Michigan State Senator suffers severe injury in freak accident after being attacked by pit bull
flickr photo courtesy of manitari
The severity of the injury was mitigated by the fact that Johnson was wearing gloves. Surgery was required to repair and reconstruct the hand after he drove himself to Henry Ford Hospital. Johnson's fingers, luckily, were not severed.
The pit bull appeared to be in good condition — as if it were someone's pet. The dog has not been located yet.
Pit bulls are banned in Highland Park. However, financial woes have made it difficult to enforce the policy.
Funding shortfalls in the area of staffing animal control exacerbate the issue of homeless and neglected dogs — a chronic problem in Metro Detroit. Johnson indicated in an interview with MLive Detroit that this attack is an indication of how serious the overall topic of stray pets running around is.
The Discovery Channel proposed "A Dog's Life," a series that would chronicle the life of stray dogs in Detroit from a four-legged point of view: attaching tiny cameras to the dogs and seeing what goes on day-to-day.
The city's mayor nixed the idea.
Lorrie Shaw is lead pets blogger for AnnArbor.com and owner of Professional Pet Sitting. She welcomes your contact via email and you can follow her on Twitter.
Comments
kay
Sun, Feb 27, 2011 : 5:07 p.m.
This is another example of irresponsible journalism----headlines have to say pit bull attacks just to get readers, and to defame the pit bull reputation. So many dog attacks daily and all we hear about are pit bulls. My neighbor was severely bitten by a "small cute dog breed"--yet never read about that even though she filled out a police report. Try finding out about the read and writing an article about their loyalty, personality, humor, and dedication to their owners.
maid marian
Sat, Feb 26, 2011 : 7:59 p.m.
It is so sad that animals are left on attended. This pit bull may not have been a stray. Laws or no laws some people are just not good neighbors. We live in a rural setting and we have neighbors who just refuse to be responsible for their animals. While they have small fenced enclosures, they allow their 4+ dogs to roam the neighborhood. I have come home more than one night to the neighbors dogs aggreviously protecting MY YARD! This 3 + year ongoing problem can't be settled with the owners, the police can't do anything until I'm attacked, and animal control wants ME to catch the dogs and hold them for pickup, or just shoot them, because they are on my property. Believe me it doesn't have to be a pit bull or a pit bull mix to cause a problem. Dogs not properly cared for are a problem for everyone.
Halima
Thu, Feb 24, 2011 : 3:22 a.m.
Highland Park is not an enclave *of* Detroit. It is a separate city, an enclave *within* Detroit.
Jen Eyer
Thu, Feb 24, 2011 : 12:24 p.m.
Although that language is commonly used elsewhere, the wording has been updated to further clarify what Highland Park is to Detroit.
EVRYBDYZGT1
Thu, Feb 24, 2011 : 2:34 a.m.
Was the Senator bitten when he was attacked? I remember when I was "attacked" by the stray I now own. I admit, I was intimitated when she approached me. It turns out, she just wanted someone to show her some love and attention.
bob
Thu, Feb 24, 2011 : 12:55 a.m.
HEADLINE "Michigan State Senator suffers severe injury in freak accident after being attacked by pit bull' Note - the "severe" injury was not caused by the actual dog...it was caused when the senator fell into his snowblower. This headline is a little deceiving. I agree with Robert...the breed is not bad, it is the irresponsible owners. I have owned several dobermans...people are often intiminated, some homeowners insurance charge more....but they are wonderful family dogs. Powerful but smart & obedient.
julieswhimsies
Wed, Feb 23, 2011 : 10:08 p.m.
The dog was not restrained. It was a stray. Its breed is irrelevant. I wholeheartedly agree with Robert.
Robert
Wed, Feb 23, 2011 : 9:48 p.m.
Stray dogs are dangerous. Good thing it was just one dog and not a pack. Just like humans, once group think takes over things get quickly out of hand. I certainly feel for the senator. You can't legislate-away a living thing though. Doesn't work... no amount of money for enforcement would help. There are determined, responsible owners and breeders who will never comply with such laws and the criminal element won't comply either. Pit Bull bans are foolish anyway. Pit bulls can be perfectly friendly and docile dogs just like any other breed. It isn't their fault that their musculature makes them the preferred choice of dog fighters. Its just so sad that they catch the bad reputation that should be shouldered by the evil people who train them to kill. Oh well... I guess all that I can do personally is take good care of mine in the future and let him be a shining counter-example to the biased media depictions.