Willis woman and her family brutally attacked by her neighbor's 8 pit bulls

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Published  December 13, 2024 6:17pm CST
FOX 26 Houston

The Brief

    • Michelle Means and her family were severely injured after being attacked by their neighbor's eight pit bulls, resulting in hospitalization and extensive medical treatment.
    • A bystander with a shovel intervened to scare the dogs away, allowing Michelle and her children to receive emergency medical care, including surgeries and numerous stitches.
    • Despite the traumatic experience, Michelle holds no resentment towards her neighbor and emphasizes the unpredictable nature of animals. Two of the attacking dogs were taken by authorities and euthanized.
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WILLIS, Texas - A Willis family is recovering after a horrific dog attack on Monday. Michelle Means said she and her family were mauled by her neighbor’s 8 pit bulls and had to be sent to the hospital for their injuries. 

"I just remembered I didn’t want to die, but it seemed like I was going to," said Michelle Means. 

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Houston-area family mauled by pit bulls

A Montgomery County family is recovering after a woman and her family were all mauled by her neighbor's pit bull's, sending them all to the hospital.

Means said her pregnant daughter and her son were the first to be attacked by her neighbor’s pit bulls. Moments later, she was also brutally attacked by the animals. 

"Then they just started attacking, biting my head, my neck, my arms, my leg," said Means. 

Bite marks on her body, stitches in her neck, and deep wounds are what Means was left with following the dog attack. 

"I looked down at the brown and white dog, and it looked at me, and it’s just like something snapped in its eyes, and it jumped up at that time and grabbed ahold of my face," said Means. "And within a couple of seconds another one had grabbed a hold of my calf and I was on the ground."

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As she tried to fight the dogs off, a man with a shovel came to her aid and scared the animals away, but the damage and injuries had already been done. Michelle and her children were rushed to the hospital for treatment. They had to get several rabies shots. After two surgeries, over 180 stitches, and 90 staples, Michelle was able to return home. 

"The dog had actually bitten off my lip, so they had to reattach my lip and sew all this up. A piece of my cheek was missing so they had to kind of pull the skins together," said Means. 

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Michelle said she holds no ill will towards her neighbor, but wants people to be aware of the wild instincts of animals. 

"I just want people to be aware that it’s not always about what the owners do and how good the owners are, sometimes even the best of dogs and break," said Michelle. 

Michelle said she looks forward to meeting the man who saved her life. She also said the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office did come pick up two of those dogs who attacked her and that they had been put down. FOX 26 reached out to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office to confirm the status of the animals, but have not heard back.