GEORGIA -- A dog that attacked a Peachtree City girl in her garage April 7 has been moved to a residence in Coweta County after it was declared a “vicious dog” by Fayette County Animal Control.
Madeline Conner suffered a deep gash in her knee and several cuts on her hand and wrist areas during the attack that took 17 stitches to close, said her father, Lee Conner.
Madeline Conner suffered a deep gash in her knee and several cuts on her hand and wrist areas during the attack that took 17 stitches to close, said her father, Lee Conner.
Madeline’s dog, Gracie, [fought off] the pit bull and her human friend, also named Gracie, struck the white pit bull dog on the back, which freed Madeline so she could get back in the house to safety, Conner said.
“Our dog was definitely a hero, as was Madeline’s friend Gracie,” Conner said.
The dog’s owner has been cited for allowing the pit bull, known as “Cassie,” to run loose, officials said. It is believed Cassie was seeking to attack Madeline’s dog, a 110-pound German Shepherd.
The vicious dog declaration means that Cassie is required to wear a muzzle and be on a six-foot lead when outside of the house, said Fred Sisson, director of the Fayette County Animal Department. The dog can be allowed to be in a fenced-in area, Sisson said.
Animal control recommended that the dog be put down because of the liability now attached with owning the dog, Sisson said.
And since the dog was transferred, animal control has gone by the dog’s former home in Peachtree City several times on surprise spot checks, Sisson said.
“It really is a huge liability,” Sisson said. “You really need to take every step to make sure the dog can’t possibly do anything like that again.”
Sisson said Cassie was going after Madeline’s dog and that Madeline stepped in the middle as a protective measure.
“This dog wasn’t human aggressive, it was an ‘other dog’ aggressive,” Sisson said.
[see below for response from Madeline's mom about her daughter having 'stepped in the middle']
Cassie’s new owner was aware of the restrictions, which will still be required even though the dog now lives in another county.
Conner said he was upset that the dog owner did not have the animal put down.
“If roles were reversed and it was our dog, we would have made the choice to euthanize the animal,” Conner said.
Conner said he will work towards getting reimbursement for his daughter’s medical bills, although they won’t “ease the pain she’s had to endure or inconveniences we’ve been through since the incident.”
Conner said he is hopeful his daughter’s story will increase awareness of the issue “that dogs are animals that react based on instincts and in the hands of irresponsible owners, these types of incidents will happen.”
“The dog had been loose several times in the weeks leading up to the incident and I’ve been told by the owners and other neighbors of other incidents of aggression that went unreported,” Conner said.
Post by "Madeline's mom"
"First of all, I would like to say that we are very thankful that Madeline's injuries were not more severe. What the article does not say is that she was simply stepping into our garage from our house when "Cassie" charged in and grabbed her by the knee. She did not step between the dogs, there wasn't enough time for that. Our dog was behind Madeline on a leash and had not stepped out of our house yet. Also, Madeline had just taken Cassie home not even 5 minutes before this incident occurred and yes she was already back out roaming the neighborhood. This never should have happened! Clear negligence was involved."
(The Citizen - April 29, 2012)
