The owner-surrendered dog was euthanized, according to Animal Care Services.
SAN ANTONIO — More than 20 stitches later and Jose Luis Rodriguez III remains dumbfounded by the chaos of surviving a dog attack when he attempted to deliver an Amazon package Monday morning.
“It’s just so crazy because I wasn’t even on their property yet. He was already jumping forward and I was just trying to do my job,” Rodriguez said.
San Antonio police and Animal Care Services officers responded to a bite call around 11:15 a.m. in the 200 block of McNarney Street.
That’s where Rodriguez found himself fighting for his life after trying to make an Amazon delivery. He had just finished calling the homeowner and verifying the address when suddenly, a Staffordshire Terrier came rushing toward him from the property.
“As I’m looking up I just see a dog just jump over the fence. He attacked my elbow then went straight to my face. All of a sudden I’m just trying to get him off me and she’s trying to get control of him,” Rodriguez said. “Once I start seeing blood and everything, it was going all over my shirt, my shorts, arms, everywhere, that’s when I knew this dog was like, literally trying to kill me.”
Rodriguez got on top of a vehicle as the dog owner attempted to restrain the animal.
According to ACS Director Shannon Sims, the dog was euthanized after being surrendered by the owner.
“Anytime that we’re dealing with a severe injury like this, facial injuries, ripping and tearing of flesh, things like that, ACS is absolutely not going to seek placement for that animal and so the only logical outcome for that animal at that point is going to be to euthanize the animal,” Sims said. “Secondarily, in the interest of ensuring rabies control, this allows us to rapidly send the animal for testing to make sure that we can let the victim know in a pretty quick turnaround that he or she has not been exposed to rabies.”
Over the next couple years, ACS plans to go from 28 to 42 first responders with the help of $28.5 million approved through the fiscal year 2024 city budget.
Funds will also go toward hiring two additional dangerous dog investigators and employing four more bites investigators.
The department responds to more than 3,000 bite calls a year, which does not exclusively involve dogs. A bite also refers to a scratch, break in skin or a pet that’s been exposed to a rabies-prone animal.
While one of the goals is to reduce response times to critical calls, Sims noted there’s an ongoing effort to educate the community about the responsible pet ownership.
“There has to be a sense of accountability from the community that it’s not okay to have your 60 pound dog run free of restrain when you’re not home or get on and off your property,” Sims said.
The owner faces four criminal citations as a result of Monday’s dog attack.
Rodriguez hopes to get back to delivering packages in a couple weeks after he recovers. But he has a message for all dog owners.
“Honestly, I just want homeowners to be better, that’s what I want,” Rodriguez said. “It’s not just Amazon, it’s UPS and it’s also USPS and FedEx as well that go through these problems as well and some people don’t care and some of us are just trying to just do our job and just get through the day and just go home.”
A GoFundMe has been set up to cover the medical cost for the Amazon driver. Click here if you would like to donate.
