74-Year-Old Florida Woman Mauled to Death by Golden Lab & Australian Shepherd

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PrayersForMaura

PrayersForMaura

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TITUSVILLE, Fla. — A 74-year-old Florida woman was mauled to death by her two dogs this week, according to Titusville police.
Loraine May's golden lab mix and an Australian shepherd mix attacked her Thursday morning, according to authorities.
May's son found her body.
Brevard County Animal Services and Enforcement have taken the dogs, which will be destroyed.



http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,373325,00.html
 
You don't hear that every day about Golden labs.
 
Here is an article with more info:

http://www.wftv.com/news/16729943/detail.html

Police said an autopsy performed on May by the Brevard County Medical Examiner's Office led them to believe her death was caused by multiple, blunt trauma, inflicted by two of her three dogs.
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A neighbor told Eyewitness News he thinks she may have been mauled when one of the larger dogs got into a fight with the cocker spaniel and May tried to break them apart.
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It sounds like the dogs knocked her over and maybe she hit her head or fell down some stairs or something.
 
If that's what happened then the title of the news article is misleading. I don't call that mauling.
 
XcomSquaddie said:
Here is an article with more info:

http://www.wftv.com/news/16729943/detail.html





It sounds like the dogs knocked her over and maybe she hit her head or fell down some stairs or something.
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*advertiser censored* soon as I read what type of dogs these were, this is exactly what I figured happened. The headline writers were trying to sell papers. Prayers for this woman's family.
 
Blunt force trauma from caused by the dogs? I agree it certainly sounds like she fell and hit her head. It is not normal behavior for an Australian Shephard and Golden Retriever to be aggressive like. Although, years and years ago, our 22 year old cat was lounging in our driveway and two Labs who had gotten out attacked and killed him and bite my mother as she was trying to save poor Moshe. It was devastating. Labs are not normally considered cat-killers but so much of a dog's behavior is contingent on how they are raised. If her dogs were fear-based aggressive or dominant aggressive it could have easily been a situation that spiraled out of control......but it still sounds she was knocked down and hit her head.
 
Paladin said:
You don't hear that every day about Golden labs.
Click to expand...


omgosh! Rarely ever Paladin!:eek: Aussie shepherd either.

I have to re-read the story and find out more because this is so highly unusual.:waitasec: I can't imagine. :(
 
this makes no sense to me. how did dogs cause 'multiple BLUNT trauma'? nothing about bites or blood.

i wonder if the son found the dogs near her, and assumed? both breeds are very protective. it may have looked like they were attacking when they were only trying to 'help'?
 
I have a cocker spaniel and was fostering two labs. The black lab liked to snap at the others but I don't think they'd have ever tried to kill each other or me and my fiance.
 
I'm not sure if it's a yellow lab or a golden I didn't read but in my experience as a vet tech while not the most common dogs known for biting when they're vicious they're VERY vicious. The numbers of aggressive "family type dogs" labs, goldens at least in our area (Massachusetts) are on the rise due to poor breeding. We have licked the overpopulation of dogs (not cats though) in our state, so now once again there is high demand leading to more bad breeders. People also underestimate the role that pack behavior plays. Any one of my 8 dogs one on one is a doll, tick them off as a pack and watch out. Luckily my dogs average about 5 pounds :)

That being said I agree it doesn't sound like a mauling, just a couple of dogs that were stronger that their elderly owner.
 
After reading several accounts of the story, seeing photos of the dogs, & knowing the breeds, I believe a forensic expert may have made a different finding....the lady may have toppled over, maybe from tripping on a dog, was bleeding from a head wound & the dogs then became involved. blood sometimes triggers an aggressive response in canines.... but she may not have been the intended target & may have been unconcious or dead before being bitten by the dogs.

This is a sad story & I see the defenders of pit bulls & other dogs with bad press have already jumped into the fray... just what they have been waiting for... a negative report about dogs on the list of top 10 most popular breeds.

if we concede this story the score is-

Vicious Dog attacks:

labs & aussies.....1
pitt bulls........... ????
 
noZme said:
After reading several accounts of the story, seeing photos of the dogs, & knowing the breeds, I believe a forensic expert may have made a different finding....the lady may have toppled over, maybe from tripping on a dog, was bleeding from a head wound & the dogs then became involved. blood sometimes triggers an aggressive response in canines.... but she may not have been the intended target & may have been unconcious or dead before being bitten by the dogs.

This is a sad story & I see the defenders of pit bulls & other dogs with bad press have already jumped into the fray... just what they have been waiting for... a negative report about dogs on the list of top 10 most popular breeds.

if we concede this story the score is-

Vicious Dog attacks:

labs & aussies.....1
pitt bulls........... ????
Click to expand...

Good point. I would suspect that it is something along those lines.
 
Another thing, if the poor woman died because of her head injury, the dogs didn't maul her. They may have mauled her after she passed. :(
 
Actually, I've seen a lot of aggressive Aussies. Generally good with owners, but they are a breed I approach cautiously until I get to know them better. Certainly also know many WONDERFUL ones, but over all I wouldn't suggest them as a calm friendly breed if someone asked.

And Lab mixes can be all over the scale from nice to absolutely psycho. A lot depends on what the other mixture is.
 
Gee awful. I have two goldens, but a Golden Lab? Is that a mix of golden and lab?
Unless something else happened sounds like she fell and hit her head on something.

She may have tripped over them. Two large dogs for an older person.
 
Mira said:
more info. seems she was bitten a lot.

http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pb...8/NEWS01/806280315&referrer=FRONTPAGECAROUSEL

sorry if this makes the page all squiffy. dont know how to make a smaller link.
Click to expand...
Dearest Mira,:)
Thank-you for the link.
My heart hurts for her son, he is the one who found her deceased.

This is from the link that you provided;
Police said May was found dead at her Elliot Avenue residence by her son after he returned from work Thursday afternoon. She had been dead for several hours.
May had been bitten on her arms, shoulder and neck, police said. "She was bitten more times than anyone can count," said Lt. Todd Hutchinson of Titusville police. "She suffered a dislocated shoulder."
He described the scene inside the house as gruesome.


Respectfully,
dark_shadows
 
dingo said:
its very uncommon to hear of a lab attack.
Ps....check out my siggy pic...I deserved to be attacked.
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dingo ...you snapped that photo? kewl... i would have been right beside you snapping away too...... it has been my personal experience that animals, even wild animals, rarely intend harm to people & will do everything possible to avoid a confrontation..... their nature would be to get away unless cornered & provoked..... i wouldn't attempt a stand-off with a cougar or grizzly; i do think in recent reports of attacks by them, the animals were defending their young or were suprised by the sudden appearance of a person.

i was bitten by my golden retriever & my brother's lab ... either dog was a wuss alone but they had a grudge between them, a new meter-reader was in the fenced part of the yard & both dogs were protecting me ... doing the bristle & snarl at each other & when i simultaneously touched them on their backs, it set off a dogfight. my next foolish move was grabbing to pull them apart ... which required a few stitches.... was either dog at fault? NOPE.

where is lions run ? she is an animal behaviorist, I want to know her evaluation of the FL story considering all known facts..... my great-uncle was mayor of titusville for many years... if he was still living we would have the inside scoop.
 
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