Arizona: Elderly Tucson woman and her small dog mauled by pit bull; owner grabbed dog and fled

ARIZONA -- Eighty-two-year-old Rose Ellis and her little pooch Daizie are recovering and searching for answers after being attacked by a pit bull earlier this week on the east side.

Ellis was walking Daizie along Olympic Club Drive near Pebble Beach Avenue on Tuesday morning.

 

 

It turned deadly when a pit bull jumped over a brick wall and darted toward Rose and Daizie from behind.

“This dog comes and grabs her from behind us and shook her like a rag doll,” Rose said.

The pit bull proceeded to bite and knock over Rose but not without a fight.

“I got up and I was screaming and yelling and kept kicking some more and then a bunch of the neighbors come out and help me,” Rose said.

She couldn’t bear to lose another loved one.

 

 

"I lost my husband in December before Christmas and I didn't want to lose somebody else,” Rose said.

Rose’s son Steve is bewildered and frustrated by the whole ordeal, especially with the pit bull’s owner.

"PIT AND RUN" - OWNER FLED WITH PIT BULL

“She didn't [bother to check and] see how my mom was doing or just stick around to kind of give information she just basically left and disappeared with the dog,” Steve said.

The pit bull owner is nowhere to be found.

She happens to live in a camper trailer in the backyard of a man named David Snodgrass who allows her to live there as long as she pays utilities. This is the same backyard where the pit bull jumped over the brick wall.

"Animal control did show up. They gave me this notice to give to her. I can't give it to her because she's not here. I don't know where she is,” Snodgrass claims.

"Because we don't have the vaccination information for that dog, that puts my mom at risk because she's going to have to go through those rabies shots,” Steve said.

While Pima County animal control officers are investigating, Rose and Daizie are recovering.

"I don't want to go through that rabies treatment because at my age, that's not good,” Steve said.

To help Rose and Daizie:

GOFUNDME: Help for Rosie and Daizie
Created May 4, 2018
Steven Ellis
  Emergencies
  TUCSON, AZ

On the morning of May 1st my mom, Rosie, was walking her dog, Daizie, when both were attacked and mauled by a pit bull. The dog savagely attacked Daizie then turned on my mom when she tried to save her dog. My mom was knocked to the ground, bitten and scratched up before the pit bull turned and attacked Daizie again.

Neighbors and people nearby heard my mom screaming. People screened my mom and Daizie from the pit bull which continued to try to attack them.

The owner of the pit bull ran out, grabbed the pit bull and drove off. The owner of the pit bull did NOT stop to assist my mom in any way or even leave information regarding her pit bull's vaccinations and shots. The woman and her dog drove off and disappeared.

Tucson Police and Pima County Animal Control were immediately notified of the attack. Attempts to contact the pit bull owner have gone unanswered or ignored.

Daizie was rushed to the nearest Veterinarian ER where she was stabilized. I took my mom to the nearest ER where her bite and scratch wounds were treated. After having a CAT scan and x-rays, doctors found that my mom's tail bone was broken during the attack.

Since the pit bull and its owner fled the scene of the attack and have refused to contact us with information on the pit bull's vaccinations, my mom will have to undergo rabies shots since we cannot verify if the pit bull is up to date on its vaccinations.

The owner and her Pit Bull were living in this camper in 

David Snodgrass's backyard. He claims not to know

where she ran off to or where she's hiding her vicious dog

Mom is 82 years old and going through those shots will add additional suffering and trauma- not mentioning the potential side effects of the treatment which could be severe given her age and health.

My mom is on fixed income and cannot afford the increasing cost of treatment for herself and Daizie. We are asking for assistance in covering these expenses.

Update 1
This shows the amount of damage done to Daizie that needed emergency vet attention from the attack. Mom has bites and scratches on her arms and legs.

As of today, the owner still refuses to contact us with the vaccination information for the pit bull and ignoring repeated phone and text request to simply give us the name of her pit bull's vet.

Pima County Animal Care have been working with us to locate the owner and the dog. The owner is apparently sleeping in her car somewhere in town and avoiding to return to her camper.

Update 2
Zack Briggs from KVOA Channel 4 News came out this morning to interview mom regarding the attack. The owner and the dog is still missing. You can watch the interview tonight during the 6pm news.

(KVOA - May 4, 2018)