CANADA -- Calling it the scariest experience of her young life, a nine-year-old girl is on the mend after being bitten by a pit bull Tuesday, leaving her with 30 stitches.
“It chewed on my leg like one of those squeak toys,” said Bonita Carrillo, her left leg sporting a large white bandage where she was bit just above the ankle.
“He bit me pretty bad — it went all the way to the bone.
“It chewed on my leg like one of those squeak toys,” said Bonita Carrillo, her left leg sporting a large white bandage where she was bit just above the ankle.
“He bit me pretty bad — it went all the way to the bone.
“I wanted to hit the dog so hard but I didn’t have enough strength to get up.”
Carrillo was riding bikes with a friend outside their homes on Doverdale Mews S.E. about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday when she stopped because she thought she’d dropped something.
The dog was about three metres away and on a leash when it attacked, said Carrillo.
“It was one of those stretchy ones that stretches out,” she said.
“He just ran right up and bit me.”
Neighbours rushed to the scene, with one taking pictures of the owner and the dog — registered as an American Staffordshire terrier, also known as a pit bull.
Bylaw officials seized the animal, which will be held in medical quarantine for 10 days before being impounded until a dangerous dog hearing is held, said bylaw head Bill Bruce.
The owner will likely face hefty fines.
“We’re talking a serious bite here at the minimum and we’re talking not having control,” said Bruce.
“It’s $750 to $1,500 depending on when I see the actual pictures of the bite and determine what category it falls in to and looking up the history of the dog to see what priors it may have.”
Bruce said the dog was seized from its owner’s home, but the owner wasn’t there when officers arrived.
Carrillo is familiar with the dog and said she didn’t expect it to bite her.
“I pass him every morning when I walk to school,” she said.
Even though she loves animals, Carrillo thinks the dog should be put down.
“I feel bad for the dog,” she said.
“But it depends how the owner treats it — if they treat a dog nice, they won’t do that.”
Despite the harrowing experience that will leave her with a scarred leg, Carrillo was in good spirits Wednesday, laughing and playing in her family’s living room, her only worry that she has to miss 10 days of school.
“I want to see my friends,” she said.
(Calgary Sun - May 16, 2012)
