An adorable 4-year-old girl was mauled to death by her family’s pit bull while swimming at her California home in Visalia.
Zoey Hawkins, 4, was getting out of her kiddie pool when her dad, Eric Hawkins, went to grab her towel inside on September 4.
By the time Eric looked back, mere seconds later, the dog bit Zoey in her armpit. She later would die from her wounds after being transported to the hospital.
Eric wrote on Facebook on Sunday: ‘I thank you for ever moment I had with you Zozo.
‘Zozo I love you so it was the best time of my life waking up to see you the mornings.’
Zoey Hawkins, 4, was getting out of her kiddie pool when her dad Eric Hawkins went to grab her towel inside. Second later she was mauled by her family’s pit bull
Zoey’s cousin Pearl Vargas told Fox 28 the family was in disbelief because the 4-year-old had been around the dog for more than two years. Pictured: Zoey posing with family members
Zoey’s cousin, Pearl Vargas, told Fox 28 the 4-year-old had been around the dog for more than two years and the family was in disbelief that it would attack her.
‘Her and the dog would always play with each other,’ Vargas said. ‘They would always be around each other. So we have no clue what the reason was or why the dog even did this in the first place.’
Zoey’s mother Alexis Rodela Hawkins’ Facebook bio describes herself as an ‘animal person.’
Eric has posted several photos of pit bulls on his social media – including ones that advocate for the breed.
The couple even have a Facebook page dedicated to their pit bull Tara Lynn Hawkins where they posted photos of the dog.
‘Hi my name is Tara Lynn Hawkins. My mommy and daddy post on my Facebook,’ was written in the page’s bio.
Zoey’s mother Alexis Rodela Hawkins’ Facebook bio describes herself as an ‘animal person’
The couple have a Facebook page dedicated to their pit bull Tara Lynn Hawkins where they posted photos of their dog
Pearl said the family is traumatized and don’t plan on getting another dog because they have two other infant children
In a GoFundMe campaign set up by Vargas to support the family with funeral costs, she described Zoey as a ‘vibrant and loving’ girl.
As of Wednesday morning, it has raised nearly $14,000 toward its $20,000 goal.
‘She was always dancing like they were just playing music for her, and she would just start dancing around, twirling in circles,’ Vargas told Fox 28.
Vargas said the family is traumatized and don’t plan on getting another dog because they have two other infant children.
The dog has since been euthanized after the attack.
Pearl said Zoey was a ‘vibrant and loving’ girl. ‘She was always dancing like they were just playing music for her, and she would just start dancing around, twirling in circles’
It’s only been a few weeks since a Ohio mom allowed her boyfriend and uncle to handcuff her six-year-old son who was then mauled by a pit bull.
The incident happened on August 17 at a home in Northeast Ohio, where deputies received a call about the boy after he had been bitten by the pit bull.
In court, Angelina Williams, the boy’s mother, argued that she did not know it was illegal to handcuff a child, after she and the other defendants allegedly did so as punishment after he failed to clean up after the dog.
