Dog Bites | Orlando Accident & Injury Blog - Part 3
DeLand Police Warn Residents About Dangerous Dogs
DeLand police and other dog bite attorneys are warning residents to be watchful for a pair of dangerous dogs that has killed at least two cats and four ducks in recent weeks. The deaths of the cats and birds have been confirmed, but officers suspect that the dogs may be responsible for several other pets that have gone missing. Witnesses say that the dogs are pit bulls or pit bull mixed breeds, and DeLand police are asking anyone who sees the animals to report the location to the authorities immediately. Police have spotted the dogs and have taken photographs of them on at least two occasions but have been unable to apprehend them thus far.
Florida Dog Attack Results in $13,000 Vet Bill for Couple
A Leesburg couple has paid at least $13,200 in veterinarian bills after one of their cocker spaniels was attacked by a pit bull on Dec. 8. That day, the couple and their two spaniels, Jada and Trapper, were lounging on the patio of their home on Lake Griffin when a 100-pound brindle pit bull owned by a neighbor came into the yard and attacked Jada, who weighs 25 pounds. Another neighbor spotted the pit bull loose in the neighborhood and running “like it was on a mission.” The neighbor knew that the couple and their two dogs were outside and unaware of the approaching pit bull. She tried to call the couple to warn them but was unable to reach them before the pit bull arrived on the patio.
Police Officer Injured in Florida Dog Bite Attack
An officer with the Palm Bay Police Department suffered a dog bite that required stitches recently when he assisted an elderly woman who called police after the dog would not leave her garage. Officer Phil Erwin responded to a call at a house on Eatonia Street and found a 120-pound pit bull in the woman’s garage. The dog belonged to the woman’s neighbor, but she found that local Animal Control officials would not come to her home unless it was restrained, leading to the police call. When the officer arrived, the dog was not behaving aggressively, but it refused to leave the premises.
Owner of Pit Bull That Bit Two Florida Boys Fights to Save Dog’s Life
The owner of Champ, a pit bull that attacked two boys last August, has hired an attorney to save the dog’s life. Orlando dog bite attorney James O. Cunningham has been following developments in the case very closely and is waiting for the 5th District Court of Appeal in Daytona Beach to make their decision in the case. Anthony Coleman of Pine Hills is Champ’s owner. He claims that Orange County officials unfairly sentenced his dog to be euthanized after it attacked and bit two boys that trespassed on his property last summer. Orange County Animal Services has been in custody of the animal since the incident while Coleman filed one petition after another to prevent authorities from executing the county court’s order to euthanize the animal.
Florida Kennel Worker’s Arm Amputated After Pit Bull Attack
A Panama City woman’s arm had to be amputated by surgeons after a pit bull attacked her while she was working at a veterinary clinic. Coworkers who rescued the woman say that they saw the dog violently shaking the victim’s arm as they walked into the kennel to help her. They had to kick and strike the dog to get it to release the woman and were able to lock it in its cage to protect her. The 43-year-old victim is being held in guarded condition in the intensive care unit of a nearby hospital. The owner of Parkway Animal Hospital where the attack occurred, told investigating officers that the dog had been in her kennel for two weeks prior to the attack and had not acted aggressively before attacking the woman. The animal is being held by Animal Control and is expected to be destroyed.
Florida Girl’s Upper Lip Torn Off in Dog Bite Attack
An 11-year-old Royal Palm Beach girl is recovering in the hospital after a dog attacked her and tore off her upper lip and part of her nose. The girl was at a friend’s house recently when the family’s terrier and bulldog mixed breed attacked her and began biting her face.
Florida Lawmakers Expected to Review Dangerous Dog Law in February
Orlando personal injury lawyer James O. Cunningham and other attorneys throughout Florida will be monitoring news out of Tallahassee this coming February when lawmakers are expected to vote on a bill in the Florida House that would abolish a dangerous dog ordinance in Miami-Dade County. Florida’s current dangerous dog law was passed in 1990 and allows local governments to take appropriate action against dogs deemed dangerous after a complaint is made and served on their owners. Owners can appeal the dangerous dog classification in county court and, depending on the county’s ruling, may be required to register animals with their county’s animal control department. If an animal’s actions warrant it, the county can issue an order to have the animal impounded and/or destroyed.
Toddler Hospitalized in Orlando After Dog Attack
A two-year-old Port Orange boy was treated in an Orlando hospital recently for injuries he suffered in a dog attack. The accident investigation is still underway, but witnesses say the boy was playing on the front porch of a relative’s home when a dog described as a pit bull mix attacked him. Orlando Police say the boy was with his parents visiting the home of relatives at 419 Leslie Drive when he was attacked by the dog and suffered undisclosed injuries. Relatives rushed the injured boy to Halifax Health Medical Center in Daytona Beach for treatment for multiple puncture wounds and lacerations, and the boy was then transferred to Florida Hospital in Orlando where he is in stable condition.
Florida Woman Maimed in Vicious Pit Bull Attack
A Jacksonville woman attacked by her friend’s pit bull-Labrador mix now has permanent scars on her lower lip, and she is urging Florida lawmakers to toughen existing laws against dog attacks. The victim said she was lying on a bed in a friend’s home taking a nap when her friend’s dog attacked her, causing a tear in her lower lip that required 185 stitches and plastic surgery. She told reporters that she wants her friend’s dog to be euthanized so that it can’t harm anyone else. Orlando personal injury lawyer James O. Cunningham has supported stronger laws against dangerous dogs for years. While there has been some progress, much remains to be done to protect Floridians from pit bulls and other dangerous breeds.
Orange County Man Kills Pit Bull After Witnessing Attack on Pet
An Orange County man shot and fatally wounded one of two pit bulls he saw roaming freely in his neighborhood after seeing one of the dogs attack his cat. Orange County Animal Services officials say police responded to a call in the 6800 block of Thousand Oaks Boulevard at about 5:30 p.m. on February 5 and found the dead pit bull on the road. The owner of the cat told investigating officers that the two pit bulls had damaged his yard and fence and that he had retrieved his weapon and killed one of the dogs when he saw it in his yard with one of his cats in its mouth.