Tag Archives: Georgia

Wooden gate outside house

Pit bull mauls builder, household insurance exclusion on pit bulls denies medical expenses for victim

Name: Rodney H.
Victim: Adult
Location: Back yard of lawn customer, Georgia
Year of attack: May 2022

Tell us about the attack

On May 19, 2022, at approximately 12:00 EST, I arrived at a client’s home. The woman answered the door with one pit bull and another unknown breed dog. I inquired if the dogs were an issue. She stated they were not. She then came outside (leaving the two dogs inside) to instruct me on what services she wanted. She went back inside. I worked in the back yard (privacy fence/w small gate). I finished and started the front. She then came outside to inform me she was going to get cash and would be right back. And she did. Paid me, and then stated she had to go pick up her small child from school. I told her to go ahead but I had yet to finish and had things to collect. She left. I finished, and went to retrieve items from the back. The pit bull then mauled me for ten minutes. A neighbor called 911. The ER visit required extensive stitches.

How has your life changed as a result of the attack?
Tremendously! I fear death around every corner now. I see it in everything I do. I opt staying home for safety reasons now.

Legal Consequences

The pit bull that attacked me was quarantined the day of the attack but returned to the owners after the ten day holding period.

I took legal action, however, a clause in their homeowner’s policy dictates an exclusion if anyone is attacked by a pit bull. Therefore my legal team dropped their effort. I have my complete file of documentation, including report on police who responded, Animal Control people who responded and EMS documentation. I also have photos of my injuries.

What would you like people to know as a result of your attack?
Again, due to the clause in the pit bull owner’s homeowner’s insurance policy, I have collected $0 towards my medical bills. This is an injustice to an innocent human being.

Farmyard gate

Repeated attacks by pit bulls over the years

Name: Pam
Victim: Other Livestock and Horses
Location: Multiple attacks on my farms in Georgia and Florida
Year of attack: 2014

Tell us about the attack

In 1984, I had a pit bull jump in my VW bug to attack my lab in my lap. I got stitches in my leg, and a Fed Ex Driver got a shoulder injury trying to get me out of the car.

I’ve had years of pit bull attacks on my livestock in three different states because renter neighbors owned pit bulls. Pit bulls killed my sheep in Longwood, Florida in 1998. In  2008 to 2011 a neighbor’s pit bulls killed my poultry and mauled my hogs and dogs several times. In 2012 to 2015, a neighbor’s pit bulls killed my goats and chickens and mauled several horses. In 2014, even after police talked to the pit bull’s owner, the  same day one of the pit bulls mauled my horse while a kid was riding it.

How has your life changed as a result of the attack?
Literally you get PTSD after trying to stop a pit attack. You can not unsee the horrors. I will not get out of my truck if I pull up and pit bulls are walking around.

The sheriff told me defend my livestock and now I do. The pit owners stay away from my farm. I no longer tolerate them.

Legal Consequences

After most of the attacks, the pit owners did nothing and the police did nothing. After one attack on my horse, the pit bull came back under a fence and jumped on an officer’s leg to attack, she still did nothing to the pit owner.

I had court date in 2014 for a pit attack on one of my horses. The pit owner paid the vet bill but still the attack ruined the horse. It was a good roping horse, but the attack scarred her for life. I sold her at a fraction of what I had paid. I lost thousands.

In 2015, I sued a pit owner on Judge Judy over killing my goats.  My episode on Judge Judy was called “Goats Scream Bloody Murder” (S19.E163). It aired on March 3rd, 2015. Judge Judy awarded me damages for my dead goats. The pit owner lost her job and moved out of town. But after Judge Judy, other pit owners rode by with pits in truck beds like a parade to try to intimidate me lol. They really do not care if their pits destroy lives. It’s sad.

What would you like people to know as a result of your attack?

Pit bull owners do not and will not care for your pets, livestock or your family’s safety. They do not believe the breed is a danger and when they are wrong and you suffer a loss, they shrug.

They typically rent and do not own anything for you to sue over, but the law is on your side. They are responsible for controlling their poor choice in a dog and are liable for damages. Call police early and often. Make a paper trail to establish dangerous dog status so the pit owners can be held responsible.

Ban the breed, keep everyone safe!

Blighted street

My life-changing ordeal with a pit bull in Georgia

Name: Melanie Kemp
Victim: Adult
Location: On street, Georgia
Year of attack: 2018

Tell us about the attack

I was walking down the street with overcast weather and it was a little wet. I saw the pit bull but did not think in a million years that she would attack me. I was so shocked when she started running towards me and it immediately grabbed onto my leg with her mouth going all the way around my right leg. She proceeded to bite me and would not let go. I worked with animals for a long time and I never have been attacked or anything violent happened to me in any of my Animal Hospital jobs. She started biting me on my left leg and moved from my upper thigh to my arms. She was trying to get up to my neck and I’m screaming at the top of my lungs for somebody to help me. I was fortunate enough to catch a friend’s attention down the street and he saved me.

