Woman mauled by pit bulls: 'If you want to survive, you're gonna have to fight'

WASHINGTON -- The 82-year-old woman who was mauled by two pit bulls and discovered by her grandson a bloody mess said there's only one fate for the surviving dog.

Gloria Boswell is recovering at Seattle's Harborview Medical Center after the Monday night attack. Boswell's grandson owned one of the dogs and she said she was picking up a pillow that had fallen off the coach, the dog's pillow.

"I reached down to pick the pillow up and that was my mistake. I had a pit bull wrapped around my neck," said Boswell.

Boswell was bitten in the face, back and both arms and legs, said Gray's Harbor Sheriff's deputies.

Boswell's grandson shot and killed one of the dogs; the other is being held in 10-day quarantine by Gray's Harbor County.

Her daughter shudders at the thought.

"I just felt sorry that I wasn't there to help her," said her daughter. "I close my eyes and I can hear her screaming for help and nobody's there to help her."

"If you want to survive, you 're gonna have to fight," said Boswell, "and I wasn't about to give up my home and my life."

Boswell's other daughter, Carla Inman, said this wasn't the first time the dogs attacked.

"She shouldn't have to go through it," said Inman. "The dog's bit her before. I told them to get rid of the dog when it bit her the first time and they didn't do it. And they didn't report it either or take her to the doctor. "

Boswell said, sadly, the surviving dog must be put down.

"If I had my choice, I probably would (put it down), yes, to save somebody else's life," said Boswell.

(NWCN - April 25, 2012)

Two recovering after dog mauling in Frenchtown Township

MICHIGAN -- Two people are recovering after being attacked by a pack of vicious dogs.

The dogs have been taken away but those frightening moments are still in the victims minds.

Neighbors say that police and ambulances had to rush the young woman to the hospital.

A neighbor described the aftermath of what appears to be a savage attack on a 15-year-old girl to 7 Action News.

The teen was apparently visiting someone she knew at a house in the Detroit Beach subdivision when she was mauled by dogs.

“She was on a stretcher,” says Angela Polston. She appeared to be alert - the girl on the stretcher.”

The teen was inside the house when she was attacked. It’s not clear what upset the animals but they have been removed from the property.  Animal control took nine dogs.

Neighbors describe them as pit bulls but Frenchtown Township officials say they are boxers.

One other person was reportedly hurt but their injuries appear less serious.

We are told by neighbors the young woman remains in the hospital. Her condition is not known.

(WXYZ - April 25, 2012)

‘Worst I’ve seen in my life’

OHIO -- The majority of well-being checks the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office makes turn out OK, said Deputy Todd Easterling.

Sometimes, people worry when they can’t get ahold of someone. And sometimes, Easterling said, those people just wanted to be left alone.

Lawrence County Sheriff’s Deputy Todd Easterling tries to befriend a dog
found at a deceased hoarder's home in Ironton.

This was not the case Friday when Easterling checked on a rural Lawrence County man, who his neighbors said hadn’t seen him in a while.

There were early signs something was wrong at the residence. The mailbox of the home on County Road 27 was full, not checked in some time.

“It was just a shock to me,” Easterling said Monday on a return visit to the home.

What he walked in on Friday was a residence overrun with dogs, inside and out.

The wooden plank floors of the home were covered in dirt, trash, feces and urine. A heavy, eye-stinging ammonia smell hung in the air. The scene was much like those of the Animal Planet television series “Confessions: Animal Hoarding.”

The owner of the property, a man in his 60s, Easterling said, was found dead in the upstairs of the house. He had been there at least a couple of weeks. So far, there has been no next of kin to notify.

Dogs inside the home were starving and turned to extreme measures for nourishment.

"Some of his body had been eaten," neighbor Charlie Jenkins said.

Outside the home, the property was littered with kennels and doghouses in an overgrown yard of weeds and grass. A separate trailer on the property housed cats, some dead and some still alive.

When Easterling saw the dire situation of the pets, he said he tried to find food. All he could find was cat food, which he distributed as he could.

Easterling estimated about 45 to 50 dogs were on the property. Some were already dead, succumbed to starvation.

Monday, there were only three dogs left on the property. A rescuer from Ashland, Ky., had heard of the situation and agreed to take the three in.

The others had been euthanized on site by deputy dog wardens, captured or escaped.

Easterling tried to gain the trust of a shivering Dachshund in an enclosure next to the house. The little dog shied away.

A Labrador-mix wagged his tail and ran along the fence line to greet Easterling.

Another dog remained in the house, too afraid to come down the stairs. There may have been others hiding.

According to County Dog Warden Bill Click, the Lawrence County Dog Shelter had been to the residence before to offer the man help with his animals. Click said the man threatened the deputies and declined their help.

Click said he didn’t see how one person could care for that many pets.

“If we’ve got 30 or 40 (at the shelter), it’s quite a job,” he said.

Deputies from the shelter collected the animals, but had to put many down at the scene, Deputy Dog Warden Ronnie Hatfield said. Some of the dogs also ran away.

“That was terrible,” Hatfield said of the situation. “I went out about 4 p.m. (Friday) and my gosh, they were trying to eat us up.”

Hatfield said there were dogs running all over the property when he got there.

Inside the house, there were several dead, Hatfield said, and the smell was overwhelming.

“I can’t get the smell out of my head,” he said. “It’s bad. The worst I’ve seen in my life.”

