Boy, 11, fights for life after wild dogs maul him at same place where they ripped off woman's face
A Russian boy has been struggling for breath after he was brutally attacked by a pack of wild dogs. The animals savaged Artyom Bogachyov’s leg, thigh, head and upper body. After the horrific incident, the 11-year-old was flown to Moscow from his home in Ulan-Ude for emergency medical treatment.
Svetlana Bogachyova, the 36-year-old mother of Artyom, spoke to the local media and said the doctors did not have anything to say, as reported by The Sun. “The doctors don't say anything yet…I don't know anything myself. So far, there are no forecasts from medics at all. I visited him in intensive care. His right leg is just badly damaged, his thigh. Multiple bites...he is all in tubes,” she added.
According to Artyom’s grandmother, Olga Shergina, the victim’s 13-year-old elder brother Kirill saw him after the incident. Recounting Kirill’s words, the 58-year-old said, “He was lying absolutely naked, undressed in the snow. His clothes were torn, he was ripped all over, in tears. His back, arms, legs, thigh and scalp were affected the most. There was one bloody mess on his body. My grandson has lost a lot of blood. His face, fortunately, is intact. Only in the ambulance did he lose consciousness. His mother is not asking him about the details so as not to traumatize him even more.”
Reports also said that a pensioner saved Artyom’s life after he scared the dogs away with his stick. “He was already naked and shouting in a frail voice: ‘Help, help’," the unidentified man said. Meanwhile, doctors treating the boy said his condition was “extremely difficult, due to severe traumatic, hemorrhagic shock." "There is a struggle to maintain his vital functions and restore damaged tissues,” they added.
Artyom was savaged at the same spot where a nail artist’s face was ripped off by the dogs. The horror happened on December 23 when Tatyana Loskutnikova was “on the way to the clinic”. The 20-year-old beautician’s family said the brutal attack that happened in -22°C temperatures left her face “damaged beyond recognition”. After the attack, Loskutnikova was rushed to a hospital.
"The victim is in intensive care after anti-shock therapy. Surgeons, neurosurgeons, traumatologists, otolaryngologists, and maxillofacial surgeons are all fighting for her life. The patient was delivered to us in an extremely serious condition, suffering hemorrhagic and painful shock,” Dr Igor Shpak, head physician of the Republican Clinical Hospital, said at the time. Shpak also noted that the victim had “multiple lacerated and bitten wounds on the face, body, and limbs. The percentage of damage is extremely high. Her blood pressure is extremely low.”
Like Artyom, Loskutnikova was also saved by a few locals. A woman named Alexandra Andreevna was one among them, who said, “I heard the screaming and barking of dogs this morning. I got dressed, went out to the crossroad to see. There was a backpack lying on the ground. Then I saw a baying pack of dogs and a person lying on the ground. There were about 10 dogs, maybe more. The girl was lying on the ground and by now was no longer screaming. She was conscious, but, apparently, she could no longer scream because of pain.”