Both a toddler and a teenager are in recovery in Texas following a two-minute dog attack that left them with “substantial” wounds and psychological stress, according to the police.
Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said during a press conference that Heather Rodriguez, 36, was arrested on Monday morning after it was found via a preliminary investigation that she had left her four XL American bullies alone with the 1-year-old kid she was responsible for watching and a 13-year-old girl.
The infant and little girl remained in the bedroom to keep themselves away from the dogs because they were “known to cause damage,” according to Salazar, while Rodriguez was gone from her Converse, Texas, home for unspecified reasons.
The sheriff claimed that at one point the dogs broke through a linked bathroom door that they had already ruined to make their way into the bedroom.
“Baby tug of war” between 13-year-old girl and dogs
According to Salazar, the dogs bit the infant as soon as they entered the bedroom.
“The 13-year-old was able to maintain control of the baby, but at this point, and what’s being described to me, it was almost a tug of war for the baby between at least one of the dogs and the little girl,” as per the sheriff.
Additional dogs entered the room and joined the attack while the baby was being rocked back and forth, according to Salazar. The 13-year-old would bite herself during her “several minutes of trying to fight them off,” the sheriff continued.
‘Critical condition’ for 1-year-old after dog attack
Salazar said that the girl took the infant into another bedroom and closed the door after calling 911. The sheriff continued, saying that the 13-year-old then used her body to keep the dogs out of the bedroom.
According to Salazar, deputies entered the scene, took over, and started administering first aid to the infant. The youngster was then transported to a hospital by emergency personnel.
“From what we understand about the baby right now, he’s definitely in critical condition,” as per the sheriff. “I’ve actually seen some pictures of the baby from our body camera video… it’s heartbreaking to see anybody in that condition.”
Salazar added that the infant had “pretty severe head injuries” and that there was so much damage to his airway and throat that he could not breathe normally.
The baby’s parents, who informed deputies that they were unaware Rodriguez’s dogs were “problematic,” met their child again at the hospital on Monday morning, according to the sheriff.
“I’m led to believe they would not have let (Rodriguez) care for their baby the way that they did had they known that these dogs were unsafe,” according to Salazar.
The sheriff stated that at least two of the four dogs were principally responsible for the attack, though it’s probable that all of them took part in some way.
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“Obviously for me, any dog that took part in it needs to be put down,” Salazar stated. “As heartbreaking as that sounds, the life of a little baby is much more important.”
According to the sheriff, the dogs are currently under the care of Bexar County Animal Control, which will decide what happens to them. He further mentioned that when the deputies arrived to take the dogs away, Rodriguez gave them a “hard time”.
“If we’re able to find out that one of the dogs, or several of the dogs were not responsible, then fine,” Salazar stated. “Perhaps those can go back, but (Rodriguez) seemed to be more concerned with what was going on with those dogs than with the fact that her inaction (and) her omissions almost caused the death of a baby.”
