Niall O'Connor

A LIMERICK MAN has spoken of the moment he desperately grabbed a crazed pitbull in a headlock to stop it attacking his daughter and her friends.

Luis Eduardo, who is originally from Sao Paulo in Brazil but living in Ireland for the last five years, said he was sitting at home on Tuesday night when he heard screaming and barking.

He told The Journal that when he looked towards the scene he saw a dog attacking another dog and the screams were coming from that dog’s owner.

The incident in the Castletroy area saw no one injured in the incident but the dog, which was on a leash and being walked by a woman, suffered severe injuries. It is understood that the offending dog was roaming without an owner.

He immediately ran towards the trouble, fearing what would happen, and charged down the pitbull.

“I was playing with my daughter in front of the house and I heard screaming from a lady and a small dog scream as well.

“I looked towards it and could see she was middle of a greenway path and she was trying to hit the pitbull to release the puppy.

“I ran to her to try and help. My daughter went as well to me and I tried to hit the dog and he released the puppy and he ran towards my daughter. 

“I tried to kick the pitbull and he went again, it was a really horrible situation and I thought the dog was going to attack my daughter so I had to do something,” he said. 

In a chaotic scene Eduardo’s kick distracted the dog which then returned its attention to the puppy it had already attacked. In desperate moment the woman and Eduardo tried to distract the dog again.

Eduardo spotted a man on a bicycle and then tried to hit the attacking pitbull but he said that had no effect on the crazed dog.

“I had no option so I put my arms around the neck and put the dog in a sleeper hold and just waited until the dog stopped.

“The dog was very strong and I was in a fight for my life. I asked a cyclist to help – I begged him to help but he was very afraid. He helped me to keep my arms in that hold,” he added. 

Eduardo said that he did not think of the danger to himself only to do something immediately to stop the attack to protect children, including his daughter, who were standing nearby.

“In the situation I was just thinking of my daughter and the maybe twenty kids who were on the streets.

“I thought in that moment that I must do something because it could be worse – they were in danger.  

“For me it made me scared, I had no other way than to grab the dog to stop it happening,” he said. 

Eduardo and other residents, including his wife, called the gardaí who are now investigating the incident. 

The dog, which was roaming free through the area when it launched its attack did not make it through the struggle and died.

“I just want to make it clear that I did not want the dog to die but I had to stop him attacking the kids,” Eduardo added. 

It is the latest attack in Limerick in the wake of the death of Nicole Morey, 23, who was killed by her own XL Bully dog on 5 June. 

A garda spokesperson confirmed that gardaí were investigating this latest incident.

“Gardaí were alerted to an incident involving two dogs at a residential estate in Castletroy, County Limerick on Tuesday evening.

“A dog which was in the control of its owner was attacked by a second dog. The offending dog was restrained by a number of persons in the area.

“No persons were injured during the course of the incident. The dog which was attacked was seriously injured.

“Investigations are ongoing in relation to this matter. The offending dog is now deceased,” the spokesperson explained. 

In 2023, 850 dog attacks were reported nationally, including 430 on people. There were 240 on livestock, and 180 on other animals.

A special operation has been set up between gardaí in Limerick and the local council.