Pet Dog Mauled 3-Month-Old Infant Who Later Died In Los Angeles Hospital

An infant was fatally mauled by a dog in a home in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, California, on Saturday.

The attack was reported around 3:25 p.m. local time (6:25 p.m. EDT) in the 14400 block of Benefit Street. Animal control officers took three dogs – a Rottweiler, a Labrador and a terrier – which were in the house into custody. All of them were pets of the family. The Rottweiler weighed 98 pounds, the Labrador was 89 pounds and the terrier was 10 pounds.

They are not sure as to which one is responsible for what the police called a “true tragedy.” Investigators said it was entirely possible that more than one dog attacked the infant.

The three-month-old female victim was rushed to the hospital in a critical condition at 3:30 p.m. local time (6:30 p.m. EDT) where she succumbed to her injuries in the evening.

“It is with deep sadness and a heavy hear that we share with you the passing of the baby. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends. The Mayor’s Crisis Response Team will be by the family’s side during this difficult time,” Capt. Lillian Carranza of Los Angeles Police Department tweeted.

"This is a horrible case," Carranza added, Los Angeles Times reported. "It has touched all involved family, friends and first responders. Our hearts go out to the family and friends. As I understand, next Sunday would have been the mother's first Mother's Day."

The police did not suspect it to be a case of neglect or criminal intent. It is believed that the baby's grandmother, who was babysitting the infant, stepped away from her grandchild "for a few seconds" to get the baby's bottle, when the dogs snuck into the room and mauled the baby.

Apart from the LAPD, the mayor's Crisis Response Team was also in contact with the victim’s family.

DNA samples have been collected from all the three dogs. The police said Animal Control is yet to determine which dog(s) is responsible for the incident, after which they will decide whether to put it down, NBC Bay Area reported.

There have been several cases of deadly dog mauling in the recent past, although most of them involve wild dogs. On Saturday, a woman was critically injured when four vicious pit bulls attacked her as she was walking down Northeast 29th Street near Lindsey Avenue, Oklahoma City.

One eyewitness, Kwasi Stephens, said: “Like four pits just attacked her. We were like dang, and d I ain't gonna lie, it got graphic, like limbs, you saw some bone, blood. They had her arm, leg. They were just kind of ripping at her.”

Neighbors in the area tried to help the woman, but it wasn’t until the police arrived at the scene that the dogs let go of the woman.

“There were two guys that tried to help her. One dude with a bat, and one dude was just hitting on them but like, the dogs wasn't giving up and that's when the cops were called. The cops started shooting at them," Stephens said, News9 reported.