3-day-old baby fatally mauled by family dog, in front of parents

[DropthePuck]

It wasn't a pit. And the dog only bit the child once, when the dog was startled. It's true.. any family pet is likely to be sensitive to an "intrusion" to their life like a new baby. All animals have some loyalty to their owners and are doing what they think they should. It's a horrible accident.

Of course, the media loves to embellish things and different articles say different things. Some say bit, some say mauled. I initially thought maybe the dog jumped up after being startled and accidentally landed on the baby. Three day old babies can be fragile and unable to withstand a big dog landing on them. No one knows the true facts of what happened except for the parents. However, not knowing doesn't stop the media from misrepresenting things to get clicks on their websites. Like you said, I think this dog was sensitive to the new little person, new smells, new dynamic, etc and perhaps overreacted to the coughing. I don't know, just guessing since I wasn't there. From what the police said, I don't get the impression this was a mauling but the media love to use that word. They also love to call any dog with short hair and blocky head a "pit bull", when it could be a boxer, American bull dog, cane corso, mastiff, or any mix of those breeds. Visual breed ID can be tricky business. In my opinion, every dog is an individual with their own needs and behaviors, no matter what they look like. Anyways, I'm rambling here. I think I'll stick to discussing humans doing terrible things to each other. These kinds of things get me too upset.

 

[wendybtn]

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2016/apr/22/dog-mauls-kills-baby/

The dog was NOT a pit. "According to Dan DeSousa, deputy director of the county Department of Animal Services, the dog was a 2-year-old, neutered male American Staffordshire terrier-mix named Polo"

The dog doesn't even look like a pit. I have not found ANY LE or News reporting that it was a pit.

This is a horrible tragedy, and the lesson here should be that you never expose ANY family pet to a new member to the family, especially a defenseless baby, as if they love it as much as you do. Animals are territorial, no matter what breed. Even cats are. You have to introduce the animal slowly and with distance and calmness. Always ready to intervene if there is any sensitivity. My heart breaks for these new parents.

Thank you! I thought I was crazy after reading the article in the first post. The dog is not big, it doesn't look like a pit bull, and the authority quoted said it is a Staffordshire Terrier mix. I am not an expert on dog breeds by any means but all the posts after that about pit bulls was extremely confusing to me.

 

[KaaBoom]

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2016/apr/22/dog-mauls-kills-baby/

The dog was NOT a pit. "According to Dan DeSousa, deputy director of the county Department of Animal Services, the dog was a 2-year-old, neutered male American Staffordshire terrier-mix named Polo"

The dog doesn't even look like a pit. I have not found ANY LE or News reporting that it was a pit.

This is a horrible tragedy, and the lesson here should be that you never expose ANY family pet to a new member to the family, especially a defenseless baby, as if they love it as much as you do. Animals are territorial, no matter what breed. Even cats are. You have to introduce the animal slowly and with distance and calmness. Always ready to intervene if there is any sensitivity. My heart breaks for these new parents.

You are cherry picking. The article you linked to, clearly says in the headline and in the article that it’s a pit bull mix. Whether you want to believe it or not, the article clearly says it’s a pit bull, and I think that most of us can see that it’s a pit bull. So yes it is reported as a pit bull mix.

Family dog fatally mauls newborn baby
Parents, son and pit bull-mix were in bed at home when startled dog bit the infant

MIRA MESA — A 3-day-old baby was fatally mauled by a pet dog in front of the child’s parents at their Mira Mesa home Thursday night, San Diego police said Friday.

The parents were in bed, watching TV, with their newborn son and pit bull-mix dog when the mother coughed, startling the dog, child abuse unit Sgt. Tu Nguyen said.

 

[KaaBoom]

Q: What is a pit bull?

The legal definition of a pit bull is a class of dogs that includes the following breeds: American pit bull terrier, American Staffordshire terrier, Staffordshire bull terrier, American bulldog and any other pure bred or mixed breed dog that is a combination of these dogs. Weight and shape can vary significantly amongst pit bulls, from 35 to 100 plus pounds.

Pit bull FAQ ::

 

[jjenny]

Thank you! I thought I was crazy after reading the article in the first post. The dog is not big, it doesn't look like a pit bull, and the authority quoted said it is a Staffordshire Terrier mix. I am not an expert on dog breeds by any means but all the posts after that about pit bulls was extremely confusing to me.

