A 17-year-old girl has been left unrecognisable after a pack of savage dogs ripped flesh from her entire body. Tracy Hurtado was out for a morning run in Newberry Springs, California, when she was set upon by more than ten “large breed dogs”, according to police.
The teenager was left requiring over 500 stitches following the horrific attack, which took place at around 6.30am on July 17. A neighbour heard the petrified schoolgirl being mauled after she screamed out in pain. Tracy, who was caked in dirt, believed her arms had been “ripped off”.
The heroic resident rang emergency services, who rushed to the scene, along with the teen’s mum.
It comes after a five-month-old baby was savaged to death by dogs after her mum left for a birthday dinner.
“I thought they ripped her arms off,” the devastated mum told ABC News. “I didn’t know who she was. She was so dirty, covered in dirt, so I couldn’t recognise my daughter.
“I recognised her bra, that’s what I recognised. I got close to her and she asked me, ‘Mum, am I still pretty? and I said ‘Yeah, you’re beautiful’,” Maria added.
Tracy was rushed to the hospital and spent days in agony after requiring over 500 stitches for wounds across her entire body, the Mirror reports.
Her stepfather, Carlos Ramirez, said: “What was going through my mind was the worst. It was not one dog or two dogs; it was a lot. I mean, they bit every part of her body you could think of except for her ankles.”
Police confirmed she suffered “large lacerations, abrasions, and removed flesh.”
Officials have since arrested Craig Simmons in connection with the attack. The 61-year-old was taken into custody on August 13 after police “conducted surveillance” on his home.
Authorities claim they witnessed Simmons cycling his bike near the property.
There had also been 16 dogs previously seized from the area before this shocking attack.
Simmons is charged with being the owner of an animal causing serious bodily injury or death.
The Sheriff’s Department believes the suspect’s dogs were “not fenced or leashed at the time of the incident.”
Meanwhile, a GoFundMe page has been established to help Tracy with her injuries and medical costs.
It has raised a remarkable £35,000 out of a target of £40,000.
“She was getting ready to do her senior year of high school this year,” the page says.
“Now, because of this, she has to stay home and go to several doctors’ appointments and rehab. Due to the trauma, she cannot sleep at night; she’s having nightmares.”
