July 29, 2015

"Tiger dragged the woman around three houses before emergency responders arrived."

Said the neighbor, Huge Montoya, who called 911.
"That was like a terror movie... The dog was pulling her body like it was a toy... It was so terrifying... I couldn’t believe her own dog would do those things to her. I need to remove that scene from my brain."
The dog only released its death grip on Katherine once a man driving by got out of his car and threw a guitar stand at him....
It's good to call 911, but maybe something other than watching and waiting for help to arrive would have left a better unremovable picture in the mind of Huge (is that really his name?) Montoya.

47 comments:

David said...

It was the man's dog, the article says. Jeeeesh.

Laslo Spatula said...

She was unarmed.

I am Laslo.

MadisonMan said...

Always be the Alpha Dog in a relationship.

mikee said...

My extended family has owned Dobermans, Pit Bulls, Rottweilers and smaller dogs like Cocker Spaniels, Mini Aussies and mutts.

The thing about big dogs is that they are very strong animals capable of doing serious damage to other animals, kids, and adults if they are "triggered" into violence.

The other thing about dogs, big or small, is that those "triggers" causing violent responses are not always knowable by humans. A hundred squirrels in the yard might be ignored, but that is no guarantee the 101st will not induce a violent killing rage.

Big strong dogs make wonderful pets but are dangerous animals, and anyone claiming otherwise is fooling themselves at best.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

Hallo. My name is Huge Montoya....

Ignorance is Bliss said...

So will the next post be about a bear, oh my?

Anonymous said...

The ownership of pit bulls seems to cluster in a certain socio-economic class.

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

Some years ago, I rescued a man from two pit bulls. Getting the one dog off of him took some doing on my part, and then the two of us battled the two dogs until it was over, although I have no recollection of how it all actually ended.

He was chewed up pretty bad. Went to the hospital. I took some chomps, myself, and some wounds from getting caught up in a wrought iron fence and from hitting the pavement a few times.

All I can say is: Kudos to the rescuer, and that must have been one hell of a guitar stand.

Known Unknown said...

Huge turned out to be quite small, indeed.

LCB said...

If I'd had access to my gun I would have shot the dog. And then the owner would have probably sued me for saving her!

We (my wife and I) have found that most dogs seem to be scared of the sound emitted from tazers. If the sound doesn't work, the next use is a zap. If THAT doesn't work...self defense time.

Ann Althouse said...

"It was the man's dog, the article says. Jeeeesh."

It wasn't the neighbor's dog. It was the woman's husband's dog. The husband's name is Mahmoud Rizk.

Fernandinande said...

This article says that the arm was torn off, but also amputated and not torn off by the dog.

"A North Charleston man’s pit bull attacked his wife Sunday and tore her arm off.
Katherine Rizk, 48, of Ayscough Road, is “not doing well” after her arm was amputated from the elbow down, according to her husband Mahmoud Rizk.
...
He [cop] described in the report that the damage to Rizk’s left arm was almost up to her armpit, and that she was losing a lot of blood."

Laslo Spatula said...

"The husband's name is Mahmoud Rizk."

It is Rizky having a dog like that.


I am Laslo.

Megthered said...

I wonder why the dog had fresh wounds? Was it a fighting dog. Most pits I know are loving dogs but they are unpredictable. Our next door neighbor has one and the dog has seen me every day of it's life and still barks and snarls like it will eat me. When it is with it's owner, it rolls over and wants me to rub it's belly. If the dog in the article was used for fighting, the owner should be in jail.

CStanley said...

It's really quote difficult and dangerous to try to stop a dog attack. If people don't know what to do then calling 911 is probably the best move.

Scott said...

"The ownership of pit bulls seems to cluster in a certain socio-economic class."

That's why the New York Daily News ran this local South Carolina story. We New Yorkers are in a higher socio-economic class than those white trash southerners. It's the New York version of a feel-good story. You may pay $2,000/month for a 300 sq foot apartment and $3.50 for a bagel with cream cheese for breakfast. You may be hot, crowded, uncomfortable, and inconvenienced in packed, expensive, and often broken-down public transportation. There may be lots of smelly homeless panhandlers everywhere. People may be rude, nasty, judgmental, or nosy. But at least you're not in white trash South Carolina getting your arm ripped off by a pit bull.

CStanley said...

Am I the only one who read the title and thought this was about Tiger Woods?

Maxwell said...

There's a reason why Muslims don't like dogs.

Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...

There is a strong inverse correlation between the size and ferocity of a man's dog and the size of his penis. This relationship has been established in multiple published studies, although I do not have time to link to them right now.

Virgil Hilts said...

Call me a dog bigot, but I knew that dog was going to be a pit bull before I clicked the link.
Picking a pit bull after you decide to get a dog is like deciding its more fun to ride without a helmet and in a t-shirt after you decide to get a motorcycle. Sow the wind and reap the whirlwind. People who choose to own pit bulls (including my little sister) are fools.

Matt Sablan said...

I thought it would be about an actual Tiger, since we had a story about an actual lion and an actual bear.

Carter Wood said...

