A man was left in a critical condition after being mauled by two loose pit bulls in a neighborhood in Harris County, Texas, on Thursday.
Home surveillance camera footage broadcast by several local news outlets shows parts of the incident that occurred in the Northcliffe subdivision, which deputies described as “horrific.”
In one clip posted online by KTRK, the man, who was out for an early morning walk, can be seen backing away as the two dogs approach him.
The man, who has not been identified, eventually backs up against a vehicle as the dogs bark at and jump up on him. The footage shown by KTRK cuts out before the pit bulls begin mauling him.
Later on in the recording, neighbors can be seen rushing to the man’s aid. One individual, Darrell Barryman, used a long stick to try and scare the dogs away.
“I heard somebody saying, ‘Help, help, help.’ That’s when I said, ‘Something ain’t right,'” Berryman, told KPRC 2. “I ran over here and saw two pit bulls. The man couldn’t move. They had him by his face… I told my granddaughter to call 911.”
One of the other neighbors who came out to help the victim, armed with a handgun, was Elmer Levigne, a retired Harris County Sheriff’s Office deputy. The incident occurred on Levigne’s front yard and his surveillance camera’s captured the attack.
Barryman and Levigne managed to get the dogs off the man, but the pit bulls started charging at the former deputy, leading him to shoot one of them through the shoulder.
“When I came out, the dogs turned around and went to attack us. I shot him through the shoulder and it didn’t even stop him,” Lavigne told KPRC 2.
Deputies from the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office and animal control personnel had also arrived at the scene by this point. One of the deputies also shot the other dog after it bit an animal control officer twice as they tried to detain it.
The attack left the original victim with injuries to his upper body, lower body, face and neck, and caused him to lose a significant amount of blood.
“It was pretty gruesome,” Daniel Garza with Precinct 4 told KPRC 2. “He did lose quite a bit of blood. That was the main concern. I’ve been doing this a long time and this type of attack is not something you see on a normal basis.”
Paramedics responded to the scene and the man was airlifted to hospital in a critical condition.
Zach Dunlap, the critical care manager for Cypress Creek EMS, said the quick actions of emergency responders saved the man’s life, administering two units of blood to him at the scene.
“I’ve had a lot of dog bites and maulings, but this is up there with some of the worst I’ve ever seen,” Dunlap told KPRC 2. “The amount of blood loss that he had, everything had to go perfect.”
“He received two units of blood which is very unique to receive that out of the hospital. We got his blood pressure up. We were able to intubate him,” Dunlap said on Thursday.
Dunalp said his team carried blood products with them, something that is not typical for paramedics. He also said the victim was lucky that there was a level 1 trauma center nearby at Memorial Hermann in Houston.
“Life flight was able to take him down to the medical center and he’s been in surgery throughout today… Had this happened in other parts of the country where he did not have blood or he did not have rapid access to a Level 1 trauma center, the outcome would have been probably worse.”
Both of the dogs are reportedly still alive despite having been shot. They are now being held by animal control officers and will be quarantined for 10 days, after which point officials will decide their fate.
Deputies took the owner of the dogs into custody for questioning and said charges are pending against him.
The owner, who did not want be to identified, told KTRK that he had been keeping the dogs in an enclosure but said a friend may have accidentally let them out before the attack.
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Original Article: Dogs Maul Texas Man in One of the Worst Attacks Paramedic Has Ever Seen (msn.com)
I do not know why people keep those vicious animals.
put the dogs down and charge the owner with attempted murder.
They R not aggressive. The owner has made them this way. The pit bull I know is gentle,lovable n such a big baby. I can speak from experience s. The owner is definitely responsible for their behavior.
I believe also he should be charged by law for being irresponsible as a pet owner.
The pitbull You know didn’t try to Kill a man for Walking! They need to be put down and the owner should be Arrested!
How sad that those dogs were taught to be vicious. Pit bulls used to known as “nanny dogs” a long time ago, and watched over children in carriages. My daughter brought home a young pit bull. As I got to know him, I realized that he was loyal, intelligent, and obedient. He is also very sensitive.
I believe you may be confusing the pit Bull with the Bull mastiff. Mastiffs we’re often used to “watch” the children, but the Pit Bull is a fairly recent addition to the canine kingdom. As their name implies, they we’re bred to fight bulls, which became illegal nearly everywhere around the turn of the last century. Unfortunately, these dogs continue to be bred for fighting each other in “the pit”, which requires them to be vicious, aggressive and tenacious . . . enough so that they are rightly viewed cautiously by most adults. Until some real teeth (no pun intended) are put into laws concerned with finding and prosecuting those anxious to breed, train and fight these dogs, my advice to anyone considering the purchase of a pit Bull is . . . don’t.
Most homeowner policies will not cover pit bulls, because of their history they’re likely to revert to type in the presence of anything which could be considered either “prey”, such as small children (due to their jerky, unpredictable physical actions) or small domestic pets such as cats and kittens, bunnies, ferrets, etc.
I agree the unsocial behavior of most pit bulls isn’t their own fault, but that won’t help when you’re in a conference with multiple specialists trying to determine the best way to replace your child’s face after a run-in with a vicious pit Bull dog.
The fact that they were running amuck w/o their owner around makes this owner responsible. Dogs are made to be aggressive and unfortunately are given a bad reputation due to irresponsible owners. German Shepherds, Rottweilers, Dobermans, and Huskies, have also had their reputations as being dangerous dogs prior to the Pitbull. The owner of these Pitbulls is trying to pass the responsibility off onto a friend who supposedly didn’t close the door/gate when they left but it is still the owner’s responsibility for the actions of his dogs.
Exactly!
Many years ago my daughter owned a pit bull. She had Sandi from puppy till she passed. She was so pretty, loving, and never showed one ounce of aggression. She was the best dog. I do believe it’s how they’re raised that makes the pit bull dangerous. I think police and courts should put those two dog’s down, throw the owner in jail for a very very long time and sue owner for a great, great sum of money!! I’m sure the victim will need a lot of cosmetic surgery so he’ll need great sums of money.
I used to raise Pit Bulls and it’s not the dog it’s the owner! So sick of these losers getting these dogs and abusing them to the point they hurt other people. My Pit Bulls lived to 15 years old and never bit anyone. The person who owns these dogs has abused these dogs they don’t just act this way without being beaten, fed drugs or starved. Dogs are not born mean this is created by losers like the person who owned these dogs.
It’s not the dogs’ fault. It’s the owner’s fault. He didn’t raise them right. First off, if you have dogs or any companion animal, they should be kept inside…NOT IN AN ENCLOSURE OUTSIDE. I feel so bad for the man who was attacked. These dogs get a bad rap for the way their owners raise them. If they are kept outside and not taught to associate with people, then they act on instinct. Some people should just not be allowed to own animals.