Heather Snider said her daughter, Haylee, was close to Third Street at Neal Subdivision when the dogs raced out after her shortly before 7 p.m. Oct. 29.
"The dogs tore open her arm which required stitches, muscle reconstructive surgery and cosmetic surgery," according to Snider.
"She had three major gashes on her arm and a couple of bite marks on her stomach and back," Snider said.
Two people passing by in a car heard the girl's screams and came to her aid, separating her from the dogs and driving her to the ambulance station.
While en route, they called 911 to report the attack.
Haylee was being treated at the ambulance station when the Liberty County Sheriff's Office got a call about a second dog attack, this time involving an 11-year-old boy on a bicycle.
Haylee was then taken to the emergency room at Calhoun-Liberty Hospital. From there, she was sent to Bay Medical Center. She had surgery on her arm at noon Thursday and was released that same day. Friday, she was back at Tolar School with her seventh-grade classmates.
The second victim, Caleb Pittman, was taking his first ride on the new bicycle he had gotten that day. It was a belated birthday present that had arrived late. His parents, Tim and Karen Pittman, were walking behind him as he made his way along the sidewalk around 7:15 p.m. last Wednesday.
Suddenly, two dogs raced out and attacked him.
"He tried to keep pedaling but was unable to break free," his mother said. "My husband had to stand there and fight the dogs back so I could get to Caleb."
She said both dogs were snapping at her son, who was bitten on his left calf. "He had about six puncture wounds down a five-inch long area of his leg," she said.
They called to report the attack as they made their way back to their home about a mile away and got their son ready for a trip to the emergency room.
Deputies arrived to speak with the family, located the dogs and put them inside the gate at the owner's home.
Caleb's mother said Sunday that he "is sore but recovering" and added that he seemed to be doing all right even though the incident "scared him pretty good."
Haylee's mom let her friends know that her daughter was doing ok with a post on her Facebook page that read, "It tore her arm up pretty bad but she's still the same old Haylee."
The dogs' owner, Phillip J. Owens, was cited for violating Liberty County's Animal Control Ordinance 2013-07, which requires owners to restrain animals to prevent them from running at large.
When he was later presented with papers to sign authorizing the two dogs be put down, "I signed it immediately," he said.
"It was a horrible accident and I'm just shocked," he said about the attacks.
He said a series of "unfortunate things" led to what happened last week. "The biggest factor was that someone else had opened the gate and I didn't realize they hadn't shut it," he said, explaining that visitors he had earlier that day weren't familiar with the dogs and apparently did not think to secure the gate as they left.
He's had one of the dogs, a female, for years. She had puppies just four weeks ago. The male bulldog is just a year and a half old. "The male dog was obsessed with the female and real protective of the puppies," he said. He admitted the younger dog was aggressive but said he had never bitten anyone.
He added that in recent weeks, some younger children had been at the gate taunting the dogs with sticks but was quick to note, "I'm the one responsible."
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