Geronimo woman in hospital after dog attack

GERONIMO, Okla_A vicious attack by a pit bull on a woman in Geronimo may cause her to lose her leg. Sandy Schwab said she was walking to her friend's door when the dog ran up and started biting her leg. Her friend managed to get the dog off her and called 911. Hospital workers said the attack was so vicious she's lucky she didn't bleed to death. In spite of that, authorities haven't taken the dog away, and that has angered the woman's family.

Her injuries are very severe. The muscle and tissue between her leg and her groin area was ripped off. The wound, which is now infected, is about the size of a large cantaloupe. Her family says because of the severity of the bite, the animal should have been quarantined.

Nancy Mason said she was initially nonchalant when she heard her sister had been bitten by a dog at a house in Geronimo.

"I ended up going to the emergency room and when I got there I could not believe what I had seen."

That's when reality set in and then the doctors gave her more bad news.

"If that would have been a child it would have killed that baby. The doctors even said that it was within centimeters of her main artery and she would have bled to death."

Her family was angry when they learned that the dog was still with its owner. Especially, when they heard that the dog had bitten someone else a few weeks ago.

Comanche County Sheriff Kenny Stradley said his department heard that as well.

"I asked the individual about that and he said he didn't know that he'd bit the neighbor. The neighbor had been harassing the dog. He wasn't sure that he bit him so I don't have anything to stand on."

Legally the owner can keep the dog after it's bitten someone, but under specific conditions.

"If the dog had bit someone and the people have the ability to prove it's had its shots, they can quarantine it themselves for ten days. Put the dog up make sure the dog doesn't get loose."

It's a law Mason doesn't agree with. She says dogs who attack people this brutally, should be automatically taken from the owner during the quarantine period.

"To make sure they don't have rabies. You wonder if this dog is going to do it again. They need to study this animal to see if it's going to be a violent dog."

Mason says Schwab had her first of four surgeries Monday. Doctors are going to have to remove even more of the tissue around the wound, because it's dying. Mason says her sister is also a diabetic, making the healing process that much slower.

Geronimo City Hall said the dog's owners were issued a citation on the day of the attack. They say they are still investigating the situation.