How has your life changed as a result of the attack?
My life has been extremely different. I was in the hospital for almost two weeks because of this attack. I have nightmares and I wake up screaming. As a result of this pit bull attack I lost my mind and pretty much went crazy after it happened. I was wanting to sue whoever I could but I was not able to make that happen. Where it happened was not a good neighborhood.

Legal Consequences
I did not call the police. However, when I called an ambulance to take me to the hospital after the attack, the police were subsequently involved. The pit bull was put down because she was too vicious. And I live with scars on both legs and both arms.

What would you like people to know as a result of your attack?
I still love dogs however I am scared of any dog to this day. I hope I can eventually get over this fear.

Goldendoodle in his own back yard mauled by pit bull

Goldendoodle in his own back yard mauled by pit bull

Name: Ellie Mac
Victim: Pet
Location: Our back yard less than 3 ft. from our back door, Georgia
Year of attack: 2020

Tell us about the attack
My Goldendoodle was attacked in our backyard, mere feet from our back door, by a pit bull from our neighbor’s place. The neighbor was supposed to be watching her new beau’s dog, Sinister, but was neglecting her job as the pit bull was at our back door when my spouse & our Goldendoodle Paddy walked outside. After waking up to the sound of my dog, not yet even 2 years old, wailing loudly in pain, I ran to the window above the source of the sounds, hoping to catch a glimpse of the sight so I could better discern what to expect if I ran down to Paddy, but I couldn’t see anything. Assuming my spouse to be dead, I tried to think of where my father’s firearm was (nobody was in the house but me), but I was frozen with fear.

How has your life changed as a result of the attack?
Though Paddington is the most sociable and friendliest dog I’ve ever seen when it comes to his desire to play with other dogs and greet and get to know them, we now deny him that chance despite how sad it makes him because we are too scared of another attack.

Legal Consequences
The owner was required to relinquish the pit bull for 10 days to animal control for our county for 10 days for an observation period. We spoke with the head of the department who said the pit bull showed no signs of rabies, which was the concern because the attack was completely unprovoked. Though Sinister did not have rabies, because his owner said this was his first sign of violence or attack in the 9 years he’d owned him, the county decided to allow the pit bull to be rehomed anywhere the pit bull owner wished and could prove. We do not know where Sinister lives now, whether or not there are children or other dogs on the property, but we know there are not any requirements prohibiting the pit bull from being around children or other animals. The pit bull owner was not fined, and so far no civil action has been taken.

We are considering taking the neighbors to civil court, though we will probably not pursue this course because we both have the same landlord and do not wish to jeopardize my father’s retirement living situation, and because the woman who was at fault for being negligent and allowing her boyfriend’s pit bull to trespass onto our backyard claims to have a personal relationship with our shared landlord’s family, we fear the landlord will choose to have my father and our household evicted (pandemic protocol not considered).

What would you like people to know as a result of your attack?
Have the courage to hold yourself accountable for your mistakes when they hurt others & don’t offer to pay for all medical and veterinary expenses related to the attack only to renege as soon as you realize it will be much more than a mere euthanasia bill as you clearly assumed. My spouse’s ability to think quickly on his feet and keep Sinister from reaching Paddy’s throat saved his life for the duration of the onslaught, and I’m sorry the defensive wound Sinister incurred was necessary. I’m glad your children were not home to witness this. The bacteria Sinister transferred to Paddington’s bloodstream via his bite caused a severe infection that almost killed him. The bills were over 5 grand, & it took a month for him to fight off the infections. Karma will come around, & you are awful folk.

Pit bulls killing livestock for sport

Pit bulls killing livestock for sport

Name: Dk
Victim: Pet, Other Horse goats
Location: In pasture and on public dirt road, Georgia
Year of attack: Choose one

Tell us about the attack
In 3 states I’ve lived in, I’ve dealt with pit bulls killing my livestock.

In Georgia, my neighbor had three pit bulls. I told him, you need to lock those pit bulls up. They’re coming to my house trying to get my goats. I called the sheriff. The sheriff supposedly went to talk to the guy. The next day the same thing. The pit bulls are at my gate. I pull up but can’t get out of my truck, cuz they’re circling my truck. I called the sheriff. He said that he didn’t talk to the guy before, but now he’s going to talk to him. The same day he spoke to him, the pit bulls attacked my horse with a girl riding it down the dirt road. Sheriff made him pay my vet bills, and gave him a ticket. A few months later, one of those same pit bulls, though it had been sold to a different owner, killed my goats. I sued on Judge Judy and won. No more pit issues since.

How has your life changed as a result of the attack?
Everyone knows not to let their pits onto my farm 😉 The only tow truck in area refuses my AAA calls because he’s a pit bull advocate and breeder. I’m hated by pit owners in the area big time but the pit bulls are no longer a problem. Now someone is shooting my livestock… Sheriff does nothing…

Legal Consequences
Owner in one case paid vet bills and fine. In the other case Judge Judy paid me but pit owner was shamed publicly and moved out of our county. She lost her job, etc. because she obviously lied on TV.

What would you like people to know as a result of your attack?
Pit bulls are bred for blood sport. They will target livestock. These attacks often go unreported. It happens daily. I know many people dealing with pit bulls mauling livestock. It happened to me in FL, GA and AZ.