Boy shoots at pit bull to help girl in attack
The Seattle Times
June 9, 2006 Friday
Fourth Edition
West Seattle - Teen gets in van to escape dog
Kayla Webley
Seattle Times staff reporter
A 13-year-old girl who was attacked by a pit bull in West Seattle on Wednesday was able to get to the safety of a van after a neighborhood boy used his pellet gun to distract the dog.
Even after the girl got in the van, the dog kept circling it until police arrived.
The girl, who was visiting a home in the 3000 block of Southwest 106th Street, suffered minor injuries in the attack, which lasted several minutes, according to police. They didn’t release her name.
Police don’t know what provoked the attack.
Tyler Toycen, a 13-year-old neighbor, shot his pellet gun at the dog to compel it to release its grip on the girl, said the boy’s mother, Karin.
“We were all shaking,” Toycen said. “I would have been so frightened if I were her. It didn’t look like the dog was ever going to let go.”
When an officer arrived at the home, the girl was still in the van, and the dog was still circling it. The officer tried unsuccessfully to control the dog with voice commands, and later used a Taser to subdue it.
But the Taser appeared to have little effect on the dog, which eventually went into some bushes alongside of the home, said Jeff Kappel, a Seattle police information officer.
The dog was taken away and quarantined by Animal Control.
The girl suffered superficial injuries, including bites on her left arm, left leg and right thigh. She was treated on-site by the Fire Department and then taken to a local hospital.
While police were dealing with the dog, someone stole some gear from a police car. A suspect was later identified and arrested, and the gear was recovered.
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