When I delivered newspapers on my department-store Murray bike (shh...Don't tell anybody), I carried a can of pepper spray. I wasn't worried about being robbed or jumped--not by humans, anyway.
In the then-still-smalltown New Jersey where my family moved in the middle of my puberty (talk about changes!), many yards were unfenced and dogs roamed them--and outside them--freely. Most were friendly or at least non-aggressive. But every once in a while, one would violate any sense of personal space I had or even give chase.
Being young, I could outride them. But once, an Irish wolfhound managed to set on me before I could take off. I was lucky, I guess: the dog's teeth scraped me just above my hip but didn't leave me with a deep or serious wound.
Justin Gilstrap is not so lucky. The 11-year-old was riding his bike near his Georgia home when, according to reports, three Pit Bulls set on him and dragged him into a ditch on the side of the road. Now he's missing part of his ear and 70 percent of his scalp.
The dogs have been euthanized and Justin’s family is suing their owners. One can only hope that he has a good recovery.
