By Associated Press
Sun Oct 8, 11:39 AM

AIRMONT, N.Y. - A woman died after being bitten in the head and throat by a pit bull that she and her sister were watching for a friend.

Jeannine Fusco, 44, was attacked Saturday in the garage of her home in Airmont, in Rockland County, police said.

"They were dog-sitting for an acquaintance, and she let the dog out early in the morning, and when it came back inside the animal went right after her," Ramapo police Detective Lt. Brad Weidel told The Journal News.

"She had severe bites to her throat and her head," Weidel said.

Fusco's sister, Valerie Wall, 43, was treated at Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern for bites on a leg and a hand and was released.

Police said they found the pit bull in the sisters' backyard and killed it.

No charges had been filed against the dog's owner, but the investigation was continuing, Ramapo police Sgt. Mark Briggs said.



Baby-sitting a pit bull??

Some dogs should NOT be owned by people.

TMPletz said:

I agree.

What a sad story.

I dog-sat a pitbull for a friend. I had no problems with it. It's a lovely dog.

They are a great breed that is being ruined by shit breeding and bad owners. It's such a shame.

Ontario has a very strict pitbull legislation. You can't import them into the province (but you can adopt ones that are already here), the ones that are already in the province must be fixed and must be muzzled in all public places.

<-- former animal control officer

A golden retriever probably killed somebody last week too, but you don't hear about that. Vicious pitbulls are better news fodder.

Pitbulls are usually great dogs. It's just that they, like Rottweilers (also wonderful dogs -- I have one) are strong enough that when they are assholes, they are really dangerous.

Dangerous dogs that show any sign of being aggressive should be euthanized, and breeding dogs should require some kind of permit.

But, don't blame the breed.

This has been a doggie public service announcement.

Pit bulls were trained over the centuries as a fighting dog - dog on dog fight to the death matches.

I passed by two of them today...I was scared...they were huge...I know many guys train them to be bad. As I walked by I heard a nasty growl....

luv4u said:

They are somewhat more likely to be dog-aggressive. This is true. However, that is still the exception and not the rule.

What they are is smart and loyal. More than most dogs, they will do what they are trained to do (or, what they are not trained not to do).

HereToRockYourWorld said:

A 5 month old Baby was recently killed by a Rottweiler here in UK.



There have been quite a few Maimings and deaths by "Dangerous Breeds" publicised over the last few years.....Thing is some people buy these types of Dogs for one purpose only - to exploit the dogs aggression - .....unfortunately it ends up with innocent people being shredded.....again, it isnt the Dogs fault.....Thats like moving to the Countryside and lodging a Complaint about the cows "Moo-ing" in the night (It happened to my Boss when I worked on a Diary Farm many years ago !! )

If only I'd been there to satisfy it.

HereToRockYourWorld said:

Thank you for this sensible reply. More people are bitten by retrievers than any other breed.All dogs have the potential to bite.
I had a wonderful labrador/black and tan hound mix that was usually the most gentle friendly dog. One day he went through a door screen and bit the paperboy. He snapped at the vet when we took him in to see what the problem was.We had him put down even though there was no sign of agressiveness before this event.
One of my friends has Springer Spaniels she takes to dog shows and trials. One of her champion obedience dogs suddenly turned on her and savaged her arm. She never got full use of her arm back. That dog was also put down, but she still has Springer Spaniels .
My point is that EVERY breed has individual dogs that go crazy, seemingly for no reason.
The problem with the pits is the people who own and breed them. The dog fight promoters and participants.It's a greed problem.
People got another think coming if they believe getting rid of pitbulls will stop dog fights. Get rid of all pitbulls and they will be using any other breed they can get their hands on. All dogs will fight, put in those circumstances.
Adopt-a-bull programs work wonders.
[Edited 10/9/06 7:13am]

IrresistibleB1tch said:

My neighbor had a Dobie bite their toddler. They got rid of her quickly. I also don't trust Rots. There really is no good reason to own those types of dogs.





From this website: http://www.californiadogb...stics.html

There are social trends towards training and keeping dangerous animals by inexperienced owners. Aggressive guard dogs are trained for self protection. While any dog can bite, the top biting breeds include:

*
Pit Bulls
*
Rotweilers
*
German Shepherds
*
Huskies
*
Doberman Pinschers
*
Chow Chows

Too many people think they're in control that have no training in handling dogs at all. It only takes a few minutes to train a dog, it takes weeks to train a person how to handle the dog.
The dog is in control in many cases.

shellyevon said:

very true. i've started a dog training service recently, and i'm surprised at how many people just have no concept of how to set the tone with their dogs.

IrresistibleB1tch said:

I agree.. these dogs should NOT be kept as pets. Phase them out and ban them being kept as pets.

They give no warning when they attack.. and once they have, a person cannot interfere and try to get the dog off the victim. They attack to kill. Its just how they are. I think the majority of ppl who keep these as pets are truly irresponsible and a threat to others, when they let them loose without a muzzle. There have been too many deaths and attacks on children and adults. One meaning TOO many, but as of recent, there have been numerous!

