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Pit Bull To Be Put Down After Biting College Student, Threatening Woman In Riverside

RIVERSIDE (CBSLA.com) — A dog that attacked a college student in Riverside on Wednesday night and threatened a woman last month was to be put down.

According to the Riverside County Department of Animal Services, the college student was walking near La Sierra University when a pit bull bit her legs. Her injuries were considered minor.

Barbara Hansen said she cannot believe it happened again. She believed that same pit bull charged at her as she was walking home from church in December.

"He was snarling at me. He wasn't coming to be pet," Hansen recalled. "He had his teeth showing, and he was snarling down deep in his throat. Makes me want to cry. It's terrifying."

She fell and broke her arm but said she was lucky because it could have been worse.

"It's a serious matter. Dog bites are preventable as long pet owners are responsible by keeping their dogs in their own property," said Riverside County Department of Animal Services Senior Public Information Specialist John Welsh.

When animal control officers tracked down the owner of the 2-year-old pit bull Wednesday, she agreed to relinquish the dog and have it euthanized.

The owner did not want to talk on camera but said her family got the dog for protection and didn't realize the animal would be so aggressive.

The problem was not the fact that the dog was a pit bull, but rather it was not neutered, which may have prompted it to get out and roam, according to animal control officers.

"Anytime you own a bigger dog, it can do a lot more harm to people. So you have to take it upon yourself to be more responsible," Welsh warned.

Hansen said she has not felt safe walking around her neighborhood in the past few weeks. She hoped no one else has to worry now that the dog is no longer on the loose.

"It was a miracle, totally a miracle, that he didn't kill me," Hansen said.

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