Click the "Keep me posted" button below this story for updates. This article originally was published Aug. 24 at 3:29 p.m.
Two dogs that appeared to be pit bull mixes attacked a 6-year-old girl in on Thursday night, sending her to the hospital.
The University of California Police Department is asking for the public's help in finding the man who was with the dogs, said Capt. Stephen Roderick.
The man gave his name, to other community members after the attack, as "Jason." He was described as white and in his 40s, about 5 feet 10 inches tall with long brown hair. He was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. Both dogs were described as medium-sized dark-colored pit bull mixes, said Roderick.
The captain said the girl had been with her younger brother in the when she left with him to use the restroom at nearby Fielding Field. (Both children are Village residents.)
"She walked with brother to the soccer field. The two dogs ran toward her and started pulling her," said Roderick. "A subject was walking these two dogs off-leash. The dogs just ran over and, for some reason, went after the little girl."
A group of people playing soccer nearby heard the girl scream, ran over and pulled the dogs off of her, said the captain. She received bites to her head and legs.
"She was not in serious condition, but definitely needed medical attention," said Roderick.
paramedics took the girl by ambulance to Children's Hospital & Research Center in Oakland. Roderick said he believed she was treated and released.
Roderick said witnesses initially detained "Jason," but that he eventually left the area.
He said police are working to identify the man and get the dogs in for examination and testing for diseases.
Members of the public can call 510-642-6760 and advise the dispatcher that they have information regarding the possible identity of "Jason."
Police continue to follow up leads and are trying to track the man down through other means, said Roderick.
"We are still working it as we speak," he said. "We're following up some other leads. It's probably someone who lives near the area of University Village."
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If there's something in this article you think , or if something else is amiss, call editor Emilie Raguso at 510-459-8325 or email her at albany@patch.com.
The case of a misbehaving dog is far different. First - leashes should be and are mandatory in most towns and public places. Breaking this rule is the number one cause of dog attacks and unpleasant run-ins with dogs. The fine should be much larger than it is, with the usual application of leniency where deserved, such as a leash breaking, or otherwise innocent error. In the end, it must be admitted that American culture is selfish and unreasonably competitive, does not provide free higher education, free medical care, free old age care, or indeed any kind of care, and thus solutions offered by the public to almost any problems, even this kind of dog issue, tend to be no more than panicky projections of the unsympathetic way society treats them.
Most 'pit-bulls' are just mixed breed dogs. Also, many dogs bite and hurt people, not just extra large ones. Dog behavior is entirely up to humans, so if you see dogs misbehaving you will always find unbalanced, troubled humans behind it.
My god, what a load of bull. Do you really believe even half of these ridiculous excuses for a biting dog? At minimum, the dogs ought to be found and euthanized. Immediately. Then tested for rabies. At the owners expense. The owner should be brought up on assault charges/deadly weapon, convicted and shoved into the slammer to have time to repent. While he's in there I'm sure he'd appreciate your world-views Che. Probably make him feel better about life when the cell door slams shut. In the end, its not about American culture. When the dog has his mouth clamped around a toddlers arm, its about saving the kid from a vicious beast. Stay out of the way if you can't see that truth.
there is a lot of stereotyping going on. If you can't identify a breed, how can you ban a breed? (e.g. no papers)
She said pitbulls have a nervous and unpredictable disposition with hair trigger responses, so it is not possible to anticipate any attacks. In addition the typical pitbull owner enjojys the excitment of having a dog who frightens other people. The reason so many pitbulls end in shelters is probably owners find these dogs may be glamerous, but really are too difficult to control. Another issue is pitbull owners who ride their bikes on the Bayshore trail to Richmond and have their pitbulls run alonside them, without leashes. Obviously they are not under control. The dogs may run close to their bike riding owners, but they also snap at other passing leashed dogs and cyclists.
Ridiculous.
A perfect example to hold up to everyone wanting to ban Pitbulls and thinking they are a menace to society are Daddy and Junior, who belong to Cesar Milan. (Poor Daddy just passed away recently). They are some of the best behaved dogs around, and yet they are Pit Bulls. Milan also takes extremely aggressive dogs and rehabs them to all them back into society. Based on many posts here they would never had had a second chance in life, when most of the root causes were bad owners, and their decisions in the way they take care of them. Are there dogs that are unsalvageable in this World? Probably. Are there owners that cause many of these problems? Absolutely. Are they a MAJORITY of any particular breed? Doubtful. They're just the ones that get the publicity.
I walked down to Memorial park with my kids two weeks ago and a large on-leash dog aggressively lunged at me toppling the owner who was engrossed in a phone conversation. Luckily I was quick enough to avoid any contact with myself or my kids. Yesterday I hiked the Seaview trail in Tilden and a large off-leash dog ran towards me and stopped a foot away snarling and baring teeth. The presumed owners (who were on bikes) screamed at the dog to stop. There was no contact, but I assure you my heart rate went up. I understand that I need to deal with bears in the Sierra's, but why do I need to worry about dogs while taking a walk in Tilden? None of these incidents resulted in any injury, and no way compares to the trauma that the poor girl suffered, but I am sure that both of these owners would think of themselves as 'good ones'. I have many more incidents like the above, and many actual bites, including a pit-bull attack (not a staffordshire, not that it matters) that resulted in both physical and property damage. I am no rabid dog-hater. I love dogs. I have owned a dog. I am comfortable with animals large and small (having worked on a farm). But large off-leash animals in an urban area that are capable of quickly causing enormous destruction requires an unearned trust in the owner that I am not willing to give. Particularly for breeds and variants that are generally known to be aggressive.
http://albany.patch.com/articles/dogs-in-custody-after-alleged-village-attack
the Vick dogs blog, where they show off their cute adventures http://vickdogsblog.blogspot.com/ you'd have those dogs put to death? What's wrong with you people? Have you no empathy?