CO: Pit Bull Attacks Dad, Daughter In Douglas County

Pit Bull Attacks Dad, Daughter In Douglas County
Dec 29, 2009 12:47 pm US/Mountain
Reporting: Brooke Rogers

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) - The Douglas County Sheriff's Department says charges will be filed against the owner of a pit bull that attacked two people over the weekend.

A woman and her father were attacked near Roxborough Park.  The attack happened Sunday morning when the daughter was walking a friend's dog on Ponderosa Trail near her parents' home. The pit bull attacked the dog and then bit her and her father.

"The daughter initially fended off the first dog attack," Deputy Attila Denes said. "She then called her father to help load the animal into a vehicle to take to the vet. At that point the pitbull resumed its attack and bit both of them."

The pit bull is now being quarantined at the Buddy Center in Castle Rock.  The daughter suffered a broken finger. Her father has puncture wounds.

There is no ban on pit bulls in Douglas County.

"There is a good possibility some charges will be filed, but at this point that hasn't been determined," said Denes.

The dog that was attacked by the pit bull was treated by a veterinarian and is back home.

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Source: http://cbs4denver.com/local/pitbull.attack.father.2.1395738.html

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Douglas Co. pit bull seized after attacks
By Howard Pankratz
The Denver Post
Posted: 12/28/2009 04:10:17 PM MST
Updated: 12/28/2009 04:41:53 PM MST

A young pit bull was seized Sunday after it allegedly attacked a dog, a woman and her father in the Roxborough community.  The woman was walking in the 4600 block of Ponderosa Trail when the 8- to 10-month-old pit bull attacked her dog, a Hungarian hunting dog called a vizsla, said Joe Stafford, the field services manager for Douglas County Animal Services.

Stafford said that when the woman and her father intervened and attempted to load the vizsla into a vehicle, the pit bull attacked a second time, biting the woman on the thumb and her father on the hand and forearm.  Stafford said that his officers responded and apprehended the pit bull, which is now in quarantine.  He said that the injuries to the vizsla, the woman and her father were not life-threatening.

Stafford said the owner of the pit bull lives near Roxborough, but is currently out of town.  Stafford said charges will be filed, but just how severe they will be depend on the extent of the injuries inflicted by the pit bull.

He said that pit bulls are not banned in Douglas County and there was no previous history of problems with the pit bull.  Stafford said charges could be petty offenses such as "animal at large" or "failure to control a vicious animal."  A more serious charge could potentially be filed called "unlawful ownership of a dangerous dog."

Stafford said that Douglas County has about 180 dog bite cases a year and that less than 1 percent involve pit bulls. He said dog owners in Douglas County tend to be good owners and pit bulls living there are well-behaved.

Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com

Read more: http://www.denverpost.com/ci_14082331#ixzz0b7lKBEBW