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12-year-old boy attacked by stray dog, saves his siblings on Detroit’s west side

DETROIT – It’s not terribly unusual to see a stray, dangerous dog in the Taylor Street neighborhood on the Detroit’s west side.

However, at about 7 p.m. on May 17, two dogs showed up while four kids were out playing.

“We live in a tough zip code,” says Peter Ashmore. “Bad things happen every day.”

But Ashmore didn’t expect one of those bad things to happen to his son right outside their door. His 12-year-old son, Deacon, had almost no time to react when one of two dogs started circling him.

“My brothers and sisters kind of screamed,” Deacon said.

The dog -- he describes as short but wide -- lunged and bit his left calf.

“I was getting dragged around a bit and it hurt,” he says. “When it was dragging me, it bit in deeper. Then it really started hurting.”

His little sisters and brother ran into the house to safety. He was able to scare the dog away and get inside himself, but his leg was badly mangled.

“I went and grabbed some duct tape and said ‘Buddy, I love you but this is gonna hurt,’” Ashmore says as he recalls racing home and trying to keep a towel around Deacon’s leg before rushing him to Children’s Hospital.

Deacon had surgery Tuesday morning and is now back home recovering. He’s even gotten some well wishes from his sixth grade classmates in the form of a big card his teacher dropped off. His brother and sisters have also shown some gratitude.

“(I’m) pretty glad (I was the one who was attacked),” Deacon says. “Because if it was them, they would’ve been more injured than me.”

“He continuously puts other people in front of himself and that’s what I love and respect about him,” Ashmore says. “It’s something so many people can learn from.”

The church where the family attends started a fundraiser for the medical bills, nearing $20,000 in a few days. Click here to donate.

MORE: Local news coverage


About the Author
Jason Colthorp headshot

Jason is Local 4’s utility infielder. In addition to anchoring the morning newscast, he often reports on a variety of stories from the tragic, like the shootings at Michigan State, to the off-beat, like great gas station food.

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