7 Bitten, 6 Hospitalized After 4 Dogs Attack Neighbors In Washington

Seven people were bitten and six of them were transported to hospitals when they tried to stop an aggressive pack of loose dogs from attacking another dog on Wednesday, officials said.

The Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office said a deputy arrived on the scene in Bremerton as the attack was underway, and helped a man take cover in a patrol vehicle to get away from the vicious dogs.

Body-worn camera video shared by the sheriff’s office shows the deputy helping to “fend off” the attacking dogs, at least one of which had its snout covered in blood. The deputy “repeatedly” used pepper spray, but it had no affect on the animals. That victim eventually made it to the safety of the patrol vehicle, but the dogs simply turned their attentions toward attacking other people on the street.

The sheriff’s office said a total of seven people were bitten, and six of them were transported to Saint Michael’s Medical Center with “severe” bite wounds. One person was “badly injured by a bit on the face.”

According to the sheriff’s office, the incident began when the owner of the aggressive dogs took one of them out for a walk on a leash. When the dog spotted another dog in the neighborhood, it became aggressive and attacked the other dog. At that point, his three other dogs “burst through an open door” and joined the fray.

Neighbors told KOMO the injured dog, a Rhodesian Ridgeback named Jasper, died following the attack. Several people intervened to try to stop the attacking dogs, described as pit bulls, and were injured. According to the sheriff’s office, one person even used a “small, machete-like sword” to try to stop the attack.

Kitsap Animal Control took custody of the four attacking dogs. The sheriff’s office said their owner is now under investigation for owning dangerous animals.