canine attack
© Angela Antunes / CC by 2.0
"He really loved Christmas and being with his family, he loved to eat, he loved desert." said Tawsha Davenport.

"What a good man he was, I'd like to be half the man he was." said Aaron Davenport.

Cledith Davenport was a father, a husband, and grandfather. His family looked forward to spending Christmas with him.

Saturday November 14th, Davenport and his dog were killed outside their home in Broken Bow. They were mauled to death by a pack of eight to ten, blue-heeler mix dogs. Deputies with McCurtain county sheriffs say a mail carrier called for help after finding his body. Records say some parts of Davenport's body were eaten down to the bone. Autopsy results list the cause of death as being the direct fault of the pack of dogs.


Tawsha Davenport and her husband Aaron have lived in Broken Bow their whole lives. The home they've lived in for 13 years, is filled with holiday decor. She said she wanted this Christmas to be perfect. Her husband, Aaron Davenport is battling cancer. A fight he says his father helped him get through day by day.

"If there wasn't something I couldn't handle, he was always there to help me, he was the best man I ever knew." Aaron Davenport said.

The Davenports said it isn't about the dogs. It's about the consequences in place to prevent this from ever happening again. That's why they want stricter leash laws in their city.

"It's like a drunk driver, or a crazy person with a gun, that's what a mad dog is." Tawsha Davenport said.

Deputies said eight of the dogs were taken to pounds in Broken Bow and Idabel. A hearing for whether or not the dogs will be euthanized will be held on January 3rd.

Until then, the family said they'll continue to push for stricter leash laws, by speaking out at council and sharing the hashtag, "Justice for Cledith."