Not big? At 97 lb, he is huge and heavier than your average pit bull. And he is a pit bull mix, as has been explained by numerous posters on the thread.

 

[jjenny]

Of course, the media loves to embellish things and different articles say different things. Some say bit, some say mauled. I initially thought maybe the dog jumped up after being startled and accidentally landed on the baby. Three day old babies can be fragile and unable to withstand a big dog landing on them. No one knows the true facts of what happened except for the parents. However, not knowing doesn't stop the media from misrepresenting things to get clicks on their websites. Like you said, I think this dog was sensitive to the new little person, new smells, new dynamic, etc and perhaps overreacted to the coughing. I don't know, just guessing since I wasn't there. From what the police said, I don't get the impression this was a mauling but the media love to use that word. They also love to call any dog with short hair and blocky head a "pit bull", when it could be a boxer, American bull dog, cane corso, mastiff, or any mix of those breeds. Visual breed ID can be tricky business. In my opinion, every dog is an individual with their own needs and behaviors, no matter what they look like. Anyways, I'm rambling here. I think I'll stick to discussing humans doing terrible things to each other. These kinds of things get me too upset.

Bit and mauled is the same thing. Clearly the dog didn't just jump and land on the baby (not a single source reported anything like that).
"If an ​animal mauls someone, it ​attacks that ​person and ​injures them with ​its ​teeth or ​claws (= ​long ​sharp ​nails)."
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/maul

 

[cobalt sky]

I worked for about 5 years as a public health nurse, part of my responsibilities was doing intake calls which included reports of dog bites/attacks. The dogs that we received the most calls about were pit bull, lab, and wolf hybrids. The lab calls were usually the result of children playing with the dog and the dog nipping them in the form of play. The wolf hybrids & pit bulls were often unprovoked and more violent.

Sorry but I think that pit bulls should be exterminated. They are too unpredictable and violent. In addition, and more importantly, their owners are often ignorant and irresponsible. My experience has been that the typical pit bull owner is someone with low self esteem and/or low IQ that thinks owning a pit bull will command fear and respect from others. Rarely will a pit bull owner admit that their dog is at fault for the damage it creates, I have seen this time and time again. Pit bull owners often get off on the power they feel as a result of owning such a vicious dog and feel pride when their dog does hurt someone.

Any parent who would put their brand new infant in bed with a pit bull is beyond stupid. My heart breaks for this baby that now will never get to live its life, because of the ignorance and stupidity of its parents. Just exterminate the breed already and be done with it.

 

[jjenny]

I don't think pit bulls should be exterminated. But parents need to know what they are doing. Don't put dog and newborn baby in the same bed (even if parents are in that bed as well). The same thing could have happened if the baby was in bed with pretty much any large dog. Even labradors have been known to kill a newborn.

 

[Phoenixrising]

July Ruby- wow. Just wow. Exterminate them already and be done? They aren't bugs. I understand where you are coming from, as you see the bad side of owners that turn these dogs into fighters. That is how they get the rap they have. You don't see the good stories, or choose to not hear them. I am a pitbull owner and I am by no means ignorant or with a low IQ or self esteem. And to say we should just exterminate them.. then we can begin labeling the next breed and the next one and the next one.. until they are all gone, save their ignorant owners.

 

[Dogface]

In regards to pit bull size, it's really a deceptive thing. My dobie who is 100lbs looks it, he is just big in general. As a shorter person his head comes to the bottom of my ribcage. When he stands up he is taller than me(I'm 5'1" so not hard to be taller than me) my mom has some pit mixes and her male weighs the same as mine. But I couldn't get over how small he seems. But while my dog is built like a ballerina, or a reindeer, hers is built like a small bodybuilder, compact but strong, very deceptive to look at both our dogs and see the size difference but similarity in weight. It's like looking at one of those charts that show people all with the same BMI.

 

[Dogface]

And as far as exterminating pits, I don't think that's the answer, but I wish we could stop the sell of them temporarily while breeders restore the breed with correct temperaments and size.

 

[JeannaT]

Here's the information referenced upthread about the parents attempting to call 911 twice. I'm not sure it would have made a difference in this case, but sad.

It seems there is some doubt that the dog actually BIT the baby. Is it possible this big galut of a dog jumped toward the mom, and landed most of its weight on the baby's chest? It's odd they say "made contact" and other articles have shied away from describing the baby's injuries.

