18-Month-Old Girl Fatally Mauled By Rottweiler (Brewton, AL)

[Rene Allegrini]

Another senseless tragedy. Of course the owners of the wandering dog are going to come forward now! NOT!

Article and link are provided by fightBSL group and Jodi Preis

18-Month-Old Girl Fatally Mauled By Dog - News

BREWTON, Ala. -- An 18-month-old Brewton girl was fatally mauled by a Rotweiler dog Sunday night.


Escambia County Sheriff's Major Mike Murphy, in a statement today, identified the victim as Taylor Kitlica. He said the girl's two-and-a-half year old brother also was attacked, but he survived with minor bites on his back.

Murphy said Taylor suffered massive head injuries.

An investigation determined the girl's family found the dog wandering their neighborhood. They decided to take the animal in and chained the dog in their front yard in hopes the owner would see it.

Meanwhile, Escambia County Sheriff Grover Smith said the youngster's death is "sad and tragic" and called for a stronger law to deal with vicious animals.

Smith is asking the owner of the Rotweiler to come forward and contact his office. Murphy said the dog was euthanized.

[RottieGirl86]

While I'm really sorry this happened...but what the **** were they thinking tying up a dog with an unknown temperment????

You leave strange dogs alone and call for animal control; if you don't have animal control, you contact police. *shakes head* People these days have absolutely no dog sense or even just plain old animal sense.

[hokisteph5]

Meanwhile, Escambia County Sheriff Grover Smith said the youngster's death is "sad and tragic" and called for a stronger law to deal with vicious animals.

How 'bout a stronger law for at best, naive, and at worst, stupid, parents?

[godfreyc]

This is very close to me. Here is the full reporting including statements from neighors and animal control. I don't believe this was a loose dog based on the article. It sounds like they had their breeding pairs chained in the yard and were afraid of what was going to happen so they lied about owning the dog.

BREWTON — An 18-month-old girl died Sunday after a 117-pound male Rottweiler tied in the child’s yard attacked her and her 2-year-old brother.
Authorities said Monday that an investigation was under way to determine who owned the dog that was tied up at the home in the McGougin Road neighborhood near Brewton, where Taylor Kitlica and her brother were attacked. The brother survived with minor injuries, said authorities, who declined to release the boy’s first name.

Escambia County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Maj. Mike Murphy said in a news release that officers got a call at 5 p.m. Sunday and found the children at the home of their parents, Thomas William Kitlica and Ashley Kitlica. The large male dog was still tied nearby, Murphy said. Officers said the Kitlicas own another Rottweiler — a female — that was tied in the yard a few feet from the stake where the male dog was tied. The Kitlica family told authorities that they did not own the male dog. Murphy noted that the family told them that the dog was a stray they had tied up in the hope that its owner would reclaim it. Two pit bulls, which Kitlica family members acknowledged owning, also were in the yard when officers arrived, authorities said.

Officers called the Escambia County Humane Society, which took the dog that attacked the children to the office of Brewton veterinarian Kerry Parker, where it was destroyed. Rosemary Ard, who works at the veterinarian’s office, said the animal’s remains were sent to Auburn University for rabies testing.

At the time of the attack, the children’s father was working on a vehicle in the yard, just feet from where the male Rottweiler was tied, said Renee Jones, director of the local Humane Society. The Press-Register was unable to contact the parents for comment. Murphy said the girl sustained “massive head injuries” in the attack, and the boy sustained minor bites on his back. The family told investigators that they had found the male Rottweiler roaming in the neighborhood early Sunday and chained it to a stake in their front yard, Murphy said.

Jones said she arrived to find the male dog tethered near the female. “I drove up and got out of my truck and realized I was in the dog’s area,” Jones said. “One thing people need to realize is any time they tether a dog, they increase the chance of it biting someone by four times. With power breeds like Rottweilers or German shepherds that are highly territorial, tethering decreases their area and their ability to run from a threat.” The dog involved in the attack did not appear to be accustomed to interacting with people, Jones said. “When a dog is not socialized to people,” Jones said, “bad things can happen.” Jones said the other dogs in the yard responded to people there, and appeared to be well-behaved. The male Rottweiler, however, did not make eye contact with anyone, and ignored the people in the yard.

