could have been blinded.”

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Pit Bull Attack in Columbia

COLUMBIA - Police detained a dog owner after several people reported two pit bulls got loose near the Kohl’s Department store.

The Columbia Police Department and Animal Control responded to a call around noon Wednesday.

According to police, 27-year-old Mark Adamson, the manager of GNC, suffered an injury to his right calf that is non-threatening. Officers found the victim and the dogs near the Kohl’s store.

An officer shot one of the dogs, killing it, after police say it advanced on him in an aggressive manner. The other dog ran southbound and officers have not located it.

Police detained the owner of dogs, 18-year-old Dakota Crites, and have no determined charges yet. They say there were other reports of victims that have not yet come forward.

According to police, Adamson diverted the attention of the dogs when they were chasing an unidentified woman through the parking lot. Officials say his actions may have prevented other people from being injured.

Anyone with information is asked to submit a tip to the Crimestoppers website at 875tips.com.

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This is a sad story all around.

Owner fatally beats pit bull after it bites woman

Associated Press

12:28 PM CDT, April 22, 2009

ANDERSON, Ind. – A man fatally beat and strangled his pit bull after the dog chased and repeatedly bit a 20-year-old woman, saying he did what was necessary after the attack. 

Kayla Greene received stitches for numerous bite wounds to her arms and buttocks that she suffered before the dog’s owner pulled the animal off her. 

The attack and the killing of the dog by Dustin Haskett, 25, are under investigation, and it will be up to prosecutors to decide whether he will face animal cruelty charges, city police Detective Mitch Carroll said. 

Greene said she was attacked Monday as she and her sister, Erin Greene, were walking to a convenience store and she tried to run away from the dog. 

Haskett said that once he pulled the dog away from Greene, he used the handle to a sledge hammer to beat the animal for five minutes. 

After beating the dog, Haskett says he saw that it was still breathing. “I had my foot on her throat until she was done,” he told The Herald Bulletin. 

Haskett said he did what he thought was necessary. 

“As far as animal cruelty, it wasn’t fun and games for me,” he said. 

Carroll said Haskett could face a misdemeanor charge of harboring an unimmunized animal and that the dog actions would be important in determining any cruelty charges. 

“It’s not as if he grabbed Fifi the poodle with a bow on her head and wrapped her around the tree,” Carroll said. “We’re talking about a vicious animal.” 

Haskett said he only had the dog for two days before the attack, but Carroll said the dog’s ownership was being investigated. 

The Greene said they have owned pit bulls before and don’t believe the breed is naturally more aggressive or vicious. Kayla Greene said she does not blame the dog, but the owner.

“It was raised mean,” she said. 

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Poor guy was attacked by two Pit Bulls while leaving his apartment. Follow the link for video coverage.

BILLINGS – A Billings man is in the hospital after facing his second pit bull attack in just six weeks. Westley Fuchs, 35, is listed in fair condition at St. Vincent Healthcare.
On Friday afternoon he was attacked by two pit bulls as he tried to leave his basement apartment at 1103 Sunnyside Lane. A neighbor called 9-1-1and soon a whole slew of city officials crowded the small street. 
“This is probably the worst pit bull attack that I’ve seen,” said Animal Control Officer Nancy Lindstrom. “We found two pit bulls loose in the front yard and a third inside the house.”
The dogs were stained with blood from the man they had just attacked, and continued to show signs of aggression.
“They were barking, when we approached they were lunging at the fence, jumping up on it,” Lindstrom said. 
Just to be safe, animal control officers called for backup from the Billings Police Department. If the dogs got too close, officers were prepared to act.
“If the dogs got too close to an officer, we asked that they shoot the dogs because we all want to go home at the end of the day too.”
Police said this was a particularly tense situation as the victim was basically trapped in the basement of the house as the dogs that just attacked him were loose in the front yard.
Officers were finally able to catch the dogs and Fuchs was able to get out of his home and on his way to the hospital. Lindstrom said the owner gave them permission to put the dogs down and they were euthanized Friday afternoon. She wanted to add that not all pit bulls are this aggressive. 
Animal control officers said Justin Lingle, the owner of the dogs, was cited for two counts of dangerous behavior and one count of an animal at large. Each count could come with six months of jail time or a fine of $500. Lingle could also have to pay restitution to the victim.

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Police report details Friday pit bull attack

A police report released Wednesday details a pit bull attack that happened Friday afternoon in Greenwood.

Police responded to the 9500 block of Stone Avenue North and found a large group of people holding a pit bull on the ground.

“The dog’s actions were very aggressive and he was fighting to break the hold,” officer Ryan Beck wrote in his report. “Officers instructed them not to get go until the dogs leash could be secured to a nearby fence post.

“I observed a great deal of blood both on the ground and around the dogs mouth from the attack.”

The owner of the pit bull was walking in the area when it began fighting with two off-leash dogs. The dog owners pulled the animals apart, and when the pit bull owner reached for the back of her dog’s neck, it bit her right forearm causing the woman to fall.

“Several people in the area saw (the victim) struggling with the dog and rushed to her aid,” Beck wrote. “They were able to insert a crow bar into the dogs’ mouth and eventually pry it away from (the woman’s) forearm.”

During that time, the man with the two off-leash dogs, believed to be Labradors, left and entered a nearby trailer.

After officers arrived and the dog had been leashed to the fence post, it leaped toward several people. An officer used a Taser on the dog, which calmed the animal.

The woman, who had a 3-inch laceration to her forearm, was taken to Harborview Medical Center. The man who had the Labradors did not respond to officer knocks on his trailer.

The animal was taken by humane law enforcement officers from the Seattle Animal Shelter.

In Seattle, pit bulls are more likely than any other dog to be classified as a danger to the community. Almost one in five dangerous-dog citations and warnings are for pit bulls, according to a 2008 analysis of city records shows by former P-I reporter Daniel Lathrop.

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Here’s a thoughtful defense of the breed. 

Here is what responsible owners have to say!

It is time to ban this breed?

The Province April 14, 2009

There is no doubt there are many wonderful pit bulls in the world. People familiar with the breed often talk about how social they are, that they love to play, and that they make great family pets.

Unfortunately, pit bulls have three strikes against them:

1.When they bite, they don’t easily let go and the damage to their victim is almost always severe.
2. They scare the hell out of people. Yellow Lab walks down the street with its owner and people smile. Pit bull walks down the street with its owner and people cross the street.
3. They don’t attract quality owners. That’s not to say all pit bull owners are questionable pet owners, just that an inordinate number of questionable pet owners are attracted to pit bulls.
On Friday, a pit bull savagely attacked a three-year- old in Surrey. No doubt the family is devastated by the incident. The father of the injured boy has accepted responsibility for not keeping a better eye on his son.”I can’t say it’s the dog’s fault,” the dad told Global TV.

However, in the end, it was the dog that did the biting and it was the dog that was euthanized.
There is no doubt there are many wonderful pit bulls in the world, but the time has come for jurisdictions like British Columbia to ban ownership of this breed for the safety of all.

What do you think? E-mail a brief comment, including your name and town to: provletters@theprovince.com

This is what we think:

NO it is not time to “ban this breed” it is time to stand up and hold the irresponsible OWNERS accountable for thier failer to house, train and socialize their dogs. Banning a breed doesn’t do anything but make the public FEEL safe, do you actually think that people who cant even follow a simple leash law are going to be able to follow a breed ban or the rules that would be implimented with BSL legislation.

WAKE UP, if only all provinces would follow in Alberta’s foot steps, Calgary has some of the best dog legislation in the WORLD and NO breeds are banned !

Proud owner and rescuer of the American Pit Bull Terrier