The death of a woman maimed by dogs four days before Christmas is a grim reminder that residents of some Houston neighborhoods hesitate to let their children play outside because a similar tragedy could easily take place.

Stray dogs and cats were listed as the top neighborhood problem in Houston by respondents to a University of Texas School of Public Health survey a year ago, followed by crime, poor drinking water, air pollution and traffic.

But the three pit bulls believed involved in the Dec. 21 attack weren’t strays. They were pets. In fact, their owner was one of two people who called police to report what his dogs had done. At the very least, he’s guilty of breaking the city ordinance requiring dogs to be leashed.

Neighbors said the man’s dogs were known to be aggressive. The corpse of a dog discovered in a ditch across the street from where the woman was killed suggests other horrors have occurred in the neighborhood as well. Unfortunately, few pay attention when a dog is the only victim.

Even when a person is bitten, the response often is weak. The National Canine Research Council says more than 4.5 million people are bitten by dogs each year in the United States. More than 800,000 of those bitten receive medical attention as a result, at least half of them children.

Sixty-two of the 433 people killed by dogs in the United States between 2005 and 2017 died in Texas. That includes a 2-month-old north Houston child killed in 2017 when two family dogs — a giant schnauzer and a Labrador retriever — opened the door to the baby’s bedroom and attacked him in his bassinet.

Pit bulls were involved in 66 percent of the dog-attack deaths nationally, but the American Veterinary Medical Association stresses that “it is not a dog’s breed that determines whether it will bite, but rather the dog’s individual history and behavior.”

The AMVA says responsible pet ownership is the key to bite prevention. Of course, there is no owner to hold responsible when strays are doing the biting.

Two years ago, a stray pit bull wandered on the grounds of YES Prep Middle School and bit five children who were playing outdoors during recess. “This was probably the scariest thing that ever happened to me,” one child told Fox 26 News.

It’s no less scary when an intimidating dog that belongs to a neighbor gets loose and attacks a child or adult. That’s why Houston and Harris County officials must work harder to get dog owners to obey leash laws and other requirements enacted to ensure public safety.

It’s also why local animal control agencies must respond rapidly to complaints about aggressive dogs. If that means budgeting more personnel, then the city and county should find ways to do that.

Just as important, the city and county must take strong action against irresponsible dog owners when their pets hurt a person or another animal. Swift and certain punishment is needed to address a culture of dog fighting that has become rooted in parts of Texas, including some Houston neighborhoods.

Dog owners who abandon animals they no longer want after teaching them to fight anything that moves should pay a steep price for behavior that endangers the lives of others.