PEYTON, Colo. (KKTV) – 11 News is working to learn if a dog owner will deal with charges following a dog attack on a Southern Colorado path.
It took place Friday on a path near Peyton in eastern El Paso County.
Nicole Reed informed 11 News she was walking on this path with her 3-year-old child and her dog Bailey when a released dog assaulted Bailey.
“It’s something I really can’t unsee,” Reed said. “I think I’m in shock right now. I had a really, really hard day yesterday. It was horrific. My daughter is three, but she definitely captured a lot of that, and it’s not sitting well with her. My son has been crying hysterically.”
Reed said a next-door neighbor alerted her that an off-leash pitbull was approaching them. She had adequate time to get her child and put her behind a close-by fence- in a safe area.
“Kids and families were walking the trail the whole time, and that dog was just coming up here like obviously looking to attack someone,” Reed said.
However, Bailey, her six-year-old yorkie, was assaulted.
“He [pitbull] wouldn’t let my dog out, and he just kept shaking his head and shaking his head,” Reed said. “And he wouldn’t stop until he [Bailey] stopped moving.”
According to Reed, Bailey lost his eye, has a fractured spinal column, neck injury, and bite marks all over.
“I could not protect him, I had to lift up my daughter, you know, and I didn’t know how the dog was going to react,” Reed said. “And I wish I could’ve picked him up, but the dog had already charged him, and unfortunately, I just keep replaying in my head, wishing I could have done something different.”
The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office and fire department reacted to the scene. The case is under examination by the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.
The Sheriff’s Office said the pitbull is now in the custody of Animal Control.
The Humane Society said in El Paso County, there have been more than 2,000 calls about an aggressive pet in El Paso and Pueblo counties in 2015. That is about six calls a day.
According to the Bite Blotter, two fatal dog attacks have occurred in less than two weeks.
At this point, Reed said her family would pay anything to help Bailey endure this.
“Bailey is the best,” Reed said. “The best puppy in the entire world. And that is not even giving him enough credit. He is my child. He is my fourth child, and I love and adore him.”
But in the meantime, Reed said she desires responses and leash laws implemented.
“I get that my dog is family, they might not see it that way, but they could’ve their dog could’ve killed a child,” Reed said. “What is it going to take to have something happen? Like that’s a child’s life.”
“I want the sheriff’s department- I have faith that they are going to do the right thing, and they are going to follow up, and they are going to take care of this,” Reed said. “And I want them to do whatever they have to do to make sure this does not happen again.”
11 News connected to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office. They informed 11 News this is still an active examination. Once that examination is total, the District Attorney’s Office will evaluate the case to choose if the pitbull’s owner will deal with charges.
You can report hazardous or aggressive family pets by calling Animal Law Enforcement on your screen or 911 in an emergency situation.
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