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...y-Dog-Tried-to-Call-911-Twice--376867331.html

 

[jjenny]

Here's the information referenced upthread about the parents attempting to call 911 twice. I'm not sure it would have made a difference in this case, but sad.

It seems there is some doubt that the dog actually BIT the baby. Is it possible this big galut of a dog jumped toward the mom, and landed most of its weight on the baby's chest? It's odd they say "made contact" and other articles have shied away from describing the baby's injuries.

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...y-Dog-Tried-to-Call-911-Twice--376867331.html

If the dog jumped on the baby, why would they be keeping it in quarantine to make sure it doesn't have rabies. Other article flat out said that dog bit the baby.

 

[Dogface]

Also, two more things I forgot, coffee hasn't kicked in yet. Pit bull is a term used loosely to describe several breeds. It's how you oftentime see "pits" in places where they are not allowed, like apartment complexes, because people often don't realize the breed names that are associated with the phrase "pit bull".

And secondly, how a dog bites is important. Pit bull associated breeds, and rotts for example, bite and shake. Their jaws don't magically lock like some people believe. But a bite and shake is much more dangerous than a dog, like my dobie, who scissor bites. In the time that a pit bull has bit and shaken, my dobie will have bitten 20+ times but it's rarely lethal. You will be covered in puncture wounds, but no chunks will be missing.

 

[JeannaT]

And as far as exterminating pits, I don't think that's the answer, but I wish we could stop the sell of them temporarily while breeders restore the breed with correct temperaments and size.

Well, since this is a mix it gets a little muddled.

It's the correct size for a Great Dane. And the American Staffordshire Terrier, unlike most AKC breeds, doesn't list a "correct temperament" in the breed standard - except to say "it's courage is legendary". So it's hard to clean this mess up.

 

[Dogface]

Well, since this is a mix it gets a little muddled.

It's the correct size for a Great Dane. And the American Staffordshire Terrier, unlike most AKC breeds, doesn't list a "correct temperament" in the breed standard - except to say "it's courage is legendary". So it's hard to clean this mess up.

Weird that it's so vague. Perhaps the akc could start by setting some clear standards to help this breed out.

 

[TroyinTX]

I worked for about 5 years as a public health nurse, part of my responsibilities was doing intake calls which included reports of dog bites/attacks. The dogs that we received the most calls about were pit bull, lab, and wolf hybrids. The lab calls were usually the result of children playing with the dog and the dog nipping them in the form of play. The wolf hybrids & pit bulls were often unprovoked and more violent.

Sorry but I think that pit bulls should be exterminated. They are too unpredictable and violent. In addition, and more importantly, their owners are often ignorant and irresponsible. My experience has been that the typical pit bull owner is someone with low self esteem and/or low IQ that thinks owning a pit bull will command fear and respect from others. Rarely will a pit bull owner admit that their dog is at fault for the damage it creates, I have seen this time and time again. Pit bull owners often get off on the power they feel as a result of owning such a vicious dog and feel pride when their dog does hurt someone.

Any parent who would put their brand new infant in bed with a pit bull is beyond stupid. My heart breaks for this baby that now will never get to live its life, because of the ignorance and stupidity of its parents. Just exterminate the breed already and be done with it.

Humans kill FAR more often than Pit Bulls....maybe we should exterminate humans?

 

[atm9533]

We should!!!

 

[lonetraveler]

Not big? At 97 lb, he is huge and heavier than your average pit bull. And he is a pit bull mix, as has been explained by numerous posters on the thread.

American Bulldogs and Staffordshire Terriers are extremely muscular, heavy dogs and can weigh over 100 lbs. Legs are longer than standard Pitt Bull. Like a "Super-sized" pit. Jaws are bite pressure are at the top of the list. Yes, with their strength they can lock and hold a human or other animal in such a grip a strong man cannot pry their mouths off. They also shake their victims, doing massive damage, tearing out throats, femur arteries and causing death due to bleeding out. Unfortunately I know this first hand.

Sent from my HTCD100LVWPP using Tapatalk

 

[lonetraveler]

Humans kill FAR more often than Pit Bulls....maybe we should exterminate humans?

There are many times when a murderer should be exterminated.

Sent from my HTCD100LVWPP using Tapatalk