Pit Bull Attacks Woman, Bystanders Hit Dog With Baseball Bats

The attack in San Jacinto left the woman with severe puncture wounds

A pit bull charged a 76-year-old woman on Tuesday, sending her to a medical center with severe puncture wounds, according to San Jacinto police.

The victim was walking on Commonwealth Avenue when the dog attacked, police said.

Bystanders tried to help the woman by hitting the pit bull with baseball bats so the dog would get off of her, police said.

The two men who helped the woman told NBC4 that they heard screaming and ran outside with a baseball bat and golf club. They beat the dog as it dragged the woman for a few minutes.

"I was just hitting him in the body, but the dog wouldn’t let go," said José Reyes.

The dog has been placed in a 10-day quarantine, and animal control officials said it likely will be put down.

The dog's owner described the pit bull as "playful," and said he wasn't home at the time of the attack.

"I don't know what antagonized him," the owner told NBC4.

Neighbors said the victim moved to the community about a month ago and was making her daily shopping trip when the dog attacked.

The attack came just after the insurance company Farmers Group, Inc., notified policyholders in February that bites by pit bulls, Rottweilers and wolf hybrids will no longer be covered by homeowners insurance in the state.

This is just one of several reports made since last month, including one involving a man shooting two pit bulls during an attack on a San Dimas equestrian trail. A woman and her horse were attacked by two pit bulls Feb. 23 on the trail, prompting a neighbor to call for help before his relative shot at the dogs with a rifle, killing one.

About two weeks before the incident on the trail, a 91-year-old Desert Hot Springs woman died after she was attacked by her two pit bulls.

Authorities asked anyone with information about Tuesday’s incident to call the San Jacinto Police Department at 951-654-2702.

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