Boy attacked by dog in Moultrie


J.D. SUMNER
www.albanyherald.com
j.d.sumner@.at.albanyherald.com

MOULTRIE — A boy was attacked by a dog at Moultrie car dealership late last week, according to police reports.

The boy, a 9-year-old, was admiring a sports car at Cars and Trucks Unlimited on the 100 block of Industrial Boulevard Thursday, when a chained-up Rottweiler sprung from beneath the vehicle and attacked him, the report says.

The child reportedly sustained dog bites to his upper and lower right arm and to his back.

The boy’s mother, Beverly Harrison, who was shopping for a car when the attack occurred, reportedly told police that she broke her glasses trying to pry her son away from the dog and prevent it from attacking her daughter.

The report shows that Harrison reportedly told police that the dealership employees stood by while she attempted to get her son away from the dog. Management at the store, however, says that a salesman tried to help get the dog off the boy.

The youngster was taken to Colquitt Regional Medical Center, where he reportedly received several stitches from the bite wounds.

Animal control did seize the dog for a 10-day quarantine. His condition was unknown as of press time.

Infection sets in


John Oxford
www.moultrieobserver.com
September 05, 2007

MOULTRIE — A 9-year-old boy who was attacked by a dog Friday afternoon remains at Colquitt Regional Medical Center fighting an infection that set in Saturday morning.

Josiah Harrison was treated and released from the hospital following the attack, but was readmitted the next day because of a severe infection from the bites on his right arm, his mother, Beverly Harrison, told The Observer Wednesday.

Josiah is on three different antibiotics and will need surgery to close the wounds once the infection heals, Mrs. Harrison said. He was listed in good condition on Wednesday, but she said he needs support and prayers from the community.

“He needs all the prayer he can get,” Mrs. Harrison said.

Michael Strickland, Harrison’s attorney, said the infection went through the muscle of Josiah’s arm and required two surgeries. It was not immediately known how long the boy will need to be at Colquitt Regional.

Josiah could lose mobility in his right arm depending on how long the infection lasts, Mrs. Harrison said. She was told 85 percent of dog bites cause an infection, and two of Josiah’s bite marks went to the bone in his right arm.

Mrs. Harrison stated she was at Cars and Trucks Unlimited on Industrial Boulevard trying to test drive a car about 3:40 p.m. Friday. While she was looking at the car, Josiah was looking at a sports car on the lot.

As he was looking at the sports car, a Rottweiler dog charged at him from underneath the car. The dog was on a chain, but Josiah was close enough for the dog to reach him.

Mrs. Harrison said she tried hitting the dog several times before it got off of the boy. As she tried to get Josiah into her car, the dog bit him again in the back, but she said that wound has healed without any problems.

While she was getting Josiah into the car, Mrs. Harrison said, her 13-year-old disabled daughter, Kayla, walked up to the Rottweiler, but it did not attack her. Mrs. Harrison said it was “only by the grace of God” that neither she nor Kayla were attacked.

Strickland said it was not known if the Rottweiler had attacked anyone before the incident Friday. The dog is currently under a 10-day quarantine with the Colquitt County Animal Control.

Mrs. Harrison said she was told the Rottweiler was on the car lot as a guard dog due to several thefts there. Even though she understood why the dog was there, she said she had never thought about a guard dog kept on a car lot during regular business hours and with several people around it.

Dog bite victim leaves hospital


John Oxford
www.moultrieobserver.com
September 07, 2007

MOULTRIE — A 9-year-old boy was released from Colquitt Regional Medical Center Friday, one week after he was bitten by a dog. It was also learned Friday that the automobile dealership where the incident took place had a similar incident in 2005.

A hospital spokesperson said Josiah Harrison, 9, was released from Colquitt Regional Friday after almost a week of treatment for an infection in his right arm where he was bitten by the dog. The boy was bitten Aug. 31 by a Rottweiler named Anna, which was used as a guard dog at Cars and Trucks Unlimited on Industrial Drive.

According to statements by Beverly Harrison, the boy’s mother, and by Scotty Pierce, owner of Cars and Trucks Unlimited, Mrs. Harrison was looking at cars about 3:40 p.m. Aug. 31. Josiah was looking at a dune buggy in a part of the lot where customers don’t usually go.

Anna was sleeping under the dune buggy, restrained by a chain, and Pierce said she must have been spooked. The boy was bitten twice in the right arm and once in the back as Mrs. Harrison tried to get him away from the dog.

The boy was taken to Colquitt Regional following the incident and released later that day, but Harrison said he developed a severe infection and was re-admitted the following morning. He remained in the hospital on antibiotics until the infection went down and the wounds on his arm could be closed.

Mrs. Harrison said she struck the dog to make it stop attacking Josiah, but neither she nor her 13-year-old daughter, Kayla, were attacked.

Pierce told The Observer Thursday that Anna’s reaction was very unusual, as she is normally a sweet and loyal dog but is very protective.

However, Mrs. Harrison’s attorney, Michael Strickland, faxed to The Observer Friday a Moultrie Police Department report dated April 13, 2005, that described a dog attack at the same location. That attack was not nearly as serious as the one last week.

In the 2005 incident, Ebony Allen of Moultrie reported a Rottweiler at the dealership broke its chain and came after her daughter, whose age was not mentioned in the report. The dog chased and knocked the girl down, causing scratches to her hand, bleeding front teeth and a cut lip, but she did not have any puncture wounds where the dog held her arm.

It was not known if Anna was the dog in both incidents, but Pierce said the incident with Josiah was unusual.

Anna will be put down once she is removed from the 10-day quarantine at the Colquitt County Animal Control, Pierce said.

“The dog will be put down in the best interest of the public,” Pierce said. “As sad as it will be, human beings are much more important than Anna. The loss of property is not near as great as the potential loss of a child.”