Lucky to Survive Pit Bull Attack

What can we learn from this story from the Houston Chronicle?

Man strangles attacking pit bull in Conroe
The 65-year-old retired truck driver, who suffered bites on his arms and hands, said the dog attacked him about five minutes into his walk. He said he heard a dog barking and thought it was in a yard, but then seconds later saw the dog running toward him from the corner of his eye.

''I turned to face him and when I seen it was pit bull, I knew I was in trouble," Pardue said. ''I put my hands up and I hollered at him. He immediately jumped to my throat."

Pardue said he swung at the dog with his fist and grabbed its head and ears to keep it from biting him. The dog shook loose from his grip and began chewing on his right hand.

With his knee, Pardue said he hit the dog in the ribs and it let go of his hand. He grabbed the dog's thick. white collar and while keeping a firm grip on its neck, dragged the dog to his house, where his wife called 911.

Pardue said he did not realize he had killed the dog until police arrived.

''If not for the collar, I don't know how I would have ever been able to wrestle him down," he said. "The dog was about 80 pounds and very vicious. It was hard to believe the viciousness in which he attacked me but I was able to contain him."

Pardue said he did not have time to be scared. He said he knew he could not run from the dog, so he followed his survival instinct.

He's a big man, couldn't run, and was forced to defend himself. One of the reasons it seems he was successful in surviving was that he deprived the attacking dog of it's basis of power- the ground, using it's collar. The choke worked well, but if not for the collar...

Check out the Dog Attacks category for more information on defending against vicious dogs.

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