Woman killed when own dog attacked her while walking it, Canadian police say

Authorities in Canada say a woman was walking her dog when it attacked and killed her. The dog ran away but was later struck and killed by a car.

Witness Jocelyn Parker was taking her puppy to daycare Tuesday morning when she saw a car parked on the side of the road, a dog in the distance and 15-year-old Keianna Borden waving her over.

“She said, ‘There’s a lady laying in the ditch,’ and I said, ‘What?’ She said, ‘I think she’s dead,’" Parker said.

Borden had been out for a morning jog when she ran past the victim, whose name has not been released, and her dog. Everything seemed fine at the time, but when she returned 15 minutes later, she realized something was wrong.

“I go to step over, and the dog comes at me. I’m telling him to back down because... I’m not gonna hurt him, and then, I see the woman in the ditch,” Borden said. “It was quite scary. He was very on guard and protective, but he seemed kind of nice, like he didn’t want to hurt me, but he knew that there was something wrong.”

Borden and Parker called 911.

"What transpired in that 10 or 15 minutes, we don't know. Only her and the dog will know," Parker said. "We believed that the dog had attacked her based on the type of her injuries."

Officers who arrived on scene agreed the woman was attacked by the dog, according to Parker. She encouraged police to alert the public, which they did. Multiple witnesses describe the dog as a pit bull, but police cannot confirm the breed.

Mark Taylor heard the news and saw the dog on the road. He ran it over, saying killing the dog was the right thing to do.

“I seen the pit bull. I knew it was the dog instantly, and I didn’t concern myself. I took care of the dog, and it was quick," Taylor said. “It could have hurt someone else, and people’s lives are more important than the dog’s life.”

The witnesses say they are thinking of the victim’s family during this difficult time.

Police say the investigation is ongoing.