New York Times article on breeds of dog according to zip code/neighborhood: "Dogs that are considered tough are more common in neighborhoods with tough reputations. So the largest concentrations of pit bulls are in Spanish Harlem and Alphabet City. Rottweilers are popular in Soundview; Canarsie, Brooklyn; and Spanish Harlem."

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/24/nyregion/24DOGS.html

Tank said...

No question that this story would be better if Tiger Woods was involved.

That would be awesome.

Bill said...

I've actually seen pit-bull enthusiasts accuse critics of 'racism'.

Chuck said...

How can anybody own a couple of big pit bulls, and not also have a handy AR-15? You use the AR-15 if the pits get out of hand.

I just don't understand this guy. Couldn't he afford an AR-15?

Big Mike said...

@Chuck, at least a .38 Special.

This article by dog author Jon Katz addresses the risks of pit bulls. As Katz notes, pit bulls (or Stratfordshire terriers, as some pit bull owners prefer to call them) were bred for aggressiveness and very strong jaws. They aren't inherently bad, but when they do attack they can inflict serious damage.

Big Mike said...

Here's the money quote from Katz:

"Bites are usually not random attacks by strays. The great majority of biting dogs belong to a family member or friend of the victim. When a young child is the victim, the attack almost always occurs in the family home, and the perpetrator is usually a "good" dog that had not previously behaved in a menacing way. Owners who buy aggressive dogs for security may be kidding themselves: The chances that the victim of a fatal dog attack will be a burglar or human attacker are 1-in-177. The odds that the victim will be a child are 7-in-10."

MAJMike said...

@Big Mike: .45 JHP.

CatherineM said...

Scott, you are looking too hard for an insult. Most of the shelters up here are wall to wall Pitbulls.

Quaestor said...

New York Times article on breeds of dog according to zip code/neighborhood...

Interesting that the NYT, a newspaper that would (and has often) denounced a conservative for expressing class-conscious stereotypes is happy to promote class biases.

Fernandinande said...

The chances that the victim of a fatal dog attack will be a burglar or human attacker are 1-in-177.

That's one reason I like friendly dogs; mean dogs are far more likely to cause problems than to "protect" you (though my lab mix bit a burglar as he climbed over the back fence...leaving).

ken in tx said...

Here's another 'I have read'. If you are already in a fray with the dog,and being bitten, stick your thumb in the dog's rectum. That's supposed to stop aggression immediately. This is supposed to be true, not a Laslo comment.

Boltforge said...

American culture is raising to many effeminate men who wait for "the right people" to come help. Wait for the cops. Wait for the ambulance. Wait wait wait and do nothing. Don't own a gun. Don't learn how to fight. Don't know how to kill a stupid dog.

Pathetic.

Question of the day: Would it have been better for the victim if Walter the Dentist was there?

Carnifex said...

When I was growing up in my rough and tumble world I was bit often. I learned how to quickly incapacitate a biting dog. One good method is to shove your fist down its throat as far as you can and start grabbing things. Takes the bite right out of them. Then I learned how to fend off a biting dog. A knee in their midsection is very distressing to a dog, and will have one hacking and coughing on the ground with the slightest tap. And finally, I learned how not to get bit. Watch the dogs mouth closely. Like a snake handler you can yank your hand away quicker than they can bite you. If a dog starts barking at your feet, just going crazy, do not move. They're trying to get you to run. They chase prey, and if you don't run, they don't know how to act.(this takes a lot of nerve, but works. I had a german shepherd try to get me to run when I was around 13. One of the hardest things I ever did was to just stand there and let hem bark at my feet)

But learn how to not get bit, and never forget how to shove your hand down their throat. Everything else is gravy.

Carnifex said...

In Viet Nam, a colonel took over a new group of troops. Going through the roster he noticed an inordinate number of men on sick call. Going to the medic he asked what was going on.
"Its the striped snakes, Sir. They're deadly poisonous, and the men fear them greatly."
"Thank you, Doc. I'll take care of this."
The next day at muster, the colonel was addressing his men.
"I've heard some of you men are afraid of the striped snake. You are US Army men, and I shall instruct you how to handle the striped snake so you will never fear them again. Sargent!"
A sargent steps forward with a box. The colonel opens the box to reveal one of the deadly serpents.
"1: you grasp the snakes tail firmly in your left hand with your right hand above it! 2: You slide your right hand to the snakes head! and 3: you use your right thumb to flick the snakes head off, like so!" and the colonel demonstrates. 1,2,3.
No more sick calls for the striped snake for a week, then a report for PFC. Johnson, sick in bed from the striped snake. The colonel is furious. He has demonstrated the proper technique for dealing with the snake, what was Johnson's problem. He goes to the med tent to find Johnson in a body cast.
"My god Johnson! A striped snake did this to you?! How?!"
"Well sir, i was standing my watch when I saw the striped snake descend from a tree limb. I did just like you showed us sir. First I grabbed the snake in my left and right hand, then I slid my right hand to the snakes head, and then I flicked my thumb. I realized my mistake when my thumb entered that tigers ass."

Bob Boyd said...