Hatfield said he wasn’t sure how many he and another deputy had to put down, but there were at least 10 more running at large.

“I had talked with that guy last year,” Hatfield recalled. “He was terrible to me. I told him, ‘I’ve had some complaints. I want to see your dogs.’ He wouldn’t let me see them.

“Maybe last year we could have done something, but when it’s thrown on you …”

[If the owner won't let you see the dogs, use your eyes. What do you see? Forty dog houses? Twenty dogs in the yard and others in the windows of the home. What do you smell? Ammonia and feces? Does the owner smell like ammonia? Do his shoes have feces on them? What do you hear? Dozens of dogs barking. Try to get a warrant based on what you observed, smelled and heard.

Sounds like these rural law enforcement officers didn't like the situation but just didn't know what to do about it.]

Hatfield said he expected to get more complaint calls from neighbors in the area.

“I just hope they don’t bite anyone,” he said.

Seven dogs were taken to the shelter, but Click said he didn’t know yet if they would be adoptable.

(Ironton Tribune - April 24, 2012)

Labrador mauls and kills small dog in Ohio

OHIO -- Solon's animal warden is investigating after a dog on Richmond Road got loose and killed a neighbor's dog, according to Solon Police.

On April 19 at about 7 p.m., a 35-year-old Richmond Road resident called and said that her dog, described as a "yorkiepoo," was dead after her neighbor's dog attacked it.

The neighbor, a 42-year-old woman, told police that her dog, described as a labrador, had broken free from its chain, ran into the neighbor's yard and [attacked] the dog, instantly killing it.

The neighbor told police that her dog is not aggressive with people but is defensive around other dogs.
So far, no one has been charged or cited in the incident.

(Solon Patch - April 25, 2012)

Arizona: John Haralampidis charged with animal cruelty

Name: John Ioannis Haralampidis
aka Ioannis Haralampidis
Gender: Male
Birthdate: 09/15/1964
Height: 5'08"
Weight: 155 lbs
Hair Color: BROWN
Eye Color: BROWN
Arrest Age:47
Arrest date: 4/24/2012
Agency: Maricopa County, Arizona
Charges
#1 AGGRAVATED DUI
#2 ANIMAL CRUELTY/WORK ANIMAL
#3 THEFT-OBT SERVICE W/OUT PAYING

ADDITIONAL ARREST:
Date: 04/23/2014
Arrest Age: 49
Agency: Maricopa County, Arizona
Charges
#1 FALSE REPORT TO LAW ENFORCE
#2 FALSE EMERG REPT-CAUSE ACTION

Anne Arundel puppy's owners face animal cruelty charges

MARYLAND -- The owners of a Golden Retriever puppy in Severn may face animal cruelty charges after they were caught allegedly trying to neuter the dog themselves, police say.

Anne Arundel County Police officials say the incident happened on April 13 at a home in the 8000 block of Sebring Court in Severn. After receiving an anonymous tip, a responding animal control officer found the four-and-a-half month old puppy, named Cola, with a rubber band wrapped around its testicles.

Cola's testicles were shriveled and discolored, the officer said, and the area around the rubber band appeared red and irritated. The dog was quickly seized and taken to the Greater Annapolis Veterinary Hospital, where the puppy was properly neutered.

Charges are pending against Cola's owners. Animal control officials urge people who cannot afford proper medical care for their pets to contact their local Animal Control shelter.

(WJLA - April 24, 2012)

‘Sweet’ dog killed in violent spear attack in Richmond Hill

CANADA -- Diesel’s owners say the 6-year-old Sheltie was so harmless he was afraid of thunderstorms.

And that's why they are stunned and distraught their dog was fatally stabbed in the mouth with a sharp stick Friday as horrified neighbours looked on.

RIP Diesel

York Region police said the dog was stabbed with a spike attached to a broom handle around 6 p.m. that day.

Harmony Gayne, who described her dog as loyal and full of life, said she was on her way home from school when her mother Molly called to tell her something was wrong. When Harmony got to the house she saw the dog lying lifeless on the ground with blood near his jaw.

“He was lying there dead on the grass. I came and gave (Molly) a hug,” said Harmony, 24.

Police arrested a Richmond Hill man, who they haven’t identified. He was released from custody and ordered to appear in court May 25 on charges of injuring or endangering an animal.

Eye witnesses said Molly Gayne was walking Diesel in the neighbourhood near Bayview and 19th Aves. when she and a neighbour exchanged insults after the man accused her of not keeping her dog away from him.

“The dog walked up to him in a friendly manner. But the guy poked him with a stick in the mouth. The dog was on a leash,” said a witness who asked not to be named.

The dog staggered away bleeding from the mouth, and moments later collapsed near his home, the witness said.

“It made, like a whimpering sound” after the stabbing, the witness said, adding he had seen the dog many times in the past.

The witness said the assailant was wearing sunglasses, so he couldn't see his eyes, but from the man's body language he seemed angry at the time.

Another neighbour said her father heard Molly yelling, “He just killed my dog.”

Harmony Gayne

The Gayne family got Diesel from relatives in the U.S. in March 2006. The American relatives, who adopted him from a shelter, had to give him away due to allergies.

Harmony said her family didn't know the alleged assailant prior to the incident.

Neighbours say he rents a basement apartment down the street from the Gayne family.

The owner of the home where he lives declined to comment when the Star knocked on her door.

(Toronto Star - April 23, 2012)