JURUPA VALLEY, Calif. (KTLA) — An 84-year-old woman was hospitalized after being attacked by two pit bulls Thursday morning.
The woman was walking to her mailbox when she was attacked around 11 a.m.
The dogs were inside a neighbor’s fenced yard, but they were able to dig their way out.
A neighbor heard the woman’s screams and came to her aid. She was rushed to the hospital in critical condition.
The male and female pit bulls were euthanized with the permission of the owner.
That man, Juan Ortiz, said he’s never seen his dogs be so aggressive.
“My dogs were not for fighting,” he said. “They were family dogs, indoor dogs.”
“I have a 2-year-old daughter, 5-year-old son, 6-year-old son and a 13-year-old son that play with them, they’ve been with them since they were puppies,” he insisted.
“It really kind of blew my mind what happened,” he remarked.
The dogs were not registered or licensed. Ortiz was issued multiple citations, including violating the county’s leash law.
207 Comments to “Woman, 84, Attacked by Pit Bulls While Walking to Mailbox”
January 18, 2013 at 4:13 PM
Funny… We never heard about pitbull attacks until the gang bangers started owning them. They isolate them, tie them to trees with thick chains around their necks, train them to fight, then they overbreed them. That's the problem. Get rid of the gangs and you solve your drug, gun and vicious dog problem (which will never happen in my lifetime.) Pitbulls are the most abused and neglected of any breed. These dogs are just as much victims as the old lady who was attacked. I wish her a speedy recovery.
January 18, 2013 at 4:24 PM
An innocent woman had to endure minutes of terror. She might die. Cue the pit bull apologists…not my dog…it's the owners fault…best dog ever…
Please, consider the poor agonized victim.
January 18, 2013 at 4:37 PM
If you think Norma`s story is unimaginable…, 3 weeks ago my girl friends mom basically also earned $5547 just sitting there twelve hour's a week at home and the're buddy's sister-in-law`s neighbour has done this for 4 months and got more than $5547 part-time at their computer. use the advice from this website… jump15.comCHECK IT OUT
January 18, 2013 at 4:49 PM
these are dangerous ask any vet (not to be trusted)
January 18, 2013 at 4:54 PM
pit bulls are like playing with a loaded gun cannot be trusted at any age or anytime
January 18, 2013 at 5:00 PM
Just think, this irresponsible owner has let his vicious dogs have how many litters? Those dogs are now who knows where, ticking time bombs. No shots, no vet care, yet the guy still breeds his dogs. You gotta be kidding me. I wonder how many of these psycho dogs offspring will snap in the future. Maybe this will teach is idiot to take better care of his dogs.
January 18, 2013 at 5:33 PM
I was wondering if anyone else notice that the female had obviously just had a litter. Pits are very, VERY protective of their young, more so than a lot of other dogs. The owner says these dogs were only family pets, however, if he is breeding them, he's doing it for money, which means they aren't just pets. This is where the breed went wrong. Backyard breeders who breed for agressiveness instead of sanity. If you go to any sanction dog show you will see that these dogs can be and are weill-behaved, sane, calm and obedient. But you only get that from breeders who don't breed stupid, in-bred, agressive dogs. Again, it is the fault of those who use these dogs to prove their "manhood," or as a gang status symbol who have destroyed the breed. Banning isn't really the answer, but better enforcement on irresponsible breeders might be a better way. And by-the-way, both dogs were euthenized as soon as they got them to the shelter. If you look at the pictures neither one appears to be sane. In fact the male has Cherry-Eye along with everything else.
January 18, 2013 at 6:15 PM
These dogs are monsters. 99% of these stories have pit bulls involved, they should be outlawed. I was a meter reader a few years ago and just walking down a public side walk, and a pit bull was tied to a water spicket on the side of a house and the animal pulled the entire unit from the side of the house to attack me. Very dangerous animals.
January 18, 2013 at 8:16 PM
I don't see why all you guys say all Pitbulls are bad . I disagree it's the owners fault for how he raised those poor innocent dogs . By the way I am 13 and I have a very kind heart when it comes to animals . And it hurts to see all these hateful comment how they should kill these so called " dangerous " dogs . Who knows every body keeps defending the lady what if she did something to hurt these dog no body ever mentioned that . Dogs just try to protect there owners because they are loyal and caring . Anyways end of story irresponsible people should not own a dog !!!
