Pit bull attacks girl in her Santa Rosa yard / Third mauling in Bay Area in a month amid calls to crack down on the breed
Annette Rojas, 8, rests sedated at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital after being attacked by a pit bull that escaped from a neighbor's home. Santa Rosa Press Democrat photo by Christopher Chung via Associated PressCredit: CHRISTOPHER CHUNG
A pit bull that escaped from a Santa Rosa home mauled an 8-year-old girl who had been playing next door in her yard on Wednesday, deeply gashing her face, and then turned on the girl's mother when she rushed to help.
The attack was the third serious mauling by a pit bull in the Bay Area this month and coincides with actions by some local and state officials to crack down on aggressive canines and their owners.
On Tuesday, state Sen. Jackie Speier, D-Hillsborough, introduced a bill that would allow cities and counties to enact breed-specific laws affecting dogs after the mauling death in San Francisco of 12-year-old Nicholas Faibish by his family's pit bulls.
The attack was the third serious mauling by a pit bull in the Bay Area this month and coincides with actions by some local and state officials to crack down on aggressive canines and their owners.
On Tuesday, state Sen. Jackie Speier, D-Hillsborough, introduced a bill that would allow cities and counties to enact breed-specific laws affecting dogs after the mauling death in San Francisco of 12-year-old Nicholas Faibish by his family's pit bulls.
The dog then went after the girl's mother, biting her arm and legs, deputies said.
After pulling the dog off the 37-year-old mother, the men trapped the pit bull in a garage on the property, and they and Annette and Flores took refuge inside the house. But the dog managed to escape the garage and enter the house through an open door, at which point the four locked themselves in the bathroom and called police.
The girl and her mother were taken to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital.
Flores was treated and released after doctors cleaned and bandaged wounds to her right forearm, middle finger and both of her legs, said Kevin Andrus, a hospital spokesman.
Her daughter was listed in fair condition with deep lacerations to the right side of her face and injuries to her arms and neck.
"The doctors said that some of these injuries will likely result in permanent scarring," Andrus said. "She has definitely been traumatized by this situation, and she has undergone several procedures in the last few hours."
Annette is expected to be hospitalized for two or three days so doctors can monitor her injuries to prevent infection.
Her mother "told friends at the hospital that she is very angry that this happened to her daughter and the community needs to address the problem," Andrus said.
The dog, an 8-month-old pit bull named Smokey, was being watched by Geraldine Whitaker, who lives next door to Annette and her mother. The dog had not been neutered.
Smokey stayed at Whitaker's house between four and six months while his owner, Blanca Galan, searched for a home that would allow dogs. Whitaker, 74, is a family friend of Galan who also baby-sat Galan's three children while the single mother went to work in Rohnert Park. She told The Chronicle she was willing to take care of the dog only because Galan's kids loved him so much.
"I didn't want it here in the first place," she said from her home. "I hate pit bulls."
Galan's 13-year-old daughter walked the dog every day, Whitaker said. On Wednesday, Whitaker took the youngest child to swimming lessons, and the 13- year-old stayed home with the dog.
Whitaker, who returned home after the attack, said Smokey managed to escape through an open screen door and then through an open gate before entering Annette and her family's yard.
The 13-year-old girl chased after the dog, but he had already started to attack, Whitaker said.
Yolanda Estrada, in an interview outside her home, said she was outside with her son Preciado and her nephew Revas when they heard screams from the yard. The two men ran into the yard to find the dog on top of the 8-year-old, Estrada said.
Preciado later told his mother the dog was latched onto Annette's face and "wouldn't let go. It was dragging her," Estrada said.
As police arrived with drawn pistols, the 13-year-old girl attempted to prevent the officers from shooting Smokey by throwing herself on top of him, Whitaker said.
The officers shoved the dog into a bedroom until animal control officers arrived and were able to noose the dog and put it inside a vehicle, deputies said. Officers handcuffed the 13-year-old and put her in the back of the police car, Whitaker said. She was later released.
Sonoma County Animal Control will conduct an investigation into the attack and forward the results to the Sonoma County district attorney's office to determine if any criminal charges will be filed in the case.
"I don't put any blame on anyone except that damn dog," Whitaker said. "They are a wonderful family and just want their kids to have things. Unfortunately, they got the wrong dog.
"It was just a horrible, horrible chain of events. I'm about as depressed as you can get."
Pit bull attacks girl in her Santa Rosa yard / Third mauling in Bay Area in a month amid calls to crack down on the breed
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Smokey, who was purchased by the family from a private party, will remain in quarantine for 10 days. There are no prior complaints about the dog, said Bob Garcia, the supervising animal regulation officer for Sonoma County.
"We are going to look into declaring the dog as vicious," Garcia said.
The attack marks the third by a pit bull in the Bay Area this month.
On June 14, a pit bull attacked and seriously injured its 66-year-old owner in Rohnert Park. Police said the 60-pound dog had a history of aggression and was feared by neighbors.
"We are going to look into declaring the dog as vicious," Garcia said.
The attack marks the third by a pit bull in the Bay Area this month.
On June 14, a pit bull attacked and seriously injured its 66-year-old owner in Rohnert Park. Police said the 60-pound dog had a history of aggression and was feared by neighbors.
The woman, Tommie Munoz, was hospitalized with extensive injuries to her legs after the attack by King, her 9-year-old pit bull terrier. That attack happened as Munoz argued with her son. The dog allegedly attacked the son and then turned on Munoz as she tried to intervene.
Faibish, 12, was killed June 3 in his home in the Inner Sunset after his mother left him home alone with the family's two pit bulls while she ran errands.
The recent maulings have raised concerns throughout the Bay Area, with city officials promising to crack down on pit bulls and pit bull mixes.
Mayor Gavin Newsom has endorsed several measures in hopes of reducing the likelihood of attacks by aggressive and dangerous dogs. Those include spaying and neutering regulations, a ban on backyard breeding and fines for irresponsible dog owners.
E-mail the writers at jdoyle@sfchronicle.com and lfulbright@sfchronicle.com.Faibish, 12, was killed June 3 in his home in the Inner Sunset after his mother left him home alone with the family's two pit bulls while she ran errands.
The recent maulings have raised concerns throughout the Bay Area, with city officials promising to crack down on pit bulls and pit bull mixes.
Mayor Gavin Newsom has endorsed several measures in hopes of reducing the likelihood of attacks by aggressive and dangerous dogs. Those include spaying and neutering regulations, a ban on backyard breeding and fines for irresponsible dog owners.
http://articles.sfgate.com/2005-06-23/news/17379589_1_family-s-pit-pit-bull-breed-specific/2
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