@ ken in tx

Its true.
I was attacked by a boxer dog. He leapt on me and I went down on my back. He was all over me, fast, sinewy, I couldn't keep a grip on him. He was on top of me, lunging for my face. He kept snapping and bit my arms and hands several times, but fortunately didn't latch on. Luckily, a guy from Texas was passing by. He said, "Putcher thumb in his rectum, son." I didn't have a better idea so I stuck my thumb out and started trying to hook him. He had a pretty long body (the dog, not the Texan) and he was thrashing.
At first I couldn't reach his rectum with my thumb. I got the tip my middle finger in for minute and it seemed to slow him down. That's when I grabbed his little stump tail with my left hand and jammed my right thumb in hard. The dog instantly went stiff. His eyes got huge. He looked at me for a moment then he started wiggling and snorting and licking my face like I was his best friend. I could feel him wagging his little stump in my left hand.
The Texan said, "There ya go. There ya go."
Whew! That was close. I pulled my thumb out. I heard the Texan say, "Uh oh." It was like flipping a switch. The dog turned back to a ball of vicious rage, snapping and growling and lunging, slobber flying. Luckily I still had a good grip on that stump, so I quick jammed my thumb back in. It worked. Again he instantly started loving on me, wiggling and licking. The Texan said, "Best leave it there a whahl. I gotta get on. Good luck, son." He left.
Not daring to remove my thumb again, I pressed my forehead against the dogs chest to kind of trap him between my head and my thumb, then I let go of his stump, managed to reach my right back pocket with my left hand, pull out my phone and dial 911. A cop showed up after about 20 minutes, then an animal control guy. The dog catcher immediately perceived the situation and told me, "Don't pull your thumb out until get the choke pole around his neck, OK?" I told him not to worry.

walter said...

"Call me a dog bigot, but I knew that dog was going to be a pit bull before I clicked the link."

Along with anyone else reasonably sane about this. Of course, it might have been one of those other "big dogs"...as if St. Bernards and Great Danes are known for this:

Darla Napora, Pregnant Pit Bull Advocate, Mauled to Death By Her Pit Bull

Father of Pregnant Pacifica Woman Killed by Her Pet Pit Bull Writes Letter

grackle said...

My first wife was pregnant with our first child when I decided to visit a friend. With my wife waiting in the passenger seat I walked through the unfenced yard to the front porch to knock and see if Richard was home.

Around from the rear of the house came 2 Great Danes who attacked me. Without being bitten I managed to back into the inside corner of the porch and pull a rattan settee between me and the dogs. They took turns rearing and lunging, jaws snapping at my face. Reared up, they were taller than me and I’m 6’2”.

I punched each of them several times. But it was the kicks that held them off. I was surprised at the accuracy of my kicks. Almost all of them hard against their huge heads. I was dimly aware that my wife was screaming inside the car. I was getting tired.

Finally, after what seemed like a long time but was probably only a minute, Richard’s teenage stepson arrived and called them off. I then used every bit of profanity that a Navy vet can muster while the boy, with downcast eyes claimed, “I thought you were some kid on a bicycle.”

The only damage: Sore, skinned knuckles and hands and a bite mark on my forearm, barely through the skin. After I got back into the car my wife and I sat there looking at each other. She said, “Johnny, I thought you were a goner! And then I was afraid you were going to beat up the boy.” I started giggling then laughing uncontrollably and couldn’t stop for awhile. It was pure joy at being alive.

SteveR said...

Tiger didn't go crazy, Tiger went tiger.

walter said...

Well there ya go greckle.."man bites dog".

Valentine Smith said...

Don't panic. Before the dog attacks lower your center of gravity lunge for the dogs mouth with your forearm and get it as far back in its maw as you can. Apply constant pressure forward as the dog will shake and tear as his ability to bite down and his breathing are both hampered. Squeeze his throat with other hand. If your lucky you'll break the hyoid apparatus or the bronchia.

walter said...

Ah..ok, Dundee(s). Seems like that would entail an extreme degree of accuracy, timing and..zen.

walter said...

I bet that pregnant pit bull advocate had all sorts of tips..

Susan said...

'Allow, my name is Huge Montoya.

You keel my neighbor, prepare to die.

Alexander said...

It would have been highly problematic for the man to just assume that the woman needed his help, as if there was any difference in his and her (can I use those pronouns, sorry if they offend anyone!) body strength. The idea that women need defending, that he should of jumped in for the 'damsel in distress' is highly insulting.

Cripes, you advocate for a world where we are literally supposed to cheer for men who geld themselves. Where women in the special forces is nothing more but rank sexism. Where a man isn't supposed to say 'hello' to a woman without risk of being charged with sexual harassment, and where violence is 'never the answer' and we are to 'call the authorities' - the personal right to use lethal force in self defense is a relic of racist white men, dontcha know... and then act disappointed that a man doesn't go out of his way to tackle an attacking dog?

I'm calling bullshit.

walter said...

Just more pitbull shit, Alexander.

But before judging the neighbor for inaction, is there any info on his age, health etc? I didn't find any.

furious_a said...

Breed ought to be allowed to die out.