Separation Anxiety Blamed for Pit Bull Dog Attack on Woman
In Rock Hill, SC, a 48-year-old woman was bitten by a pit bull dog when she was walking into a Family Dollar store. The pit bull was being held on a leash by a 16-year-old. The woman argued that the 16-year-old made no attempt to pull the dog away when it lunged at the 48-year-old woman and bit her on her right thigh. The woman suffered a bite mark but the dog did not tear through the woman’s clothes or skin.
The pit bull lunged at police several times as they investigated the incident and attempted to treat the woman. The 16-year-old claimed that the dog was suffering from separation anxiety due to being away from its mother. York County Animal Control took over the case and no arrests or charges were handed down in connection with the dog-bite incident.
The fact that the teenager made no attempts to remove the dog from the victim in this dog-bite incident could be construed as negligence on their part. Regardless of what the factors or causes of the attack were, the teen had a responsibility to prevent the dog from harming innocent bystanders that come in close proximity to the dog. Given that the dog’s owner is 16-years-old, the teen could not be charged as an adult for the attack. The fortunate part of this dog-bite incident is that the woman did not suffer serious injuries, which could have easily occurred. Still, the dog’s owner should be held responsible for their dog’s actions despite the age of the owner.
