Pit bull mauls 66 year old man to death climbing through New Orleans relative’s window. Victim was authorized guest when dog attack occurred.
A man was mauled to death by a pit bull while climbing through the window of a relative’s home in New Orleans over the weekend.
The 66-year-old victim, who has not been publicly identified, climbed into a family member’s home on South Claiborne Avenue at 6:41pm Sunday, according to WVUE.
The residents came home to find the victim, who was authorized to be there, with wounds on both arms. He was pronounced dead at the scene by a coroner, said New Orleans Police spokesperson Juan Barnes.
The dog also had apparent blood on its fur from the attack, Barnes said, as fatal pit bull attacks on humans enter the double digits for 2021 in the US.
The Louisiana SPCA took custody of the dog as police continue to investigate the man’s death.
Likelihood of being bitten or mauled by pit bull dog
There have been at least 11 fatal pit bull maulings so far this year in the US. Meanwhile, pit bulls killed 31 people in the first nine months of 2020 alone, or one person every nine days, according to the National Pit Bull Victim Awareness group.
The majority of the victims were children under the age of two; 13 others were senior citizens, including two who were in a wheelchair.
But while the breed is often thought of as aggressive, that kind of behavior is usually reserved for other dogs and not humans, said Sara Ondrako, certified dog behavior consultant and founder and CEO of the American Pit Bull Foundation.
Pit bulls are ‘no more likely to bite or attack humans,’ she recently told Newsweek.
‘They have been selectively bred over centuries to be human-friendly, despite also being bred for some dog-aggressive traits,’ she added.
The ASPCA echoed that, in spite of recent increases in fatal pit bull attacks on humans.
‘These dogs have long been popular family pets, noted for their gentleness, affection and loyalty. And even those pit bulls bred to fight other animals were not prone to aggressiveness toward people,’ the ASPCA states on its website.
‘All dogs, including pit bulls, are individuals. Treating them as such, providing them with the care, training and supervision they require, and judging them by their actions and not by their DNA or their physical appearance is the best way to ensure that dogs and people can continue to share safe and happy lives together.’
The investigation into the man’s death continues.
