Pit bull likely ate owner's hands

WILTON -- Two days after a dog bit off a woman's hand and her other arm, sources said her hands were likely eaten. And police said they had been to her home in the past for problems with the same dog.

Wilton's animal control officer had been called to the home of 65-year-old Anne Murray twice, both times on complaints that the pit bull had roamed off the property, police Lt. Don Wakeman said Wednesday.

"They determined during the contact in July that the dog was not currently licensed, and a temporary license was issued," said Wakeman, the department's spokesman.

Police have also come to Murray's home several times to arrest her 26-year-old son, Ian, according to state court records. Ian Murray was given a five-year suspended sentence after he was found guilty of a 2005 robbery and conspiracy to commit first-degree robbery. He was also found guilty of violating his probation in 2010 in connection with that case.

On Monday morning, a town police officer shot and killed the dog in the driveway of the home after it attacked Anne Murray. The attack remains under investigation, Wakeman said, but he said that it likely won't result in criminal charges.

"We are looking at this as an extremely unfortunate accident,'' he said.

Wakeman declined to comment on whether the 2-year-old pit bull, Tuxedo, had eaten the victim's limbs, but another law enforcement source said that most of the flesh and bone the animal ripped from the victim was not recovered at the scene. "Use your imagination as to what happened,'' the source said.

Murray lost all of one arm and the other up to the elbow in the attack, and suffered bite wounds all over her body, police said. Passing motorists saw the dog in the street and stopped to call 911. Murray was found under a car in her driveway, trying to shield herself from further attack.

The house at 77 Range Road in Wilton, Conn., on Tuesday, November 12, 2013, where a pit bull attacked his owner, Anne Murray, 65, on Monday. The house at 77 Range Road in Wilton, Conn., on Tuesday, November 12, 2013, where a pit bull attacked his owner, Anne Murray, 65, on Monday. Photo: Lindsay Perry Photo: Lindsay Perry Image 1 of / 13 Caption Close Pit bull likely ate owner's hands 1 / 13 Back to Gallery

Murray is recovering from her injuries at Norwalk Hospital, where her son, Matthew Murray, said Tuesday night that she was awake and hopeful of a full recovery. Hospital spokeswoman Maura Romaine did not immediately return a reporter's call seeking an updated condition for Murray on Wednesday.

Lt. Don Wakeman said Wednesday morning that police have not questioned Murray about what happened, but that they plan to "when she is able.''

The incident sent shock waves through the region's pet community this week. Dog owners, particularly pit bull owners, swiftly defended the breed, saying that any breed of dog can become aggressive and that incidents involving pit bulls tend to be unfairly sensationalized.

Milford resident Rob Masud said his adopted pit bull is his first dog. He said his canine companion has the "sweetest disposition," but he's still mindful of the fact that the breed is naturally muscular and energetic. He said that any potential dog owner should do research about the breed they own and should consider whether they can properly handle and care for the dog.

"I think a lot of this has to do with education," he said. "You have to use caution with any dog, of any breed. You have to exhibit proper etiquette around the dog."

The head of Murray's dog was taken to a state Department of Public Health lab in Rocky Hill to be tested for rabies. Those results were not available Wednesday morning. It wasn't immediately clear whether the pit bull's remains would be autopsied. When a chimpanzee mauled Charla Nash of Stamford in 2009, the animal was brought to the University of Connecticut in Storrs, which has a bioscience lab and other facilities.

UConn spokeswoman Sheila Foran said the lab has a "confidentiality agreement,'' and that she couldn't comment on whether the pit bull's remains are there.