A video of a pit bull allegedly attacking a young girl has gone viral on TikTok with over 645,000 views.
In the video, the 10-year-old daughter of Lindsay Wojewuczki can be seen leaving her house as a black pit bull breaks free of its leash nearby and immediately rushes over to her on a snowy driveway. She holds her ground as the dog races around her, at one point jumping up and biting her arm, until its owner arrives and gains control of the animal. The dog owner can be heard saying “she’s OK, she won’t hurt you” as the dog ignores the recall and can be heard growling as she jumps.
Wojewuczki explains that her daughter was wearing a thick winter coat, which protected her from the dog’s teeth and that she cannot watch the video without “tears in her eyes.”
Some users were angry that Wojewuczki appeared to be adding to the negative stigma around pit bulls, with one writing: “‘attack’ lol sure—it’s people like you who mischaracterize dog interactions and get them confiscated and euthanized. Shame on you.”
Others were disparaging about the breed, with one commenting: “Yall are stupid. ‘just playing’. Those dogs need to be eliminated. I would have taken care of that dog real quick.”
Pit bulls are a controversial breed because of their size, power and potential threat to people and animals. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) points out in its position statement on pit bulls that they are descended from English bull-baiting dogs that were bred to bite and hold bulls, bears and other large animals around the face and head. When the practice was outlawed in the 1800s, these same dogs were subsequently made to fight each other.
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A recent report by the American Animal Hospital Association argues that pit bulls are “responsible for the highest percentage of reported bites across all studies (22.5%), followed by mixed breeds (21.2%), and German shepherds (17.8%).”
According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, pit bulls are the most abused dogs in the world, and the Washington Post reported that they spend roughly three times longer in animals shelters than other dog breeds.
The ASPCA continue their statement saying: “It is likely that that the vast majority of pit bull type dogs in our communities today are the result of random breeding—two dogs being mated without regard to the behavioral traits being passed on to their offspring. The result of random breeding is a population of dogs with a wide range of behavioral predispositions. For this reason it is important to evaluate and treat each dog, no matter its breed, as an individual.
“All dogs, including pit bulls, are individuals. Treating them as such, providing them with the care, training and supervision they require, and judging them by their actions and not by their DNA or their physical appearance is the best way to ensure that dogs and people can continue to share safe and happy lives together.”
Newsweek has reached out to Wojewuczki for comment.
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