Police said they received a call around 5:30 p.m. from the victim's daughter, saying that her mother, identified as 44-year-old Melissa Astacio, was having a seizure in their Lees River Avenue home.
"All my mom ever wanted was for me and her three kids to have a better life than she could" Melissa's daughter Heaven said.
Authorities said that's when the family dog, an eight-year-old pit bull, attacked her.
Officers were forced to taze the dog before helping Astacio. She was rushed to Rhode Island Hospital, where she died from her injuries.
Heaven doesn't blame the dog for what happened.
"I don't think he was trying to attack her. I think the dog was just trying to help my mom but he's just a dog and he didn't know any better" Heaven said.
Police said the Swansea Animal Rescue put the dog in quarantine at their facility.
Reader Comments
But,your profile pic,cats kill a hell of a lot of rare & endangered lifeforms every day..
Seems a lil contradictory