January 19, 2013 at 3:26 AM
Any dog will bite under the right circumstances. But not any dog will kill you. I don't think it's entirely the dog's fault, it's genetics and innate behavior. Our Corgi (a herding breed) was determined to herd everyone, including visitors and our cats. A pit bull has extremely strong jaws and a tenacious nature. Which can add up to serious damage, Would you rather get attacked by a gold fish or a shark?
I will admit, I am prejudiced, my son at 7 years old, was attacked by a family's sweet and wonderful pit bull darling dog for just standing around on the sidewalk in front of the home. The family was devastated by their dog's behavior. Thank God someone was there and able to stop the dog. I personally think anyone that owns a pit bull has a loose screw, whether they are a PhD and/or a homeless vagrant.
January 19, 2013 at 6:27 AM
Here we go again. Same story, same debate, same outcome. These and other similar breeds are so inbred that they can not be trusted. Look at the photo-this was another breeding pair. Yes as puppies they are cute, adorable and loving..Once they gow past the cute controllable stage and that inbred mental disorder kicks in, you see these stories. I was around a Pitbull for many years. She was very sweet, but I never trusted her. I would have been just as happy with another breed and wouldn't have to worry about it going crazy. Ban them, fine the owners, euthanize them and be happy with another breed. I would be ok to keep these as Military or Police K9 and let them live thier lives professionally controlled and care for.
January 19, 2013 at 7:27 AM
i think politicans are more dangerous and harmeful
January 19, 2013 at 6:28 PM
Pitbulls attack every day. Since I was educated by pitbull attack personally, I've read hundreds of pitbull attack news stories and I have met nearly 100 pitbull victims personally whose faces, bodies and souls are forever damaged by the breed so many heartless people defend without compassion for human lives. Ban the breed. Without pitbulls, the very very few dog attacks with any serious injury will speak to the volume responsible by pitbulls prior to banning them. Pitbulls do not fit into normal dog populations but should be considered in the category of lions, tigers, bears, bobcats, alligators who may live in a human environment without attacking until they die of old age, yet when they attack, the injuries are horrific or deadly. We, the educated victims of pitbull attack, are not standing down on this deadly subject. The people who blindly defend and excuse pitbull attack should be ignored as the ignorant in any serious, public safety debate.
January 19, 2013 at 7:33 PM
All of you are Right…. They can be the Best Dogs Ever.. I had one that lived to be 11 and never even growled at anyone..BUT.. when they snap and turn aggressive…They Kill… you can not Ever have them where they can get loose and attack… We had one in our county Kill a Grandmother, Baby Sitting her Grand kids in their home.. The dog was 6 years old and had Never been aggressive..But the Grandmother is DEAD….
January 20, 2013 at 4:24 AM
Very sad to read, as I am the owner of a female rescue pitbull myself. Odds are these 2 dogs never had any socialization outside of the immediate family, what are the odds that they were walked regularly and got to experience a variety of people and places? Probably none. And then the irresponsible owner obviously allowed the 2 dogs to breed, note the females belly. Unneutered male dogs are the most likely to bite, and if the owner had done the right thing in the first place and fixed these dogs, the likelihood of this happening would have decreased. I don't believe pits are dogs for everyone, but they are not all ticking bombs waiting to go off. This is another clueless owner making a bad name for all the good pits out there.
January 20, 2013 at 7:54 AM
Pit Bull dogs and mixes are sweet, loving, affectionate and very loyal dogs .. you couldn’t ask for a better companion. But, and it’s a big but, they are ticking time bombs and there is no way whatsoever to know when they will go off and when they do go off, the results are always catastrophic and can lead to death!
A large majority of America Pit Bull and Pit Bull dog owners and aficionados are clearly deluding themselves and living in a fantasy world. “They are just big babies” “They play with the children” “They are not mean dogs” “My Pit is a sweety, he’ll lick you to death”.
Pit owners are famous for making excuses rather than admit that these dogs can and will cause catastrophic harm because of the way they attack. There really isn’t a single breed of Pitt Bull. Pitt Bull is actually a class of dogs which include American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, American Bulldog and any other pure bred or mixed breed dog that is a combination of these dogs.
