OMAHA, NE -- A kennel owner who was mauled by a dog had a second surgery Friday but is expected to recover, a volunteer at the kennel said.
A passer-by used a chunk of wood Thursday to fend off the dog that attacked Marcella Gilbert, 78, owner of Gilbert's Boarding Kennels near 156th and Ida Streets.
“Marcy is in a lot of pain,” said the volunteer, Jean Chalupsky, who works closely with Gilbert. Chalupsky said Gilbert suffered “very severe wounds” to her thighs, wrists and a finger. “And her greatest enemy is infection.”
An adult pit bull mix attacked Gilbert, said Mark Langan, vice president of field operations for the Nebraska Humane Society.
The 60-pound dog had been brought to the kennel by Bennington police in the past two weeks, and Gilbert had contacted Langan in an attempt to find the dog's owner.
Pam Wiese, Humane Society spokeswoman, said Friday that the dog has been euthanized and will be tested for rabies.
At Gilbert's request, Creighton University Medical Center declined to provide any information on her condition.
"They are cleaning out the wounds,” Chalupsky said. “She's going to be OK.”
Chalupsky said she had visited Gilbert in the hospital. Business will continue at the kennel, and Gilbert will be back when she can. Chalupsky said she would run the kennel for the next six to eight weeks.
She said Gilbert had let the dog out into an enclosed grassy space to play and to go to the bathroom when the dog attacked her.
It was unclear what led to the attack, but Sean Vorel, a 27-year-old asphalt worker, described the scene he came upon as “the worst thing I'd ever seen.”
The kennel is located north of Stone Creek Golf Course.
Vorel was driving to Walmart to get groceries about 9:30 a.m. He realized there was trouble when he saw the shocked look on some golfers' faces.
Vorel said he saw a woman on the ground and a dog attacking her. He said there was blood everywhere and that the woman's slacks were in tatters.
“It looked like someone had shredded them with a scissors,” he said.
The golfers, who had called 911, were about 60 yards from the attack.
Vorel said he pulled up to the kennel driveway but couldn't get in because of an 8-foot chain link fence that was padlocked.
He found a piece of wood about the size of a baseball bat and tried to break the lock. That didn't work, so he scaled the fence.
Vorel said he started swinging the wood at the dog's head.
“Thud, thud, thud, it sounded like hitting a bucket,” he said.
He hit the dog about two dozen times. He said he used all his strength with each swing. After each blow, the dog would whimper and back off before charging Gilbert again.
Vorel said Gilbert yelled, “Get a gun and kill it!”
He said the dog sank its teeth into her thighs and shook its head back and forth.
“He was crazy. It seemed like a game for him. It was really weird. Even when I hit him, he didn't care.”
Vorel said the attack happened in a tight space on the kennel property with not a lot of room to run. There was a small kennel with a hose and shovel nearby. He believes Gilbert was cleaning out the kennel.
Douglas County sheriff's deputies arrived shortly after Vorel. They fired a Taser at the dog but missed. Vorel said the dog was charging him, so he jumped onto the fence before a second Taser shot dropped the dog.
Vorel was not bitten in the attack.
Langan said Gilbert has owned the kennel for several years.
“I'm just sick about this,” Langan said. “She runs a great business and loves all her dogs. She's the nicest lady in the world.”
(Omaha World-Herald - June 3, 2011)
