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ANIMAL WATCH - A woman in Bexar County, TX, was arrested after her Pit Bull severely injured two people, Bexar County Sheriff’s Office announced on January 30, 2025.
The same dog had been involved in prior violent attacks. In 2023, it mauled a woman and her dog and left the victim with costly medical and veterinary bills.
This time Veronica Polley, 38, owner of the Pit Bull, was arrested at her home on Thursday and faces charges of a “dog attack resulting in serious bodily injury.” She is being held at the Bexar County jail on an $85,000 bond, for a vicious attack by the same pet Pit Bull.
“Police arrived at the scene to discover a woman in critical condition and her husband with non-fatal, but serious, wounds, according to the Bexar County Sheriff’s Department,” the Daily Mail reported on January 30, 2025.
The owner was this time arrested after her dog completely ravaged the man's mouth and face and ripped his lips during a brutal mauling. This occurred when he tried to save his dog from an attack.
The unsuspecting 43-year-old man and his wife were walking with their dog in the 8400 block of Shooter Cove in San Antonio, Texas, when the tragic incident happened on January 28, the report said.
Polley’s Pit Bull was not properly restrained and went after the couple's dog, according to the Bexar County Sheriff's Office.
The man sprang into action to save his dog and was successful, but the Pit Bull then turned on him, and dragged him to the ground while mauling his face.
The victim was rushed to the hospital with 'serious facial injuries' to his chin and cheek and part of his lips bitten off, reports stated.
Polley, who made no effort to stop her unconfined dog, was arrested, police said. Video from the sheriff's office showed her being escorted from her home in handcuffs.
She did not appear to be distraught by the situation, witnesses said.
“Footage of the scene showed the malicious dog then attacking and biting two responding officers,” the report states. This resulted in one of the officers shooting the dog three times before the attack stopped. Local animal control says it took away the dog that was shot, and three other dogs from the home.
Due to its injuries, the Pit Bull-mix was taken to a nearby animal hospital and was humanely euthanized, according to the report.
Veronica Polley, the dog’s owner and taken into custody. She is facing at least one charge for an attack by her dog that caused serious bodily injury, jail records show. It is unclear if she will face additional charges.
Polley’s Pit Bull had been involved in previous attacks captured on surveillance video which neighbors shared.
BCSO said Polley will have a court hearing in the upcoming weeks, when a judge will give an order of disposition, determining what will happen to the Pit Bull.
Pit Bull Owner Runs from Walmart with Pit Bull, after Attack on 3-year-old Boy
Owner leaves Walmart with his dog after attack.
A three-year-old boy was attacked by a Pit Bull inside a Walmart store in Vancouver (WA) and sustained such severe damage to the child’s face that his father told KGW on December 18, 2024, that “He’ll never look the same as he did before.”
Andrew Wegener, the father, said the dog bites to his son Jameson's face, required doctors to immediately stitch his lip back together.
The boy’s father explained that he was not present, but the boy was with his 17-year-old brother and 19-year-old cousin and a six-year-old stepson.
When the father arrived after being called, Vancouver police had already responded, and he was told the dog was a “brown Pit Bull mix.” Officers had obtained the surveillance video of the incident and also showed the owner leaving with the dog.
"I turn around and my brother's screaming on the ground, blood's coming out of his face," his older son said, explaining that he had spoken briefly with the dog owner, who said he would “pay for everything.”
“However, as soon as the store manager came, he took off running out of the exit," he said,
Walmart provided KGW with a statement, which included the following:
"We want everyone to have a safe and enjoyable shopping experience in our stores. We allow service animals to accompany customers with disabilities in compliance with state and federal laws."
It is unknown why the dog was in the store, and the family later stated that legal action is being considered, the report states.
Deaf Grandmother Could Not Hear the Three Pit Bulls that Killed Her
Above is an undated photo of deaf grandmother, Gladys Anthony
A deaf grandmother was fatally mauled by her neighbor's three Pit Bulls on January 15, 2025, leaving a trail of blood in the snow as she tried desperately to fight for her life, according to the Daily Mail.
Gladys Anthony, 62, was attacked outside her home in St. Louis, Missouri, as she took her own dog outside in their backyard after her work shift. She worked as a custodian for the Ritenour School District in Overland for over 33 years.
After letting her dog out in the backyard, the three Pit Bulls charged her but. because of her disability, “she had no warning,” her family said. Her husband, 73, attempted to save his wife by firing a gun to scare them off and then used a broom--the only weapon he had to try to get them away from her.
A ShotSpotter, identified those shots fired around 11:40 p.m. and police officers were quickly dispatched to the 5900 block of Theodore Avenue in St. Louis, Missouri, with the message that “help was needed.”
