In late September Sherry Fenn’s mother and her best friend, furry family member Jack, were attacked while taking their daily stroll through the neighborhood. The traumatic incident has caused serious emotional and physical issues for both the mid-70s victim and her loyal dog companion Jack. They are working toward recovery, but it has been a slow process.

Jack is a 13-year-old English springer spaniel and has been with Fenn’s mother since he was a puppy. Originally Fenn got the dog for her father on Father’s Day but the undeniable connection between her mom and Jack changed that situation right away.

According to Fenn, they have an unbreakable bond and they do everything together. Since the attack both of them have shown a decline in health, Fenn explained. They both sustained deep puncture wounds which have gotten infected. Jack was bitten around his neck and he has gone deaf. Fenn’s mom suffered bite marks to her left leg and right hand. The day of the attack the dog knocked Fenn’s mother on her back in the middle of the crosswalk on Atchison Street, which caused her to have a back and shoulder injury. Fenn said her mom admits to no longer feeling safe.

“She never saw the dog coming,” said Fenn. “It just hit them. She is walking all messed up now, very slow and crooked. The puncture wounds were so deep so they couldn’t stitch them so they had to heal on their own. Those puncture wounds bled continuously for over a week. Her hand if she bumps it, it will start bleeding again because the holes were so deep from the bites. She has these huge knots all over her legs … her leg started getting infected.”

The day of the attack Fenn got a call from local sheriff’s deputies about the incident, explaining that they drove her mother and Jack home. The ambulance then arrived and transported her to the hospital. Later on that day Jack went to the vet.

“You can see that her health has declined since then,” added Fenn. “She is scared to go out for walks in the morning because there are so many loose dogs running the streets. So now she thinks she is going to get attacked by every dog so she has shortened her walks. She still tries to get out with Jack in the morning but they do not take the same path.”

The original path they used to take was also a social moment for them as they would pass city workers who got to know her and Jack. Their walks now are shorter so they no longer get the interaction that they used to enjoy so much.

Fenn explained that the dog was not a stray and was a medium sized dog in the Pit Bull family. The dog had a microchip and the owners had problems keeping it contained. The dog has since been euthanized.

“They let that dog just roam the streets,” Fenn said. “I think it should be brought out to the public so that it doesn’t happen to anyone else. They need to get a handle on these loose dogs.”

Nifty’s owner Isidro de Jesus Carrasco ran outside with a hammer and wrench to get the dog off the lady and there was another man there that helped stop the attack. Fenn is so thankful for their assistance and showed her appreciation by visiting the owners and bringing Carrasco a bigger hammer just in case he witnessed another dog attack.

“They are great people,” stated Fenn. “Some people would not react like that. There are so many people that would turn their head and not go into action. It is nice to know there are people out there that are looking out for strangers. They didn’t know my mom. They had enough compassion in them to go out there and get this dog off them and save her.”