CONNERSVILLE, Ind. – A one-year-old chow mix apparently turned on its owner, killing her with bites to her throat and arm, authorities said.
Phyllis G. Carroll, 63, was mauled by one of her two black chow mix dogs around 7:30 p.m. Sunday, said Fayette County Coroner Joe Todd.
Both dogs were seized and will be destroyed at the request of the victim's family, he said.
Carroll kept the dogs, a male and female from the same litter, in a yard behind her home in Connersville. There were no witnesses, but Todd said authorities believed the male dog, which was the larger of the two, attacked Carroll.
The dog bit Carroll in the arm as she carried treats out from the house, then bit her throat after she fell to the ground. Eight sets of bite marks were found on Carroll, Todd said.
She bled to death from her wounds, he said.
Friends said Carroll had become increasingly afraid of the aggressive dogs, Todd said.
"In 34 years of investigating deaths I have never, ever had a vicious animal attack that resulted in the death of the victim," he said.
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