Davie Florida Attack

[kclinch]

Just heard on the news. A young boy was playing with a friend on the street, when his ball went over a fence. He climbed the 6 foot fence and was attacked by 2 Rottweilers.

More when it becomes available.

10-year-old hospitalized after being attacked by Rottweilers -- Broward County -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com



DAVIE - A 10-year-old child was hospitalized earlier today after two Rottweilers bit him several times on his face and arms, authorities said.

The unidentified boy is in critical condition at Broward General Medical Center, Davie police said.

The child was playing ball with some friends around 6:50 p.m. when the ball flew into a neighbor's yard on the 1200 block of Melissa Lane, said Davie police spokesman Lt. Bill Coyne.

The boy climbed a 6-foot fence to retrieve the ball but was attacked by the dogs as soon as he was in the yard, Coyne said. They bit him multiple times on his face and legs.

Police and Broward County Animal Care and Regulation are still on the scene.

No other information was immediately available

[OnyxGold1]

Gosh I seem to recall as a kid, if my ball went into a neighbors yard you go ring the bell and ask for your ball back.

Unfortunately it appears this boy has paid for his trespassing by getting bit

Now I know why when my guys are outside.....I'm outside!!

Hope nothing happens to the dogs....they were only defending their property...


Heather Peters

[Nishasmom]

I don't think it is acceptable for your dog to attack anyone who doesn't pose a threat. Shouldn't a dog of sound mind be able to tell that a ten year old boy is not "threatening" their environment?? Sadly, if this happened w/ my dog (which it NEVER would); I would make the choice to euthanize her . Mauling a child is NEVER acceptable in my book .

Now; IF the child was taunting the dogs, abusing them, or making them truly feel threatened that would be a different story.

I would find it VERY unlikely to believe my dog would attack a child who just "hopped over to get a ball". Yes, the boy SHOULD have gone to the door, but as we all know...boys will be boys.

I feel that this is another story of ignorant and lazy owners. Poor dogs for having to live with them, for not being properly socialized, and for not being bred with temperament in mind. ~~~Poor owners for being born with no brains.

[alice's mommy]

I agree with Nishasmom....I don't see how these dogs attacking this CHILD is at all justified if he was indeed, just climbing the fence to retrieve his ball.
I bet if probed further, we would find out that the dogs had bad reactions to children before and should NEVER have been left unsupervised.

[jlaack]

Now I know why when my guys are outside.....I'm outside!!

Agreed! I also have a 6 ft privacy fence but I know that someone could get over the top. It is why as a dog owner, I feel it is still my responsibility to be outside with my dogs. I doubt anything would happen but then again you never know and I'd rather not put my dogs in a situation that could have a bad outcome. I guess someone could break into the house too, but aside from keeping my dogs in a crate, there is little I could do to prevent a break in from being a bad situation.

[poohbearsmom]

I do hope the child is all right. This is a tragedy for him, as in addition to physical wounds, there are surely mental wounds that go along with trauma like this. My heart goes out to him. He's likely on a long road to recovery both physically and mentally.

That being said, dogs are territorial. These dogs were confined in their yard, according to the report. This child went into the yard uninvited, and the dogs did what dogs are quite capable of doing, regardless of whether they are rottweilers, labradors or poodles. In addition, there was more than one dog, so it's likely they fed off each other's agitation (pack mentality).

I rather agree with Heather on this one; when we were kids, we rang the doorbell and ASKED to get our toys back. When we were kids, our parents supervised us as well.

This is a tragedy that could easily have been prevented by more responsibility all the way around.

Very sad indeed.

[Obelix]

[quote=Nishasmom;811564]I don't think it is acceptable for your dog to attack anyone who doesn't pose a threat. ??

Shouldn't a dog of sound mind be able to tell that a ten year old boy is not "threatening" their environment

In normal conditions most will do but these are not normal conditions.We do not know what happenend before between the dogs and (the) children.

Sadly, if this happened w/ my dog (which it NEVER would); I would make the choice to euthanize her . Mauling a child is NEVER acceptable in my book .

Now; IF the child was taunting the dogs, abusing them, or making them truly feel threatened that would be a different story.

That is exactly what happend.By trespassing the fence the boy was challenging the teritorial defence instinct of a pack(2) of adult Rottweilers.These dogs just did what was right at that moment(and according to the dog behaviour.)Seen from the dogs point of view they did nothing wrong.

I would find it VERY unlikely to believe my dog would attack a child who just "hopped over to get a ball

".

