New York 3-Year-Old Boy Mauled by Pit Bull in Brooklyn

[cheekymunkee]

3-Year-Old Boy Mauled by Pit Bull in Brooklyn

NEW YORK (AP) -- Police say they're concerned vicious dogs are being used as weapons after a 3-year-old boy and a 90-year-old man were mauled by pit bulls in separate incidents.



Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly says part of the toddler's ear was bitten off in an attack Wednesday morning in Brooklyn.



The incident occurred after a man who had been fighting with his ex-wife at a relative's apartment kicked an air conditioner out of a basement window and unleashed his two pit bulls into a room occupied by five children, police said. The other four children escaped.



The man was being questioned by police Wednesday. His dogs were taken by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.



On Tuesday, 90-year-old Henry Piotrowski was attacked outside his Staten Island home by two pit bulls before a neighbor grabbed a knife, scared them off and called police. Piotrowski was hospitalized with severe leg and arm wounds.



Police officers found the dogs at their owner's nearby home, tranquilized them and carried them away. The owner was arrested and could be charged with negligence or recklessness, Kelly said.



Kelly called the incidents ``horrendous.''



``It is an increasing concern for us,'' he said of the dog attacks. ``You see police officers encounter dogs virtually on a daily basis. In some areas they're being used as weapons.''



http://www.1010wins.com/3-Year-Old-Boy- ... yn/2527799

Jodi Preis
Bless the Bullys
Education...Awareness...Advocacy

[cheekymunkee]

Pit Bull Mauls Child in Attack Meant for His Mother

A three-year-old boy was seriously injured when a pit bull, unleashed by his mother's boyfriend, attacked him. Kamar Reynolds underwent surgery to reattach his ear and remains in serious condition; his aunt said, "His ear was torn off. His face was swollen. Half of his face was open. His mouth was bleeding blood. We put a sheet over his mouth so it could hold in the ear and the blood."



Authorities say Reynolds' mother was the real target of the attack. Apparently Frantz Cesar was upset at Reynolds' mother Keesha and, per the Daily News, "kicked in an air conditioner at her East New York home and threw his pit bull Rocky through the open window." Keesha Reynolds tried to pry the dog away, but the dog was fierce.



The dog was euthanized and Cesar was charged with assault, criminal possession and acting in a manner to injured a child. Kamar's aunt claimed though Cesar "apologized... he was laughing and smiling," after taking the dog away.



In the wake of this incident and the mauling of a Staten Island man, many animal advocates have pointed the three main reasons for dog attacks are 1) The dog is not spayed or neutered; 2) The dog is chained or tethered in a yard; and 3) The dog is not socialized and treated as a member of the family. Additionally, training the dog to act aggressively contributes to violent behavior. Human Society issues specialist Adam Goldfarb has a Q&A at CityRoom covering dog violence.



http://gothamist.com/2008/07/03/pit_bul ... _child.php