Canine Caretaker Bitten to Death By Her Rescue Dogs

We all love to hear rescue dog stories with happy endings, but sadly this is not one of those stories. A diligent rescuer from Decatur, Ga was recently bitten to death by multiple dogs under her care:  

The untimely death of Rebeca Carey, 23 of Decatur, Ga., who died of multiple dog bites according to the DeKalb County Medical Examiner last weekend became even more tragic as Carey’s five rescue dogs and the dog of a friend were euthanized late Wednesday afternoon as ordered by DeKalb County Animal Control. On Friday a fund was set up to honor Carey’s life hoping that people will not shy away from rescuing animals in need.   According to the AJC.com, interim director Tim Medlin was taking no chances any of the dogs could ever hurt another human.   Jackie Cira, a friend of Carey and who discovered her friend’s lifeless body told WSB-TV that it appeared Carey had fallen and hit her head. The medical examiner, however said the woman died of multiple dog bites on her torso and neck. – The Examiner

  As friends and family have reacted to the situation, one of the consistent messages they are trying to stress is for other individuals not to shy away from pet adoption. While this one scenario is truly unfortunate, thousands of successful adoption cases are going on across the country.   This case does remind us however of the seriousness of animal rehabilitation. If a rescue animal has been abused or neglected he/she may possess deep seeded fear or aggression toward humans. In Rebecca Carey’s situation, investigators believe that the dogs may have been fighting amongst themselves when Carey attempted to intervene. In their fervor the dogs were unable to distinguish Carey as a non-target.   The exact details of Carey’s injuries are pending, meaning we can’t be certain if death was caused by the actual bites found on her body or by the head wound she seems to have suffered from a fall while dealing with the animals.