PICO RIVERA, Calif. — A California woman stabbed two pit bulls, killing one of them, as she raced to save her 1-year-old granddaughter from being attacked by the dogs.
The family dogs ran into the kitchen of the Pico Rivera home Sunday night, and immediately began attacking the child, KTLA reported. Both the child’s mother and grandmother tried to get the child free.
The child’s grandmother, Margaret Morales, owns both dogs, KNBC reported. The child’s mother, Jamie Morales, told the station she realized that the dogs weren’t letting go of the baby, and that was when she grabbed a knife.
“It was either him or my daughter, so I chose my daughter. I did whatever I had to do to protect my daughter, because he wouldn’t let go of my daughter, so I had to. I feel really bad, but I had to,” Jamie told KNBC.
The child, identified as 1-year-old Ruby Cervantes, was taken to a hospital where she underwent two surgeries, one of which was to repair a broken him, CBS News reported. She is expected to be OK.
Jamie Morales also needed medical attention because her face was mauled in the incident, KTLA reported. Margaret Morales was also injured when she tried to pry the dog’s jaws open, CBS News reported.
The two dogs that attacked were both 3-year-old blue nose pit bulls, which the grandmother had adopted as puppies from the same litter, KNBC reported.
One of the dogs that was stabbed died at the scene, while the other was taken by Los Angeles County Care and Control and will be euthanized, CBS News reported.