The main point which people and most uniformed owners don’t realize is that the genetic makeup of these dogs is such that it is impossible to tell when or if they ever will attack. The majority will go through their lives without attacking anything .. but then again, there are many well known attacks where death occurred by dogs who were raised in loving homes from puppies. One of the most well known was one where a 6 month pregnant woman was mauled to death by her male Pitt Bull type dog. When this happened there were people actually blaming the victim for her own death .. “she must have done this or must have done that” to cause him to attack. Babies, toddlers, seniors and small animals are the most vulnerable because of their erratic movement and behavior which can trigger the prey instinct in the most docile of dogs. Nurture, how the dog was raised, plays only a very small part in the nature of this class of dogs.
When Pit Bulls attack the results are usually catastrophic. What makes them so dangerous is their style of attack, which is to grab on to muscle, lock their jaws and shake. One thing a Pit owner will not tell you is that a lot of times you need a “break stick” to unlock their jaws. Once they are in attack mode, about the only thing that will stop a Pit Bull attack is a gun.
One of the scarier things about this class of dog are the legitimate breeders. They breed for “gameness”. The ability to keep fighting no matter how injured the dog is .. they actually test for this and if the dog doesn’t have sufficient “gameness” they are out of the gene pool.
Pitt Bull dogs really are sweet and affectionate dogs and great companions – it’s their darker side and ignorant owners and breeders who refuse to acknowledge that this class of dog can pose a very real danger and insist on breeding in what I think is the most dangerous trait of all, gameness.
Owners need to stop being defensive and making excuses and act like responsible people in admitting that their dogs are capable of horrific harm and take whatever precautions necessary to avert a disaster. Those thinking “my dog would never attack someone” are the last people who should be owning a Pitt Bull type dog.
January 20, 2013 at 11:39 AM
What people don't take into consideration is that the majority of pitbull attacks comes when you have two or more of the breed together. It is fairly rare that you hear of an attack by just one pit. They have a pack mentality. If you are going to own one, raise it right, and own JUST one. Seriously… check out the statistics if you don't believe it. PACK MENTALITY.
January 20, 2013 at 4:53 PM
There are two reasons for owning this breed of dog. One: fighting. Two: The cool factor because of their reputation. There is nothing else. Further, the owner should be charged the same as if his gun had accidentally fired and hurt the woman. I only wish it was him the dogs attacked.
January 20, 2013 at 7:47 PM
Obama's fault
January 20, 2013 at 9:02 PM
there is no reason to own a pitbull, it is a mental disease for people to feel some sort of coolness.
January 21, 2013 at 6:36 AM
For those of you that say ban the breed of Pit Bulls… then you need to ban the ankle biter dogs too!. I am seeing more and more of those little dogs biting people and not make the "NEWS" more than the pits attacking. The Chiuaua needs to go. I did a good deed the other day, a man dropped his wallet as he was getting into his truck, i picked it up and handed it to the man, and his little kick me dog reached out the window and bit me. I wanted to yank the dog from the owners hands and punt it in the parking lot.
January 21, 2013 at 7:29 AM
it has nothing to do with being raised correctly. I am a single mother and got a blue pit for protection when the little guy was 6 weeks. The dog was very sweet extremely passive and hardly ever barked. When my son was 9 months he was bitten in the face. So all your stupidity and assumptions about the owner is just ignorance. The owner should be held liable for their actions of course, but not the owner's fault.
January 24, 2013 at 2:06 PM
AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO SAW THE PILE OF ROCKS PILED UP AGAINST THE FRONT SWINGING GATE WHICH WERE THEIR (i believe) TO PREVENT THE DOGS FROM GOING UNDER THE FENCE AND GETTING OUT? SEEMS TO ME THE ROCKS WERE THEIR FILLING A HOLE THAT WAS PREVIOUSLY DUG BY THE DOGS. MIGHTY CLEVER DOGS, NEEDED AN ESCAPE ROUTE SO THEY DUG UNDER THE FENCE. HEY OWNER, NICE WAY TO KEEP THE DOGS INSIDE THE YARD.