"I saw this older lady and a gentleman parked partly on and off the road," she said. "The lady looked like she was in distress with him, and so I pulled over and got out to see what was wrong."
Rose said she walked over to their car on Bryan St. when the two pit bulls jumped out of the open door.
"Before I realized what had happened the dog was biting my arm," Rose said.
On light duty because of recent knee surgery, Rose wasn't in uniform.
"I remember thinking that I wanted to grab my gun, but I didn't have it on me," she said. "Not that I could have gotten it out; it happened so quickly I couldn't have gotten it out, you know, prior to getting bit."
The dogs' owner, 70-year-old Nikki Smith, activated the dogs' shock collars to get them off of Rose.
"Oh, it was very painful, it was a burning sensation, and I think it was the nerve endings in the arm," Rose said.
She was treated at Carteret General Hospital for three lacerations and one puncture wound, resulting in 30 stitches.
She feels lucky to have survived the attack.
"I love animals, but I feel like people need to be more considerate and responsible when it comes to their pets," Rose said.
The Morehead City Police Department is trying to get the dog put down, because this is the second time Smith's pit bull has attacked someone. It previously bit a home healthcare provider.
Animal Control confiscated the dog, and Smith is facing criminal charges. A judge will decide the dog's fate.
(WCTI - August 3, 2011)
