Baby girl left fighting for life after being mauled by family dog who had previously attacked two other family members

ARIZONA -- An Arizona infant is fighting for its life after being attacked Tuesday by the family dog.

The nine-month-old girl was rushed to the hospital with blood pouring out of her head after being mauled by an Akita with a violent past.

The Akita bit the baby’s now-10-year-old sibling in the face two years ago and also bit the infant’s mother only two months ago, authorities said, adding that even now the family is divided over whether to keep the dog or not.

 

The attack happened Tuesday afternoon as the baby’s mother was preparing a bath and left the child alone for only minutes, police told KTVK.

She heard a scream and ran into the room to find the baby bleeding from the head with the 95-pound canine sitting next her, cops said.

Police believe the Akita broke down a doorway fence set up to keep the child separate from the vicious beast.

The woman frantically tried to dial 911 but was unable to even use a phone, according to police.

The mother scooped up her badly injured baby and tried to rush her to the hospital, speeding through lights and beeping her horn until she collided with another vehicle in a nearby intersection, said authorities.

She instinctively darted out of her wrecked vehicle and flagged down another driver to take her to the hospital, sources said.

Once there, the mother frantically waived down another driver to take her to a pediatric emergency room where her baby was rushed into intensive care for treatment of multiple head injuries.

The tiny tot is in critical condition with severe head trauma, it is not known if she will survive, according to ABC 15.

Police are looking into whether negligence charges can be filed in connection with the attack due to the dog’s violent history. They also said the family has a history of child protective services cases but would not elaborate.

‘There is a history of this dog attacking people in the family which is the unfortunate part,’ a police spokesperson told KTVK.

‘What happened about two years ago their ten-year-old daughter who was at the time eight years old was petting this dog and the dog bit her in the face and she needed stitches for that injury,’ the spokesperson continued.

‘Two months ago the dog attacked the mom and it bit her foot and the mom had to go to the hospital and get stitches on her foot also.’

Despite significant proof the dog is a danger to human beings, the family is split over whether to put it down or keep it, KTVK reported. The dog is still living in the family home at this time.

Investigators want to speak with the driver that t-boned the speeding mother, as well as the two drivers that shuttled her to the hospital.

(Daily Mail - Mar 20, 2014)