On the last Sunday in May, O'Neill and his wife were finishing a hike in the forest north of Nederland when they were greeted by a tail-wagging black lab. O'Neill offered the dog his hand and bent to talk to him.
That's when a pit bull came over the hill in a flat-out sprint. The dog knocked O'Neill to the ground and ripped into his flesh.
"It's not that he nipped me. It's not that he bit me. He mauled me," said O'Neill, who lives outside of Nederland. "He tried to kill me, and that's a whole different thing."
After a month of healing, O'Neill says he wants people to hear his story. His goal is to make sure people understand the hazards of owning a pit bull.
"I feel like I have a responsibility to the community," he said. "What I would like is for people to know that they are a dangerous breed."
The dog bit O'Neill on the rib cage, on his lower leg and on his inner thigh. O'Neill -- who generally carries a knife in the woods since his own dog was killed by a mountain lion last year -- fought back, stabbing "Rocco" between his shoulder and his neck multiple times.
"There's only one thing that saved me," he said. "I had a knife and knew how to use it."
Rocco's owner, Michael Butler, of Wheat Ridge, came running when he realized what had happened, and he was able to pull the profusely bleeding dog off O'Neill and wrestle the dog into the back of his pickup truck.
O'Neill has nothing but positive things to say about
how Butler and the people he was with reacted to the situation -- and that's part of what scares him. If a well-cared for pit bull with no history of aggression toward humans can attack a person so savagely, then any pit bull could be a time bomb, according to O'Neill.
"I can't tell you want kind and generous people they are," O'Neill said. "This isn't anything personal. I'm not angry at them. But they made a mistake owning a dog like this."
Butler, who did not return a phone call seeking comment, was ticketed for the state offense of "unlawful ownership of a dangerous dog," a class three misdemeanor, and his first court date is scheduled for July 20.
If Butler is found guilty of the offense, there are a number of things that could happen to Rocco.
Jay Swearingen, an attorney with the Animal Law Center in Wheat Ridge, said that the state's dangerous dog statute is complicated, but convicted animals can be confined to a house or a yard.
Owners can also be required to mark the dangerous dog with a microchip or take the dog to special training classes. Local ordinances may also require dogs that have been found to be dangerous to only be walked with muzzles on leashes no longer than 4 feet. And, in rare cases, judges may require dangerous dogs to be euthanized.
"Generally, that's somewhat unlikely, assuming it's a first-bite offense," said Swearingen, who is not involved in the case.
Butler told sheriff's deputies that Rocco, who is 3-1/2 years old, had become aggressive with other dogs in the past, but not toward people.
Aimee Sadler, director of behavior and training for the Longmont Humane Society, called the attack on O'Neill a "tragic incident," but she said it doesn't mean that people should be wary of all pit bulls.
"There is not one canine behavior that is specific to one breed of dog," she said. "You can talk about tendencies with groups of dogs, but you can't guarantee that all border collies will herd sheep."
By the same logic, Sadler argues, you can't say that all pit bulls are in danger of mauling someone. Even so, pit bulls have gained enough of a reputation for becoming violent that more than 10 municipalities in the Denver-metro area have banned the dogs, including Louisville and Denver.
Louisville Mayor Chuck Sisk said the ban has worked well in his town, where only a few people have complained about not being able to own a pit bull.
"I think that pit bulls are dogs that have shown propensities and proclivities to bite more than other breeds," said Sisk, who was on the City Council that enacted the ban in the mid-1990s. "I'm absolutely convinced that it's the right thing to do in Louisville."
O'Neill said he's not calling for an all-out ban, but he does believe that the breed is more prone to violent attacks. He also believes that Rocco should be euthanized.
"I want people to be very aware when they're making a decision (to own a pit bull)," he said. "Someone could be killed by their dog."
(Daily Camera - July 4, 2011)
