A pregnant woman sustained severe facial injuries and a broken finger when she was attacked by her neighbor's two pit bulls on July 17 in Topeka, Kansas. The woman, Audrey Austin, was 24 weeks pregnant with twins at the time of the incident.
Austin instinctively protected her abdomen during the attack, which she said almost resulted in the loss of her life and that of her unborn children. She reported nearly losing an eye and her nose. According to her partner, CJ Austin, she underwent at least 14 hours of surgery to reconstruct her face.
"I didn’t know where the blood was coming from. I didn’t know it was coming from my face. I thought it was coming from my stomach, so I was blocking my stomach the best that I can," Austin recounted. "She has nightmares of that dog attacking her. She wakes up in the middle of the night screaming, ‘Get him off me. Get him off me.’ That’s traumatizing her."
A friend intervened and tackled the dogs, preventing further injury, and a responding police officer shot and killed one of the animals. Austin’s neighbor, Tina Buck, has been charged with interfering with law enforcement and having dogs at large. She has since posted bond and is scheduled to return to court in September.
Austin expressed that she does not blame the animals, stating, "There are dogs out there that are sweet and innocent. It’s the owners and how you raise them." Her partner noted that she will likely bear scars for the rest of her life.
Despite the attack, Austin stated her intention to return to her apartment complex and that her babies remain healthy, with an expected delivery in November. A GoFundMe campaign established to assist with Austin's medical expenses and lost income had nearly reached its $9,000 goal as of Tuesday.