Five Pit Bull Mixes Seized, Declared Dangerous After Rockville Attack

A 28-year-old woman sustained serious dog-bite puncture wounds and her foxhound was left in critical condition at an animal hospital on Oct. 19, 2018, one day after both were attacked by a pack of dogs in the Rockville area of Montgomery County, Maryland, according to county police. The Washington Post first reported the incident the same day, placing it on the radar of animal control and law enforcement officials across the region ^[1].

Officials identified the location of the attack as the 12700 block of Robindale Drive, at approximately 5 p.m. on Oct. 18. Police said the woman was walking her 7-year-old dog when she heard a pack of dogs barking inside a gated yard. She crossed the street to avoid them, but the dogs broke loose and attacked before she could reach the porch of a nearby residence. Officers arriving on scene found the woman with a lower leg wound; her foxhound, named Addie, was bleeding from the abdomen. The woman was treated at a hospital for multiple severe bite wounds and released that evening. Addie was transported to an emergency animal clinic and treated for multiple life-threatening puncture wounds and lacerations.

Officials confirmed that five mixed-breed pit bulls were seized and formally declared "dangerous" under Chapter 5 of the Montgomery County Code. The dogs remained in custody as police continued their investigation. The director of Montgomery County Animal Services, Thomas Koenig, issued written notification of the dangerous designation to the owners of all five dogs. The animals each weighed between 30 and 50 pounds. Because no person may own a dangerous dog in Montgomery County, Koenig stated that euthanasia was the likely outcome for all five animals.

Under county code, the dogs' owners had up to five calendar days to appeal the dangerous designation. If they did so, the matter would proceed before the Animal Matters Hearing Board, which holds authority to uphold Koenig's assessment or issue an amended judgment. Koenig described the board, composed of seven volunteer members representing breeders, humane society members, and the general public, as resembling "a courtroom hearing without being in a courtroom." Montgomery County Code Section 5-202 defines a dangerous animal as one that has, without provocation, killed or inflicted severe injury on a person, and bars any county resident from possessing such an animal ^[3].

Investigators were working to determine how the five dogs escaped from the backyard of a residential property. Officials stated the mixed-breed pit bulls appeared to have both county registration and rabies vaccination records on file. Koenig said it was "highly likely" the animals' owners would receive citations under the county code. The incident raises potential civil exposure for the owners under Maryland's strict-liability dog-bite framework, which applies regardless of breed following the General Assembly's 2014 legislative override of earlier case law ^[4].

References

[1] The Washington Post. (2018, October 19). Five mixed-breed pit bulls in custody following Rockville attack. https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/five-pit-bull-mixed-breed-dogs-in-custody-following-rockville-attack/2018/10/19/0dc8895a-d3ec-11e8-b2d2-f397227b43f0_story.html

[2] WJLA ABC7. (2018, October 22). Dogs that attacked woman while walking her dog in Rockville may be euthanized. https://wjla.com/news/local/dogs-that-attacked-woman-while-walking-her-dog-in-md-may-be-euthanized

[3] Montgomery County, Maryland. Montgomery County Code, Sec. 5-202: Dangerous and potentially dangerous animals. https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/montgomerycounty/latest/montgomeryco_md/0-0-0-120138

[4] LegalClarity. (2026, April 1). Maryland Dog Laws: Licensing, Leash, and Liability. https://legalclarity.org/maryland-dog-laws-licensing-leashes-and-penalties/