I absolutely doubt that.If it is a Rottweiler with some remains of the original Rottweiler,I wouldn't bet a cent.

Yes, the boy SHOULD have gone to the door, but as we all know...boys will be boys.

And so ,some of them get bitten and have to learn it the hard way.

I feel that this is another story of ignorant and lazy owners. Poor dogs for having to live with them, for not being properly socialized, and for not being bred with temperament in mind. ~~~Poor owners for being born with no brains

It's also a story of parents not teaching their children the BASIC manners.

Don't get me wrong, I feel sorried for that child but blaming the dogs is an easy manner and very unfair way ,to put all what went wrong on the animals

[Nishasmom]

Obelix: I am sure you are far more experienced in Rottweilers than I am; however, my opinion of the topic remains the same. I do not think a 10 yr old child hopping over the fence warrants a vicious attack. Shouldn't a dog take time to evaluate the situation; determine if they are in need of defending? What if the child had knocked on the door and walked into the backyard? Are you saying if someone enters your property w/o you, your dog is warranted to attack?? I just think that this goes against what I know of the breed. The dog should be protective, but not needlessly aggressive. Who knows, perhaps I have more to learn about our beloved breed.

However, some boys are known to torment dogs; if this were the case, my opinion would change.

Yes, the boys were wrong. But I do think the dogs were also out of line.

[kclinch]

It should be noted that this kid KNEW there were dogs back there. His brother is quoted as saying: "The boy's brother, D'Angelo Franco, 11, said because of the dogs Christian planned to quickly jump in, grab the ball and run out ."

While I understand both sides of the coin, I do believe that the dogs were doing what was normal to them.

BTW, These dogs were not licensed or vaccinated. But they were returned to the owners once it was determined that it was an accident.

[Nishasmom]

From the ACK website:

Temperament
The Rottweiler is basically a calm, confident and courageous dog with a self-assured aloofness that does not lend itself to immediate and indiscriminate friendships. A Rottweiler is self-confident and responds quietly and with a wait-and-see attitude to influences in his environment. He has an inherent desire to protect home and family, and is an intelligent dog of extreme hardness and adaptability with a strong willingness to work, making him especially suited as a companion, guardian and general all-purpose dog.

Maybe I am reading this wrong???

[s1960]

Originally Posted by Nishasmom

From the ACK website:

Temperament
The Rottweiler is basically a calm, confident and courageous dog with a self-assured aloofness that does not lend itself to immediate and indiscriminate friendships. A Rottweiler is self-confident and responds quietly and with a wait-and-see attitude to influences in his environment. He has an inherent desire to protect home and family, and is an intelligent dog of extreme hardness and adaptability with a strong willingness to work, making him especially suited as a companion, guardian and general all-purpose dog.

Maybe I am reading this wrong???

 
Are they Aggresive?

This trait varies among Individuals.All Rottweilers have STRONG TERRITORIAL Instincts. If socialized properly as a puppy, your rottweiler will defend you and your property against intruders.

It's not that you're mis-reading it but that second part along with this question and answer taken from the American Rottweiler Club does show that it is possibility that a responsible owner should be aware of and prepared for.

[Nishasmom]

I guess it may depend on the individual dog. I do not think my dog would attack a non-threatening person. HOWEVER my dog is NEVER left outside unattended. You learn something new everyday .

[Obelix]

[quote=Nishasmom;811631]Obelix: I am sure you are far more experienced in Rottweilers than I am; however, my opinion of the topic remains the same. I do not think a 10 yr old child hopping over the fence warrants a vicious attack.

Shouldn't a dog take time to evaluate the situation; determine if they are in need of defending?

Dogs do not evaluate things the way we do.They do not think(or act) in human ways.Something that happens thriggers a response and that's the way the dog will act.


What if the child had knocked on the door and walked into the backyard? Are you saying if someone enters your property w/o you, your dog is warranted to attack?? I just think that this goes against what I know of the breed. The dog should be protective, but not needlessly aggressive. Who knows, perhaps I have more to learn about our beloved breed.

However, some boys are known to torment dogs; if this were the case, my opinion would change.

Yes, the boys were wrong. But I do think the dogs were also out of line

[s1960]

I do not think my dog would attack a non-threatening person.

HOWEVER my dog is NEVER left outside unattended.
And thats the responsible thing to do.

[marianne]

My only comment is unless this unfortunate situation has happened to one of you, YOU may have a different feeling over this accident.
Reading BOOKS is one thing,dealing with an accidental dog bite is a whole different story.
THE dog was doing his job,protecting his territory.