Tragic death of 8-month-old toddler attacked by family dog

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An eight-month-old toddler died Wednesday afternoon after she was attacked by a family dog at her grandmother’s home in Miramar, Florida. The baby, Liana Valino, had been in a bouncy chair in one of the bedrooms.

According to the Sun Sentinel, Miramar firefighters were called to the home in response to a call reporting a dog bite.  Miramar Police Officer Yessennia Diaz stated the grandmother had been in charge of the baby, and the three dogs in the home had been raised from puppies. The child was pronounced dead at the scene.

The baby’s mother, Brenda Villasin, 24, would drop off her baby while she went to work. Police state it was Liana’s grandmother, the mother of the baby’s father, who had been caring for Liana in the home at the time of the attack.

“She was the best thing to ever happen to me.” Brenda told the news media.
Officer Diaz described the dog that attacked as a male pit bull breed. Its siblings and mother dog were also in the home. Brenda said she doesn’t blame the breed. According to the Miami Herald, neighbors had often seen the dogs running around in the backyard. Although the dogs were not overly friendly, neighbors never saw any of the dogs as threatening or acting aggressively.
All of the dogs have been removed and are currently in the custody of the Broward County Animal Control. Only one of the dogs is suspected as having attacked the baby, and its future will depend on the investigation, evaluation and Animal Control. Most likely the dog will be euthanized.
Details as to how the attack  occurred have not been released, however it is imperative to remind all parents and caregivers to never leave a dog alone with a baby. Dogs can become agitated by noises and movements of a baby. Research has shown a child in a swing can activate a dog’s prey drive. Even a six-week-old puppy has prey drive. Some dogs will treat small children as if they are other dogs.  There should always be extra caution with moving baby items such as swings.
Even one second is too long to leave a dog alone with a baby. No one wins in these situations – a child dies and a dog is euthanized.
(Photo of baby attacked by family dog via Brenda Villasin)
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Hikers found body of dead dog, buried in a cage – read more here.

Hikers find dead dog buried in cage

 


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6 COMMENTS

  1. Very sad story!! I’m sure the dog will be euthanized even though I’m sure the bite was unintentional. And why take all three dogs?? Man, the other two should b returned!! Sad ending on both sides!

  2. how many times this year has this happened ALREADY???? Everyone THINKS this would never HAPPEN TO ME!!! The ANIMAL and the Child suffers the ignorance of the FAMILY MEMBER that ALLOWS THIS TO CONTINUE!!! The child will never grow up to play and have fun : the dog suffers for its instinct ! The Adult will place the blame on anyone but themselves!!!! SO SAD!!!

  3. Tragic all the way around. The baby is gone and I bet they’ll kill all the dogs. If there were pitties around while I was babysitting, that little baby girl would be in my arms or in her crib.

  4. The blame lies completely with the grandmother – she should have known better than to leave her 8 month old grandchild alone – any dog could have done this – but since it is a pit bull it will undoubtedly raise more ire about the breed which is unfair. They get so much bad publicity because of what people have caused – at least the mother is not blaming the dog – this is a tragic situation but once again the media puts these dogs in a bad light and blames the wrong species.

  5. What was the grandmothing doing? She is totally to blame for this. Another thing, why did the mother continue to take the child there knowing the dogs were in the home? And lastly, WHERE WAS THE FATHER? If you can’t afford to care for your children, DONT HAVE THEM.

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