WARNING – GRAPHIC CONTENT: Tracy Azpeitia, 17, had to have 500 stitches and cannot walk on her own after she was mauled by at least 10 large dogs while jogging
A teenage girl was brutally mauled and left with devastating injuries after a pack of dogs attacked her while she was jogging.
Tracy Azpeitia, 17, had been on a morning run near her home when she was unexpectedly surrounded and attacked by at least 10 “large-breed dogs”. Detectives have launched a probe into the horrifying incident after the teen’s family said she nearly died in the terrifying mauling, on July 17.
Cops have since seized 16 dogs from a property near the attack site, as the teenager’s mother revealed the heartbreaking question her daughter asked after the attack. It comes after a mum was left ‘traumatised’ after a dog walker pushed her in canal as she cycled to work.
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Tracy’s mother, Maria Azpeitia, said: “I got close to her and [she asked me] ‘Mom, am I still pretty?’ and I said, ‘Yeah, you’re beautiful’.” The teenager had been walking to a workout centre in Newberry Springs, California, when the dogs pounced on her.
A hero neighbour heard the young girl screaming and quickly called emergency services. The heartbroken mum also revealed the horrifying condition her daughter was left in after the terror animal attack. She told ABC7: “I thought they ripped her arms off. That’s what it looked like.”
She added: “I didn’t know who she was. She was so dirty, covered in dirt, so I couldn’t recognise my daughter. I recognized her bra, that’s what I recognised.”
Maria added that she never expected this horror attack to happen as the teen walked the same way most days. She added: “I thought she was going to be fine because she walks to her bus stop every morning. I never thought anything would happen to her.”
Tracy’s stepdad, Carlos Ramirez, revealed the teen needed 500 stitches for the bites and cuts she received from the animals. He said: “It was not one dog or two dogs, it was a lot. I mean, they bit every part of her body you could think of except for her ankles.”
The teenager has been released from hospital but her parents say the 17-year-old cannot walk on her own due to her injuries.
A GoFundMe page has been set up by Tracy’s family to help fund her medical costs and help with her recovery. The page wrote: “She was getting ready to do her senior year of high school this year.
“Now, because of this, she has to stay home and go to several doctor’s appointments and rehab. Due to the trauma, she cannot sleep at night; she’s having nightmares.” The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department has launched a criminal investigation into the horror dog attack.
