Girl, 9 'fine' after dog attack in San Leon

By T.J. Aulds

The Daily News  

Published April 20, 2010

SAN LEON — The dog responsible for tearing a little girl’s ear off and leaving severe bite marks on her arm and face Saturday was euthanized Sunday, officials confirmed.  

The dog’s owner voluntarily released the dog to be put down, a sheriffs office spokesman said. 

Animal control officials confirmed that the dog responsible for the attack was a Rhodesian Ridgeback. Initially San Leon fire officials who responded to the scene reported that the dog was a pit bull. 

Meanwhile, the 9-year-old girl, who lost part of her left ear in the attack and suffered bites to her left arm, cheek and hand, was released Sunday from Texas Children’s Hospital. Galveston County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Maj. Ray Tuttoilmondo said the girl was “doing quite fine,” after having her ear reattached. 

The girl’s mother Linda Hlavka did not want to talk about the incident Monday, but the girl’s uncle, Mike Wood, said the 9-year-old was in good spirits and actually was allowed to play. 

“Her ear was pretty severely mangled,” Wood said. “It took them three hours to put it back together.” 

Still, Wood lashed out at the dog’s owner. 

“People need to take a little more responsibility for their actions,” he said. “Somebody has to pay and owes my niece a new ear.” 

Attempts to reach the dog’s owner were unsuccessful. 

The girl was attacked while playing with a friend in a neighbor’s yard Saturday morning in the 900 block of Ninth Street.  

When the dog’s owner, Cheryl Conklin, opened the back door to check on the children, the dog bolted outside and attacked the little girl, according to the sheriff’s office report. 

Conklin was able to pull the child away from the dog and called 911.  

She told investigators that the dog had bitten another child before. 

Kim Schoolcraft, the director of the Galveston County Animal Resource Center, said the owner voluntarily surrendered the dog to animal control to be euthanized. 

No charges had been filed in the case, Tuttoilmondo said.

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(News Media: For more information contact Kurt Koopmann, GCHD Public Information Officer, (409) 938-2211)