A nearly 70-year-old woman fought off a pit bull who was attacking her smaller dog by biting it on the neck.
A surveillance video shows the moment Shirley Pasamanick fought off the larger dog outside a grocery store in Orlando, Florida, to protect her pet.
“I’ll be 70 at the end of this month. I’m 91 pounds. I had no muscle. I did what I could,” she said about the altercation.
Why It Matters
Dog attacks remain a serious problem in the U.S., with an estimated 4.5 million bites each year, roughly 800,000 of which require medical attention.
Pit bulls, like the one which attacked Pasamanick’s dog, are involved in more dog attacks than any other breed.
Incidents like these highlight how important responsible pet ownership is, including keeping dogs leashed and trained and closely supervising interactions with children and smaller pets.
What To Know
Pasamanick and her terrier Sparky were ambushed by a pit bull outside a Plaza Tropical Supermarket on September 1, a surveillance video shows.
The video shows the larger dog knocking the 91-pound woman to the ground and attempting to attack the smaller dog.
Pasamanick can be seen attempting to kick the pit bull away and hitting it with her cane, even leaning over and biting it on its neck.
“I tried to pry open the pit bull’s mouth, and I’m a tiny little person, it didn’t work,” Pasamanick told Fox 35 Orlando.
“So, his neck was right there, and I couldn’t think of anything else to do. So I leaned over and I bit him. I bit him hard too.”
Eventually, a man came to drag the pit bull away by its leash, ending the attack.
Pasamanick said that she believes it is a dog owner’s responsibility to keep their pet under control to prevent attacks like this from happening.
She said that the 14-year-old terrier Sparky was her “baby” and that she was thankful he was safe. “I can’t lose him—not to something like that,” she said.
What People Are Saying
Shirley Pasamanick told Fox 35 Orlando: “It’s your responsibility to keep that dog on the end of that leash where you have total control over him. That’s the owner’s responsibility, period.”
What Happens Next
Orange County Animal Services is investigating the incident and has documented Sparky’s injuries, according to Fox 35 Orlando.
The identity of the dog owner has not been released, and it is unclear whether they will face any consequences over the attack.
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