Two Roswell dog owners are facing citations after their pit bulls got loose and bit an elderly man and a young child in two separate incidents in the past week.
The most recent attack happened Thursday evening when police say a young boy was riding his bike near the Roswell Industrial Air Center and was bit on the back of his leg. The man who discovered the boy was bitten had to think fast to save his own life when the dog’s owner put a gun to his face.
Doug Narron said he was walking to his home at 28 A street from a nearby convenience store when he discovered the boy riding towards him.
“I saw the puncture wounds on his leg. I asked him if he was alright,” Narron said.
Narron said the boy followed a family member home, and seemed to be okay. Narron called the Roswell Police.
When Roswell Animal Control arrived, Narron said he tried to help corral the dog. That’s when the dog’s owner, who is his next-door neighbor, came out of the house and put a gun in his face.
“I grabbed the gun, put her on the ground, took the clip out of the gun and tossed it between my legs,” Narron said. “I layed on top of her until the police got here.”
Narron said his neighbor has a history of drug abuse, and chose not to press charges.
“I want to see her get help,” Narron said, concerned that he may have fractured one of the woman’s ribs when he took her to the ground.
Paramedics were dispatched because the woman complained of difficulty breathing.
Roswell Police Training and Information Officer Lisa Brackeen said citations are pending for animal at large and dog tag violations, but the owner was not cited for a vicious dog because the victim was never found. The dog was apprehended the following afternoon, Brackeen said.
An elderly man is missing a chunk of his left arm after he was also attacked by a pit bull Aug. 13 while walking to the Cielo Grande Recreation Center.
Ramon Galvan said he was talking on the phone with his daughter while walking southbound on the 1500 block of North Montana Street when he heard a bark, turned his head, and saw a pit bull leaping towards his face.
Galvan said he was surprised at first, until he put his arm up to block and the dog latched on.
“There were muscles, skin, tendons hanging out and a lot of blood,” Galvan said through a translator, his daughter Ibeth.
Galvan credits a nearby pedestrian for helping scare the dog off and screaming for help, and a passing motorist for calling 911.
The dog’s owner, Michael Quintana, said he feels bad about the attack and said his dog is normally on a chain.
“It wasn’t my intention for her to get out. It just happened, it’s just one of those things,” Quintana said.
Quintana said he got the dog when it was around six months old from a friend who was going to have it put down.
“I told him to bring it to me because I had another dog I wanted to breed,” Quintana said.
According to the Roswell Animal Control incident report, Quintana was issued four citations for animal ordinance violations.
Quintana was cited for vicious animal, dogs running at large, dog license required and rabies vaccinations, which Quintana said he has proof of, but couldn’t find at the time of the incident.
Galvan and his family said they have contacted a lawyer since thee damage to his arm is extensive.
Doctors had to connect two tendons which operate his two outer fingers to the tendons that operate his two inner fingers because the dog completely destroyed them. A skin graft was also performed from his upper thigh to replace the skin that was removed.
“I will help him the best I can with his medical bills,” Quintana said.
These incidents make three pit bull attacks that the public is aware of, including the June 11 mauling of nine-year-old Colby Prince at his home West of Roswell. Prince’s father, RPD Detective Jeff Prince, has filed notice to sue the city and the rescue the animals escaped from.
via Roswell sees two pit bull attacks in just over a week | Plains-Valley Online News.
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