A 3-year-old boy who was viciously attacked by a pair of pit bull mixes in Minnesota last week is not expected to survive his injuries, according to his heartbroken family.
The tragedy unfolded when the boy, Covil Allen, and his mother, Natasha Palacios Vega, were visiting a home on July 19 in Brooklyn Park where the two dogs were up for sale, according to police.
Suddenly one of the dogs attacked Covil — and the second dog joined in, biting the boy and Vega.
Desperate bystanders grabbed any weapons within reach to fight back the animals.
“There were adults in the area that started to defend the 3-year-old by using hammers and pick axes to get the dogs off the 3-year-old,” an affidavit obtained by the Star Tribune said.
First responders rushed to the home and took Covil to the hospital with grave injuries, police said.
Since the attack, Covil’s parents, Vega and father Charles Allen, have been preparing their son to be an organ donor, according to a tragic update posted on an online fundraising campaign.
“This will honor Covil’s life and save more children’s lives in hopes that no other parent has to endure the pain they are experiencing right now,” the update says.
Vegas, meanwhile, has undergone two surgeries and will require an additional surgery and a skin graft for her recovery, according to friends and family.
The two dogs, Blue and Nisi, were of the “XL variety” of American bullies — a mixed breed of American bulldogs and pit bulls that is “banned in the UK,” Police Inspector Elliot Faust said.
Faust noted that dog attacks are “a problem in our community,” he said.
“We had more potentially dangerous dogs this year than we did last year,” he added.
Charges are still pending detectives gather evidence to hand over to prosecutors “in the near future for their review.”
This is the second dog attack this week in Brooklyn Park, located about 12 miles north of Minneapolis.
On Tuesday, a 7-year-old girl was attacked, but fortunately only suffered superficial injuries, according to the Star Tribune.
Police shot and killed the dog when it went after another boy.
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