While one police officer located Gladys and began trying to stop the heavy bleeding from her multiple wounds, two others rushed in to try to stop the three Pit Bulls with pepper spray.
But Gladys was too badly wounded and, tragically, she died during surgery later at the hospital.
“They took a chunk of her arm,” Gladys' daughter told First Alert 4. “Her legs were ate up. There was nothing that could be done to stop those damn dogs from touching her,” she told officers.
Blood in the snow shows where Grandmother Gladys tried to escape the three dogs which she could not hear and could not protect herself against before they attacked and killed her.
Local animal control officers removed the dogs from the home of their 54-year-old male owner. It is unclear if he will face charges and whether the dogs will be euthanized for the safety of the community.
Her family is now trying to grieve Gladys' sudden death while also getting justice.
'She was sweet. She was loveable. Everybody that knew her loved her. She had so many friends,' her daughter said, 'It’s just crazy this happened to her like this. She didn’t deserve it at all. Not one bit of it and now she’s got grandkids who don’t have their grandmother.'
Her colleagues knew her for 'her hard work, warm smile, and willingness to help anyone in need,' her GoFundMe page said.
Animal control took the dogs from their owner, a 54-year-old man. It is unclear if he will face charges.
Gladys would've celebrated her 63rd birthday on Friday. Her family organized a balloon release in honor of her, which Anthony shared on Facebook. She is described as a being known for “her hard work, warm smile, and willingness to help anyone in need,” the page said.
Gladys' niece, VRene Green, set up a GoFundMe page to “give her the proper homegoing she deserves.”
'She was a gentle, caring, and selfless woman who spent her life looking out for others. To see her life taken in such a violent way, in the place she should have felt safest, is something we cannot come to terms with,” Green added, saying the page is also 'about raising awareness of this tragedy.
We believe that by sharing her story, we can spark change and make sure no one else has to go through what we are.”
Tampa Police Respond to Pit Bull Attack on Woman and Dog
On January 29, WFLA reported that, “Tampa Police officers responded to a call regarding a dog attack on East Mulberry Drive around 1 p.m., and found a large Pit Bull violently attacking a woman.”
Authorities said Animal Control was called to remove the Pit Bull and another dog nearby which it had also attacked
“Pepper spray was ineffective in stopping the dog and it was necessary for one of the officers to shoot to dog to save the woman’s life,” officers said, “the dog would not release its grip.” The victim was reported as “severely injured” and was transported by ambulance to a nearby hospital.
This was the second pit bull attack in southern Arizona in less than a month, according to WFLA. In December, a man and his German Shepherd were attacked by two Pit Bulls that had escaped their yard and then reportedly attacked another man who stopped his car to try to help stop the fight between the dogs.
Finally, a driver who had a rifle in his car stopped to help and when he exited his vehicle, one of the Pit Bulls immediately charged him before returning to maul the German Shepherd. He fired one shot, killing the attacking dog instantly.
Pit Bull Kills Woman Who Fostered Him for Over a Year
(Tina Weger)
On January 24, 2025, 13 News in Tuscon, Arizona, reported that a Tucson woman was killed by a Pit Bull-mix that she had been fostering for over a year.
The report advised that the “Tucson Police Department told 13 News on Monday there was a death investigation following an incident at a home in the 6800 block of East Via Arroyo the day before. The home is near South Kolb Road and Interstate 10.”
Her death was on Friday, January 24, when the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner issued a statement that the death of 61-year-old Tina Weger was from the attack, and the dog was euthanized by the Pima Animal Care Center.
The Pit Bull-mix for which Weger had provided loving care as her own pet and best friend for more than a year, was peacefully euthanized by the Pima Animal Care Center.
Steve Kozachik, the interim director of PACC, which is the local animal shelter, told 13-News, “This was a difficult but necessary decision.”
“We don’t take euthanizing lightly out here,” he said. “But, when an incident like this happens, such a catastrophic incident. There was no way that we could justify putting a dog like that back out in the community.”
“Weger suffered puncture wounds and the attack is being investigated by the Tucson Police Department and Pima Animal Care Center,” according to OME.
PACC said Weger got the dog from a local rescue and added that, “There are about 800 PACC pets living in the Tucson community outside of their shelters.”
This is a tragic, but realistic, warning for those who take dogs with a “troubled” past or an unknown history and believe they can “change them.”
Tina Weger’s death was a true tragedy and loss. But, it is testimony to the fact that adult animals in shelters have been relinquished for some reason, and it is wise to explore this carefully and objectively before falling in love and taking them home.
Some things we can address by training; such as, housekeeping issues or pulling on a leash, but some are inherent in the particular animal, may develop as it matures, and can be a serious risk -- no matter how much we love them.
(Phyllis M. Daugherty is a former Los Angeles City employee, an animal activist and a contributor to CityWatch.)