Phase one breed out and people will just find another breed to exploit. That's hardly a real solution to the problem. The problem lies with people, not the dogs.

JustErin said:

All dangerous animals should be banned as pets..

REDFEATHERS said:

All animals can be classified as dangerous.

JustErin said:

No, you are being extreme - there is dangerous and dangerous.. you cannot compare a hamster or cat to a crocodile or lion, yeah?
[Edited 10/9/06 10:00am]

REDFEATHERS said:

You can, because all can cause bodily harm. Cats can fuck you up real bad, even hamsters pack a mean bite - it may not kill you but it can still injure someone quite badly. All animals can be unpredictable and therefore can be considered dangerous.

But my real point is this, destoying a certain breed because of the ignorance and greed/pride/whatever of some humans is not going to address the problem of people exploiting animals. An adorable Golden Retriever can be trained and bred to be a breed that is very aggressive and one that will rip your face off at the drop of a hat.

And believe you me, if it comes to it, assholes who use dogs for status, power and cruel entertainment will take that cute, sweet tempered Golden Retriever and lead it down the same path that other so called dangerous breeds are on now.

It's called the bigger picture, people. As I said in another thread on a different topic, bandaid solutions are not real solutions to problems like this.

Dogs should not be banned or destroyed, but there should be very strict legislation on breeding, population control and ownership of them all - every breed. As well, animal cruelty should be taken a hell of a lot more seriously than just a slap on the wrist.

Dog attacks are serious, and it deserves a serious solution...not some quick but temporary fix.

That's my take on it anyway.

In animal control, and working in vet clinics for 5 years, I have never actually had a Pit or a Rott try to bite me. I would say that the MAJORITY of Chows I've worked with were aggressive. Same with Shar Peis. A whole lot of Spaniels are nasty. There be some damned evil poodles out there. Huskies are totally neurotic and snappy. And yes, those precious Golden Retrievers. . .

Being aggressive CAN be a breed trait. Honest to goodness, I don't think that's the case with Pits and Rotts (with the exception of dog-aggression in Pits, which IS a thing for a minority of them). They have personalities that lend them to being loyal and trainable. They want to do what they are asked to do. Not all breeds are like that (owners of super-smart breed dogs know what I'm sayin' ).

And all talk of breed temperment is generalization. There are evil nasty dogs of EVERY breed (ever met an aggressive Pug? It's almost funny!), and there are sweethearts in every breed.

In general, I don't support breeding. It's almost never done responsibly, and I've known breeders to be incredibly ignorant, on the whole. I would probably support a ban on breeding big strong dogs, as part of a general philosophy that we shouldn't be using animals the way we do in our culture, including breeding them as pets.

But I think it's sad when certain breeds are villified, when somewhere along the line, it's a human at fault.

okay i'll add my two cents:

i've had my best friend Apollo for 10 years.

i've never had a problem.

he's never attacked anybody

i moved from a county that temporarily banned aggressive dogs to keep him (that measure has since been repealed after HUNDREDs of people who couldn't move had their dogs euthanized).

he has a very amicable personality ( as does ANY animal that is treated with a love and affection)



BUT...

while i lived in Florida a few years ago, a new neighbor came over and Apollo gave him the business and growled and flashed some teeth (see below)



I took it that as he sensed something wasn't right with this neighbor too. I trust my dog more than i trust 90% of people--he's never lied, stolen or stabbed me in the back.

so to all you people saying they CAN"T be good companions and trustworthy, i say
KICK ROCKS!

JustErin said:

well, i think it's safe to say that banning all fighting breeds will be SOME improvement.

by the way, the only dog that ever bit me was a Jack Russell Terrier.

Fauxie said:

That’s just terrible. I blame people as some are lazy so and so’s. A dog needs exercise & training each day, even if its just the sit & leave command it has to be done daily.

It shocks me how many people have the same breed of dog I do, they purchase the breed thinking they look so cute & teddy bear appearance and they think the dogs are going to be a lap dog. Uh no they r feisty terriers originally breed for hunting and are stubborn little things (a bit like me so I am told LOL). They can be on the go 24/7. If people are going to have pets they need to educated themselves on the breed and be prepared to do training with them everyday of there life’s to keep them happy, contented and under control.

IrresistibleB1tch said:

We called them Jack Russell Terrorists at animal control.

meltwithu said:

Unfortunately most folks who own these dogs are childish/irresponsible druggies who have no control over thier animal and likely teach the dog to be agressive as this is the reason they own the dog in the first place.

meltwithu said:

If my pitbull growled at my neighbor, I would KICK HIS ASS. The dog, not the neighbor.

I appreciate trusting the dog, but I still hope you told him he had done something wrong by being aggressive.

If not: part of the problem.

HereToRockYourWorld said:

perfect!