NBC SAN DIEGO
Thursday evening in Lemon Grove, California a suburb just outside of San Diego, an infant was bitten by 3 Pitt Bulls.
According to Lemon Grove’s Sheriff deputies the attack occurred, at the residence of two women, where three male Pitt bulls attacked the 8 month old boy.
According to Lt. Larry Nesbit, When Sheriff’s deputies and Lemon Grove paramedics arrived at the apartment around 4:52 PM they found the mother cradling her injured son in her arms, he said the boy was taken to Rady Children’s Hospital, where he died shortly after 6 p.m.
The dogs, all males, are being quarantined at the Chula Vista Animal Care Facility while the Sheriff’s Department investigates the incident, Anne Steinberger, a spokeswoman for the city of Chula Vista, said Friday.
In an interview with NBCSANDIEGO Neighbor Deirdra Canty said the dogs have been known to attack cats before. ”I don’t think that a dog like a pit bull, rottweiler, large dogs should be around little infants,” Canty said.
A spokeswomen for the city of Chula Vista Anne Steinberger said Friday that the dogs, all males, are being quarantined at the Chula Vista Animal Care Facility while the Sheriff’s Department investigates the incident.
According to Steinberger two of the dogs are between 2-3 years old, and the other dog is between 5-6 years old.
As in any bite case, the dogs are being tested for rabies and will be quarantined for 10 days. If they are deemed to be dangerous, which Steinberger said will most likely be the case, they will be euthanized. That determination will be based on the findings of the sheriff’s investigation, she said.
“We do not know what happened in that room,” Steinberger said.
This is the youngest victim of a fatal dog attack that the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department is aware of, Nesbit said.
“They were aggressive,” said Nesbit. “They were restrained by animal control officers with the tools they have.”
As of now it is unclear if criminal charges will stem from the incident but, the city officials intend to look into the laws involving Pitt Bulls.
Several other cases in the San Diego area involving Pitt Bulls, have lead authorities to look into the laws concerning the breed.
Dan DeSousa, a public information officer for the county Animal Services Department, said his agency responds to somewhat more dog-bite reports involving pit bulls than other breeds, but added that those higher numbers could stem from the wide popularity of the energetic, large-headed terriers.
8 month old baby boy dies after an attack involving family dogs.
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