The animal did not appear to be neglected, or to have been scrounging for meals, she said. “It was a beautiful animal, like a show quality male dog,” Jones said. “It had not been neutered.” Jones said she has appealed to local officials for months to pass an ordinance addressing dangerous dogs. She said this case may spur some action. “I’ve been saying for two years we needed some law on the books about vicious dogs. I kept telling people a bullet was coming,” Jones said. “Well, it got here yesterday.”

Jones said there had been no report to her office that the dog was running loose in the area. “Dogs are animals with all the behaviors and instincts that go with that,” Jones said. “It’s wonderful to love dogs and take in strays or rescue them off the street, but you must always remember they are animals.”

Hubert Petty, who lives about a mile from where the attack happened, said he often sees large dogs ranging through the area. Some, he said, are intimidating. He has called the Humane Society on previous occasions and “they always get here to take care of it,” Petty said. “I think everyone should have to keep their dogs fenced. I keep my dog inside or on a leash,” Petty said. “I wish everyone would. We need some kind of ordina nce. I guess for that child, it’s too late.”

[hokisteph5]

Originally Posted by godfreyc

I don't believe this was a loose dog based on the article. It sounds like they had their breeding pairs chained in the yard and were afraid of what was going to happen so they lied about owning the dog.

There's definitely something "off" in the story. I still don't understand why, if the male was a stray, an owner would tie him up near their own tied up female. Based on this story, that's why these types of comments...

Jones said she has appealed to local officials for months to pass an ordinance addressing dangerous dogs. She said this case may spur some action. “I’ve been saying for two years we needed some law on the books about vicious dogs. I kept telling people a bullet was coming,” Jones said. “Well, it got here yesterday.”

drive me nuts! You don't need ordinances on dangerous dogs, you need it on their so-called owners.

[godfreyc]

Alabama is horrid when it comes to animal welfare. The thing that always runs through my mind is, if someone had a gun for 3 years and one day picked it up and killed someone you don't hold the gun responsible you hold the person who owned it responsible. If someone owns a dog for three years and left it tied outside an accident waiting to happen and if attacks someone you hold the dog responsible??? it doesn't pass the common sense test. This is the fault of people not animals.

[my2boys]

Oh my gosh! This is horrible!! It doesn't make sense!
What are people thinking? I am at a loss.....

[fbkeays]

Nothing in that article seemed to say that the male was owned by the family. AC said that the male wasn't socialized, but the family's other dogs were said to be well socialized.
It does not seem unreasonable for someone to take a loose dog and tie it up given that they do the same with their own dogs. I have stuck loose dogs in a crate on my front porch because I happened to have a crate on my front porch at the time. I have also tied up a loose dog because I had a leash, but not a crate handy.
It does seem unfortunate that the child, used to interacting with dogs, decide to interact with the new dog.

[godfreyc]

I guess you'd have to see it to believe it in the small towns of Alabama, but there was also no indication that the dog was seen by anyone else roaming loose. The only good thing is that this wasn't plastered all over the evening news, I guess that's because it wasn't a pit bull

[TrishB]

If this dog was a stray as they've said....

Then what are a 2 year old and 18 month old children doing wandering around a strange dog? I don't get it. They couldn't have been supervised. Babies with strange dogs....

Why isn't THAT the headline??

I'm so sorry for the loss of a child. It's senseless.

[observer]

Well, it's Alabama. Front yard, no fence, I assume, dogs tied up, dad busy working on vehicle and not watching kids. Amazing they didn't just wander off and get hit by a car. If you have small children, you don't take in a stray dog and then just tie it up in reach of your own tied up dog and your small children.

[leachna]

My heart goes out to the family of the child. we all have choices to make on a daily basis, should I speed to work? Should I medicate to forget my bad day? Should I rob a bank to pay for the gas in my Suv? Should I let my strong, un-neutered male Rotty loose in the back yard where the fence is falling down, and I have no gate? Or should I take him out on a leash and miss my American Idol? Decisions Decisions. I do not remember who said it on this site before but Rottwieler’s aren’t for everyone and I am glad they are not. I am not perfect, but I will never let my guard down when it comes to our Kyzer and other people. I respect there power and the breed to much for that. And I love him to much not to keep trying.
nate