Neighbors step in after woman, smaller dog are brutally attacked by pit bull in Kilbourn Park community

CHICAGO (CBS) — A dog attack put a woman in the hospital on the city’s Northwest Side Friday.

As CBS 2’s Marissa Perlman reported Friday night, the woman was walking her smaller dog through the Kilbourn Park neighborhood when they were both attacked. Two neighbors who saw the attack jumped on to help – and said they witnessed a terrifying, bloody mess.

The woman was walking her poodle mix along Kildare Avenue between Cornelia Avenue and Roscoe Street when a pit bull – who was on a leash – got loose and started to attack. Neighbors said they have had run-ins with the same pit bull before.

“I thought I heard kids playing – like screaming, playing – and then it got worse,” said neighbor George Synowiech.

Witnesses described chaos after they saw the pit bull get loose from its owner.

“I saw a woman being dragged on the street by her hair by a dog,” Synowiech said.

Sebastian Mendez was working construction on the block.

“We went to this corner right here,” he said. “The dog – it had the little one. I tried hitting it with a stick. That dog would not let go of the little one. I picked up the dog and I just ran to (a) gate, and I put it in there.”

Synowiech was able to help the woman during the attack as she tried to protect her dog. He jumped onto the attacking dog, and the woman was able to get away.

“I’m a big guy, so my weight was able to keep him down,” Synowiech said. “I kept my hands around his neck.”

Police, an ambulance, and Chicago Animal Care and Control rushed to the scene.

Animal Care and Control took the acting dog from a Chicago Police cruiser and put it into a cage inside a van – its leash dragging behind. Once that happened, the dog appeared calm and willing to apply.

Meanwhile, the woman and the smaller dog were taken away to get medical help.

“She was bloody. She had blood on her; scratches on her. She was trying to save her dog,” Mendez said. “It was brutal.”

Neighbors say the attacking dog’s owner is an older man who lives in the neighborhood.

The woman who was attacked was hospitalized Friday night, but was expected to recover. There was no word on the condition of the smaller dog.

Animal Care and Control says it is investigating.