Boy attacked by 3 rottweilers recovering well


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ST GEORGE — Just two weeks ago, an 11-year-old boy from St. George was attacked by three rottweilers. He had injuries over his entire body, including bites so deep doctors could see muscle.

Nevertheless, these days K.J. Reid is doing much better. At the start of National Dog Bite Prevention Week, you wouldn't think he was the same boy suffering from an attack back on May 6.

Being mauled by dogs hasn't scared Reid away from dogs entirely. Sunday, he played with his dog Ted. It serves a decent distraction from memories of the rottweilers. Reid said he was playing hide and seek and jumped over the neighbor's fence.

That's when the dogs attacked, biting and tearing at him. Owner Barbara Torres tried to lay over Reid in order to protect the boy, but the dogs turned on her as well. The owner's 10-year-daughter ended up stabbing one of the dogs.

Reid said he remembers only bits and pieces of what happened that day. He spent the next six days in the hospital recovering, suffering bites all over his body as well as four broken ribs with one cracked two times. He has 62 stitches.

"Most of the nurses say I'm the toughest kid they've ever treated," he said.

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Fortunately, Reid suffered wounds that will all heal. But unfortunately, he isn't the only boy with this story. Dog bites were the tenth leading cause of non-fatal unintentional injury to children ages 10 to 14 over the last decade, according to the advocacy group Prevent the Bite. The American Academy of Pediatrics reports more than half of all dog bite victims are children.

Advocates want owners to take action in stopping dog bites. To help prevent an attack, trainers recommend never leaving a child alone with a dog, socializing it as a puppy, never threatening or teasing a dog and making regular veterinary visits — a sick or injured dog is more likely to bite.

As for Reid, he is well on his way to a complete recovery. His attackers are being held in quarantine at the Animal Control Facility in St. George. Torres has not been charged with any crime, but the local animal control department is investigating the attack.

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Devon Dolan

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