9-Year-Old Badly Hurt In Pit Bull Attack

By Michael George

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  • A pit bull attacked a child in Sheboygan. Video by tmj4.com

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SHEBOYGAN- Nine-year-old A.J. Sterling is recovering at home after being attacked by a pit bull. His injuries are severe, and his parents are angry with the dog’s owners.

Witness Connor Lieser tells TODAY’S TMJ4 the attack appeared to be unprovoked, as the boy was reaching down to pet the dog.
 
Maria Ramirez and Afero Sterling, parents of A.J., just watched him go through plastic surgery. He was bitten on the face by the pit bull just one block from his home in Sheboygan.
 
“I wouldn’t want any child to go through that, let alone any person. It’s just really hard,” said Ramirez.
 
Police say the dog was being walked by a 12-year-old girl on the sidewalk. A.J.’s parents say their son told them he was talking to the girl when the dog started growling. A.J. says he was backing away.
 
“That’s when the dog lunged at him. He said it bit him in the face, drug him across the ground, and that’s when it ripped his cheek off,” said Afero Sterling.
 
The gruesome injury described by Afero is confirmed by witness and police accounts.
 
Police will be checking whether the dog has a history of violence or has rabies. For now, the dog is on quarantine at the owner’s home. A.J.’s parents say they were told the dog was originally rescued from an abusive or neglectful background. They say the dog’s current owners are to blame for the attack.
 
“That dog needs to be put to sleep. To have a 12-year-old girl walk around a pit bull with a history of abuse and neglect and violence, it’s just absurd to me,” said Maria Ramirez.
 
A.J. is now out of the hospital and recovering at home, but he will likely need more plastic surgery in 6 months. Police are still investigating to determine whether any charges will be filed against the owner or whether the dog will be surrendered or put down.