In the latest attack, twin 21-year-old sisters are in hospital — one in critical and one in serious condition — after they were "viciously mauled" by an 80-pound Rottweiler mix while trying to protect a toddler in Richmond on Wednesday afternoon, according to Richmond RCMP.
Mounties said a Good Samaritan, who stepped in to help the two young women, was also taken to hospital with cuts to his hand.
"Thank goodness the dog didn't go after that little three year old boy because he wouldn't have survived," said Ken Brodie, 72, the Good Samaritan, who was recovering at home Thursday after receiving seven stitches for a dog bite on his hand.
Brodie was at home in Richmond in the afternoon, when he heard screaming coming from the school field behind his house. He also heard a dog barking and had a sinking feeling that something awful was happening.
So he ran outside and scaled a six-foot fence and ran over to the two women on the field. One was lying on the ground being attacked by a dog and the other was injured and with a young boy.
"She was on the ground and the dog was mauling her legs. It was horrific." He tried to stop the dog from attacking the woman, but the dog bit him hard in the hand.
"It was bleeding so much and I couldn't stop it. It was running down my arm and my jacket."
So he went home and called 911.
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| Ken Brodie's hand |
"Our officers commented that it was a horrifying sight to bear witness to," said Richmond RCMP Cpl. Dennis Hwang. "We see and love dogs as faithful companions and now they were witnessing a scene from their worst nightmare."
Hwang said one of the officers attempted to distract the dog while the other officer tried helping the wounded victim. He said the dog was momentarily distracted but then tried to attack one of the officers.
The officer then shot at the dog.
The 21-year old Richmond woman suffered extensive injuries from the attack, and was taken to local area hospital. Hwang said the woman suffered 100 bites to her body, a fractured arm, and a detached bicep. She is undergoing surgery and is listed in critical condition.
She was trying to draw the dog away from attacking her three-year-old nephew, the son of her twin sister, said Hwang. He added that her twin sister also sustained serious injuries, including multiple cuts to her body while defending her son from the dog.
The woman's sister was also transported to hospital with serious injuries, while the boy was unharmed. Brodie was taken to hospital in the ambulance with the two women.
Brodie's wife, Debbie Brodie, described her husband as a good man who is always willing to help anyone or lend a hand in any situation. She said he's 72 years old but age didn't stop him from scaling a fence to save someone's life.
The dog was not injured and remains in the custody of the Richmond Animal Protection Society.
The society's CEO Eyal Lichtmann confirmed Thursday afternoon that the dog was in their care, but said that no decision about the animal's fate had been made.
He added that the society has a policy of not killing animals, and any decision about whether the dog would be euthanized would be made by the City of Richmond and not the shelter.
Ted Townsend, a spokesman for the city of Richmond, said no action will be taken until the RCMP complete their investigation.
Investigators say the dog is owned by the boyfriend of the sister in critical condition. Hwang said it is too early to say whether charges will be considered.
Last week, on Christmas Day, two dogs came into a house in Fort St. John and killed a cat and mauled a couple. When officers arrived, they found a 51-year-old woman suffering from dog bites and a 66-year-old man sitting unresponsive in a chair, appearing to be in shock, while being attacked by the dogs.
The couple survived and were treated in hospital for various wounds.
(Vancouver Sun - Dec 31, 2015)
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