Alabama: Mother stabs her pit bull to death to stop attack on her four-year-old son

ALABAMA -- What started out as a cheerful Sunday afternoon quickly took an unexpected and terrifying turn.

"My neighbor called and said something was wrong, and when I got back, it was already over with, and the county and the Elba P.D. was there, and the dog was already laying on the ground,” said Billy Marx, the victim's uncle, who lives down the street.

What a cute little boy. I hope he'll be OK.

His nephew, five-year-old Carter Nicholson, was attacked by his family's 150-lb pit bull, Mack. It happened in Carter's backyard on County Road 235.

Carter Nicholson suffered serious injuries after the attack.

According to Marx, the dog was attached to a tether wire in the family's backyard when Carter got too close to [his own family's] dog.

 

 

Carter's uncle shows how far the dog could
reach while attached to its tether

The dog then attacked, grabbing Carter by the leg and it would not let go.

"[Mack's] just a big dog and that's a little boy," said Marx. "And he might have grabbed him to start playing with him, you know, and when he started screaming and all he might have gotten upset, you know, nervous. That's how them type of dogs are."

Marx says upon hearing screams, the boy's mother grabbed a kitchen knife, ran outside and repeatedly stabbed the dog until it released the child from its grip.

The dog was mortally wounded but still alive. A family member helped put the dog down at the scene.

Carter was first taken to Enterprise Hospital, but when they realized how serious his injuries were he was then taken to Birmingham for surgery.

Family members say Carter continues to recuperate from his injuries and they hope he can come home in coming days.

 

In an interview with Coffee County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Ronnie Whitworth, he said they receive a large number of vicious dog complaints. Recently, pit bulls have become a larger problem throughout the county.

"We have complaints all the time about pit bulls.

"Some people say it's the way they're raised and some people say that they're not mean, y'know... but I don't trust them. I just don't trust no pit bull, period" said Chief Deputy Whitworth. 

Family members say that despite Mac's size he had never displayed any aggression toward the family and that they are "basically at a loss as to what may have triggered the attack".

Marx said the little boy's family also owned a second, smaller pit bull, but have since gotten rid of it.

(WTVY - Nov 22, 2016)