Dog Attacks Child But Father Refuses to Bring Daughter to the Hospital

Dog Attacks Child But Father Refuses to Bring Daughter to the Hospital
KARIM JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images

A Florida dad is facing charges of child neglect after his dog attacked his child but he refused to bring her to the hospital for treatments.

Trenton Boettcher, 27, told investigators of the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) and the Daytona Beach police that he "can't do hospitals." So, his daughter had to bear the pain of her punctured wounds.

Per Click Orlando, DCF was called to inspect the family home on Saturday, July 30, where there was a little girl with something oozing out of her bandaged wound. The child was bitten under the right side armpit. Apparently, the dog attack happened two days prior.

Father didn't pick up medications for his daughter

Boettcher told the investigators that he didn't see the actual dog bite but admitted that he intervened when he saw his dog on his daughter. During the investigations, the officials also learned that the dog, an American bulldog named Dozer, would behave in an aggressive and vicious manner towards the girl.

It was the child's stepmother, Boettcher's girlfriend, who took the girl to the hospital for treatments but she apparently refused to have photos taken of the dog's wounds. The stepmother was also hesitant to inform the child's mom about the attack. Boettcher's daughter was only visiting him for the summer as she lives with her mom in Minnesota.

Doctors prescribed antibiotics for the child's dog bites but neither the father, his stepmother or even the grandmother who also lives in the house, made an effort to pick up the medication at a local pharmacy. Thus, the child continued to suffer from an infection.

Boettcher and his girlfriend were positive for cocaine while the grandmother had traces of marijuana. Three other children, who also live in the same house, were taken by DCF upon this discovery, per The Daytona Beach News-Journal.

Dog attacks 4-year-old girl inside a home without any adult

Meanwhile, in Dallas, a dog also attacked a 4-year-old girl who was inside their house without any adult. The child's mom, Tiara Freeman, stepped out for a few minutes to get something at a store. She asked her friend, who is the owner of three pit bulls and who lives with Freeman and her kids, to look after them while she was gone.

However, a neighbor told Dallas News that the friend stepped out of the house to talk to the other neighbors. Suddenly, they heard the dogs growling and barking. When Freeman came home, she found her child bleeding with the dogs nearby. The 4-year-old was rushed to the hospital but did not survive the attack.

Michael Pennington, who lives across the street, said they have reported the dogs to the Dallas Animal Control Services before as they often got out of the property through a broken window. Other neighbors also said that they could not let their kids out knowing that the dogs would roam around and potentially attack.

Prior to the child's death, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services was also called in due to safety concerns with the animal. However, it was not clear if the dog owner was told to get rid of her animals because they are not safe for children.

The dogs are now taken into custody. Charges have not been filed as of press time.

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