Responders arrived at the property, which includes three houses, in the 22900 block of Betty Road near Perris after 10 p.m. to treat the 68-year-old woman, who suffered major injuries to her face and arms, according to a Riverside County Animal Services release.
The dog, a 2-year-old male pit bull named Beto, was owned by the woman’s son-in-law, Edward Chavez.
Chavez told authorities that his teenage son heard the commotion and was able to grab the dog’s chain and pull him off of his grandmother.
Chavez said the dog had been chained up and did not know how the dog escaped or why he attacked the victim.
Officers cited Chavez for not having his dog properly licensed, failing to have a current rabies vaccination or microchip and failing to have the dog sterilized. Microchips and sterilizations are required by law per county ordinance.
Chavez was also cited for tethering the dog, which is illegal for anything longer than two hours.
Beto, the pit bull, will be euthanized, the release said.
A similar attack occurred in Lake Elsinore Tuesday, Feb. 11, when a 53-year-old man was mauled by his two pit bulls. Like Beto, the dogs were not sterilized.
Robert Miller, Riverside County animal services director, said in the release that dog attacks are “entirely preventable, as long as pet owners are being responsible in how they care for their animal.”
He also cautions against keeping dogs illegally tethered for extended periods.
“This can lead to an animal’s pent-up aggression and, sadly, terrible consequences,” he said.
The victim is currently recovering at the Riverside County Regional Medical Center in Moreno Valley, the release said.
(Press Enterprise - Feb 15, 2014)
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