A 44-year-old man suffered serious injuries, including lacerations and animal bites, after police say a stranger walking a dog attacked him in the 5900 block of North Sheridan Road, then ordered the dog to bite him. The man managed to make it to the 1100 block of West Thorndale Avenue, near the CTA Thorndale station, where he flagged down help and contacted police.
According to ABC7 Chicago, the suspect approached the victim while walking the dog, yelled at him, and struck him in the head and face before commanding the dog to attack. The attack happened Wednesday in Edgewater, and police say the victim was taken to St. Francis Hospital in serious condition.
Chicago police said Wednesday that nobody was in custody in connection with the attack, and the case remains under investigation. The station's report does not identify the suspect, the dog's owner, or the dog itself, and no arrest or charges had been announced as of the report.
Getting to Safety Near the CTA Stop
The 1100 block of West Thorndale Avenue, where the victim sought help, sits close to the CTA Thorndale station, per the same account. That stretch of Edgewater is a busy pedestrian corridor connecting Sheridan Road to the Red Line, making it a logical place for the injured man to look for assistance after the attack.
A Pattern of Chicago Dog Attacks on Pedestrians
This is not the only recent case in Chicago involving a pedestrian bitten unexpectedly by a dog. In an earlier incident, Krysten Kelly told CBS News Chicago that she was attacked by a dog near Sunnyside and Dover as she walked to her boyfriend's home one Friday night. Kelly said the dog, which belonged to a family with a small child and two dogs, lunged at her and latched onto her left breast, then punctured her arm when she raised it to protect her face.
Kelly called 911 and her boyfriend before finding first aid at Rayan's Fine Wine & Spirits, according to CBS News Chicago. She spent the following Saturday in the hospital and said she planned to file a police report while trying to track down the dog's owners to find out whether she needed a rabies shot.
Separately, ABC7 Chicago has reported that a 15-year-old girl and a 25-year-old woman were attacked by a dog inside a West Side home in July, an incident in which officers who arrived on scene shot the dog. That case, like Wednesday's Edgewater attack, underscores how unpredictable and severe dog-related injuries in the city can be, though the circumstances differed significantly.
Investigation Continues
No description of the suspect or the dog has been released, and it remains unclear whether animal control or any other city agency has gotten involved in Wednesday's Edgewater case. Chicago police have not said whether they have any leads on the suspect's identity, and the investigation was ongoing as of Wednesday afternoon.
