Mother-of-one ‘mauled’ by neighbour’s husky in front of her young daughter – after it ate two of her pet cats
A mother claims she was nearly mauled in front of her young daughter by her neighbor’s husky after it had already eaten two of her pet cats.
Michelle Savage-McPherson, from Athens, Ohio in the US, was walking from her garage to her backyard last month when she heard the dog growling at her.
But moments later, the 41-year-old said it suddenly launched itself upon biting, leaving 16 bite marks on her chest, head and left thigh.
It was only after her seven-year-old daughter heard the mother of three ‘screaming for her life’ that her husband was informed of the brutal attack.
Mrs Savage-McPherson, who was immediately taken to hospital with horrific injuries and dripping in blood, is still recovering from her shocking injuries.
Michelle Savage-McPherson, from Athens, Ohio in the US, was walking from her garage to her backyard last month when she heard the dog growling at her
But moments later, the 41-year-old said it suddenly launched itself upon biting, leaving her with 16 bite marks on her chest, head and left thigh.
It was only after her seven-year-old daughter (pictured) heard the mother of three ‘screaming for her life’ that her husband was alerted to the brutal attack
Yet the dog was reportedly soon returned to the neighbor after being registered as dangerous, leaving her family feeling “like prisoners in their own home.”
Recalling her terrifying ordeal, she said: “I was walking through the garage door into our backyard and out of nowhere our neighbor’s husky was growling at me.
“He jumped in the air, hit me on the forehead and knocked me down.
‘He went for my throat at first, but then somehow I turned around and he bit straight into my chest and then bit me under the chest.
‘I was screaming and kicking, trying to get him off. I turned on my side and he bit my thigh and started dragging me towards the woods near our house.
‘I screamed for my husband, but he couldn’t hear me inside.
‘The only thing that saved my life was my seven-year-old daughter, who saw it happen from our back window and screamed for my husband.
‘I have no idea how the dog got off me or how I got off the ground, I can’t remember those few seconds.
‘I would have died if my husband had not come out. I’ve never seen a dog do that before. I thought this was the way I was going to die.”
She suffered ten bites on her thigh, four on her chest and two on her forehead.
However, Ms Savage-McPherson, who works in university admissions, claimed the dog had not been seized and was instead returned to its owner after being registered as a ‘dangerous dog’.
She added: “He also attacked our neighbor and they said there was nothing they could do. The dog has just been returned to its owner.
‘If my seven-year-old had gone there it would have killed her. There was no way she could have gotten away.
The dog was reportedly soon returned to the neighbor after being registered as dangerous, leaving her family feeling “like prisoners in their own home.” Pictured is Mrs Savage-Macpherson with husband Mitchell and her seven-year-old daughter Brynlee
Ms Savage-Macpherson suffered ten bites on her left thigh, four on her chest and two on her forehead. The photo shows the bites in her thigh
‘I asked the director, ‘at what point will that dog be put down?’ It has eaten several of our pets, attacked us and our neighbors.
‘They said they could mark the dog as aggressive and it could be registered with the court as a dangerous dog, but that’s it.
‘(The neighbor) is not helpful at all. When we talked about the dog eating our cats, he said, “Well, it’s just a cat, who cares?” No, it’s our pet.
“There was no ‘I’m sorry’ after the attack. My daughter is having a really hard time with it. She is terrified to go outside.
‘The children cannot go outside alone. It’s like torment.
‘She almost saw her mother die. Our three children love to be outside and active and we feel like we have to keep them indoors.
‘It’s like we’re a prisoner in our own home. It makes us want to move.”
However, Ms Savage-McPherson, who works in university admissions, claimed the dog had not been seized and was instead returned to its owner after being registered as a ‘dangerous dog’.
She said: ‘I would have died if my husband had not come there. I’ve never seen a dog do that before. I thought this was the way I was going to die.”
The Athens County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment due to pending criminal and civil charges.
The Athens County Dog Warden has also been contacted for comment.
In one of the latest fatal dog attacks in Britain, a mother-of-two was mauled to death by her two XL Bully dogs in Hornchurch, east London.
Angeline Mahal, who was in her 50s, died at home in the first fatal attack by a registered XL Bully since the breed was banned in February.
The two dogs were seized by police – some with riot shields – after being locked in a room.
Recent figures show that the number of dog attacks in Britain has risen by a fifth in one year, with police recording more than 80 incidents a day.
Police recorded 30,539 offenses where a dog injured a person or a seeing-eye dog last year, a BBC investigation found, up from 25,291 in 2022.
NHS data also shows that dogs were the most dangerous animal in England in the 2023-2024 financial year, with almost 11,000 bites and strikes.
Of these, nearly 4,000 were emergencies requiring urgent medical care.