A nurse in Tempe, Arizona, who fostered a stray pit bull named Benny to save him from euthanasia, suffered a severe mauling by the dog that has left her arm incapacitated for months. Liz Shidler, 41, who has fostered dogs for five years, took Benny into her home on July 8. The incident escalated when Benny attempted to bite her three other dogs while they were being taken outside.

Shidler intervened to separate the animals, dragging Benny to a bedroom. During the struggle, the dog clamped onto her arm, tearing an artery and causing her to lose three units of blood. She described the event as nearly resulting in the loss of her left arm.

"I actually almost lost my left arm. I lost three units of blood," Shidler told AZ Family. "And then calling 911 was hard because my blood kept cutting off the phone call."

Weeks after the attack and an emergency surgery, Shidler is still unable to use her arm. She is currently living with a friend who helps care for her. A GoFundMe page established to support her medical and living expenses states that doctors do not anticipate her returning to work for at least a year.

"[Shidler] came frighteningly close to losing a left arm. The road ahead is overwhelming, with a long and intensive rehabilitation," the fundraiser reads. "With no income and an unemployment claim that has been denied and is now under appeal, the financial strain is becoming urgent."

According to Maricopa County animal shelter, Benny had been placed on a euthanasia list but had no prior record of aggression. Shidler hopes that individuals considering fostering animals will continue to do so but urges them to carefully consider the potential risks involved.

"We forget our boundaries when we think with our heart. And that leads to this stuff. And I don't want that to happen," Shidler said.

An estimated 4.5 million people in the U.S. are bitten by dogs annually, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Of these, approximately 800,000 require medical attention. In the past year, 84 dog-related fatalities were recorded across the U.S. and Canada, with pit bulls accounting for roughly 64 of those deaths, according to the non-profit organization Animals 24-7.

Recent incidents include Angel Rawlings, 22, who was bitten by two pit bulls in Missouri on December 27, 2025, and Emily Panuco, 27, from Arizona, who was killed while attempting to shield her son from three dogs during an attack in California in February of this year.