© Erin FennerBrittany Panzo suffered several bite wounds to her hands and body after being attacked by her pit bull/mastiff mix Saturday.
"He ripped her open," said Panzo's fiance, Gildardo Soto, of the dog.
Soto said he had been joking around and laughing with Panzo in their apartment in the 200 block of Abraham Way when the dog lashed out.
"He broke through his kennel and bit her," he said.
The dog then bit Panzo at least 20 times. He got Panzo into the closet and called police, telling them they would likely need to kill the animal, Soto said. Panzo's two toddler-aged children were still in their bedroom sleeping, she said.
Police responded at 1:23 a.m., according to a Caldwell Police Department press release. When officers arrived the dog was pacing around the house, barking and growling. Police were concerned about the two toddlers in the house. A closed door separated them from the dog, but police knew the children could get up at any moment and open the door, exposing them to attack, said Caldwell Police Sgt. Joey Hoadley.
Officers attempted to contain the dog on the back patio, but it tried to attack them. At that point they shot and killed it.
Officers found Panzo in the closet and then she was transported to the hospital, Hoadley said.
"I've seen (dog attacks) a few times in my career and I've seen dogs turn on their owner," he said. "But, it is rare."
The attack lasted about 20 minutes. Panzo needed 45 stitches to take care of the bites, she said.
Panzo said the dog hadn't always been aggressive, but that it became troubled after witnessing domestic violence from past relationships. Even in a safe home, the dog was volatile, Soto said.
"The dog has bit her before," he said.
Soto said that in the three months he has lived in Panzo's home, the dog has never attempted to hurt him. But he's seen the pet repeatedly bite Panzo. They were already planning to give the dog up because it was too big and volatile for their apartment.
Saturday afternoon, Panzo said she didn't know how to feel about the death of the aggressive pet.
"I'm just still in shock," she said.
it was common sense to put an animal down or away immediately when it bites the first time. Training a grown dog to not bite again isn't possible. A well-trained dog is a happy dog and it has to start when they're puppies.
But I suspect the point of these animal attack articles is to show that the animal kingdom is agitated more than usual.