OlderVing Rhames’ Deadly Dog Attack
A 40-year-old male caretaker was mauled to death by two dogs — both weighing about 200 pounds — at the home of Ving Rhames today, authorities said.
The man had numerous bites on his body and died at the scene of the attack, which was reported about 7:15 a.m.
“He appears to have suffered a number of injuries as a result of the dog mauling,” Lt. Ray Lombardo said. “There were dogs loose on the property. Those dogs have been captured by animal regulation (officers).”
“Both those dogs are mastiffs; they’re rather large,” Lombardo added. “Normally we understand they are pretty friendly dogs. But, you know, there are occasions where dogs will turn on their owners or their caretakers, and this looks like a tragic accident.”
Rhames, 46, was not home at the time of the attack — he was on-location in Bulgaria shooting The Tournament. The actor is best known for roles in Pulp Fiction and Mission: Impossible.
Share This Post:
45 Comments
how could they just take those dogs away like that. it’s not like they’re on the loose and going to do harm to other people. they were probably scared. Those dogs are VERY protective, they probably felt threatened. They’re animals, not murderers. Where’s Ving to come and deal with this!!!
poor dogs! people should not use them as a weapon. it’s only a question of education!
Dogs are living beings with their own realities and experiences. It’s unknown why the animal in question turned on the caretaker, but clearly something caused the dog to react. Any dog can have a change in personality, even the smallest or most mellow of breeds. They’re not plants, they don’t need a “caretaker” they need a professional handler or dog trainer. With a breed as large as a Mastiff, in a family setting, that advice goes double.
I think this happens when people choose a pet for its beauty without bothering to study the breed, its history, habits and temperament.
Also, the report that the dogs were “running loose” is due to circumstance. I don’t think they’re ALWAYS allowed to roam loose, but the authorities would have found them running loose, indeed, if they had taken the life of the caretaker—no one to put them back inside after he passed away!
Also, the dog pictured…..it doesn’t look like any Mastiff I have ever seen. It looks more like a Molosser….maybe a Presa Canario?
If it IS a Molosser, and NOT a Mastiff then the owner REALLY REALLY needed a very experienced professional trainer. These guys are very challenging to train. They’re very intelligent, very inquisitive, very determined dogs…. and quite powerful, more so than a Mastiff!!!
If it turns out to be a poorly bred Molosser, then your problems are compounded. I have seen Molossers who were bred for looks and size, certain coat color, etc….and the lousy stock and inbreeding rendered them ABSOLUTELY VICIOUS!
i feel for the dogs.
All you morons berating people for owning large breed dogs really need to get a GRIP. I have owned Mastiffs for 15 years and currently own 4.
(1 English Mastiff, 2 Cane Corsos and 1 Presa Canario)
Mastiffs have one of the LOWEST bite rates per BREED. Your beloved labs have a higher bite right.
And people like me, an average size female…..do not buy MASSIVE DOGS FOR AN EGO BOOST. Mastiff lovers happen to like the temperament and loyalty displayed by the breed. Some of us aren’t STUPID enough to buy a Retriever so it can lick the burglar’s face as he HAULS AWAY my computer, televion and the reaminder of my personal belongs….(true story of my friend’s retrievers.)
Mastiffs were bred to guard the estates. They were used because they held the perpetator down and did NOT maul them.
Watch that video on TMZ and you will see Ving’s big lug of an English Mastiff WAGGING his tail….even though COMPLETE STRANGERS are leading him away from his home. HOW MANY OF YOUR DOGS WOULD ACT THAT FRIENDLY?
Also note….NONE of the dogs have blood on them. Had they MAULED someone to death…..there would be blood left, especially on the light colored Fawn English mastiff.
The police have NOW stated the bites were not fatal. They have also stated that all the dogs taken into custody have good temperaments. I would suggest that Rhames is a good owner who took good care of his dogs and had them properly socialized.
WHY …..isn’t anyone asking why a 40 YEAR OLD…..familiar with the dogs had a heart attack? Someone who cared for them for two years would not suddenly run for his life.
IF those dogs had been involved in the PACK MENTALITY and fighting they would have sustained HUGE gashes. When a fight for pack leader arises…..it is an all out dog fight.
Again, I didn’t see ANY wounds on the dogs.
I mean if you want to place blame….maybe you should look at other possibilites such as the guy being coked up and acting NUTSO or having a seisure…..then had a heart attack.
It’s possible the dogs were trying to help him or drag him somewhere during the episode.
Seriously….if you know NOTHING about Mastiffs but you are busy spreading lies that put more fear into people and leads them on a WITCH HUNT against the dogs, you are COMPLETELY irresponsible.
awww…poor doggies. i have a Neapolitan Mastiff and she is the sweetest, most gentlest, and patient dog out of all my other dogs.
i could not imagine Vic’s dogs attacking the caretaker without a reason. something must have happened. perhaps they were provoked?
Yeah, blame the guy who died! Animals can attack without provokation. Seriously, it’s people who think their dogs can do no wrong who are the types with animals that attack people. The dogs, as I’ve read somewhere, were bred to attack runaway slaves, by the way. That’s a big red sign.
“The dogs, as I’ve read somewhere, were bred to attack runaway slaves, by the way. That’s a big red sign.”
“Maybe” big red sign if you had the right BREED…..that breed Ving was referring to years ago is the Fila, not the English Masitff and the Ambullneo the cops led away…..and through the ages, through selective breeding…..they aren’t the same SLAVE CHASING BEASTS.
No shock though, the cops and media called them Bull Mastiffs (none were and 150-180lb Bulldog…..The BIG bulldogs are typically 55-85lbs TOPS.
Too many uneducated MORONS on a witch hunt.
My Cane Corso (Mastiff)doesn’t even eat a piece of meat or bread that isn’t broken into small pieces. He prefers to hide it, then bring it to me to break up……Oh…..WHAT A WILD VICIOUS MASTIFF!!! …..a bread hider
all you idiots are so quick/ going by a dogs instinct/ i dont care for dogs and thats my business/ but im a good person not a liar not a thief not a cheat so no dog can judge me/ONLY THAT I DONT LIKE THE DOG THATS ALL A DOG CAN JUDGE ME BY. ONLY GOD CAN JUDGE DAMN
Magnus and Cougar, ya’ll are idiots….period!!! My website is http://www.prototypekennels.com and my contact info is listed if you want to address it.
This is my point, we love to categorize dogs by their breed and group them all into “good” or “bad” based on their breed, but just like with people, you cannot accurately do that. Certain dogs are prone to certain traits because it’s been bred in to that specific breed, but no dog, I repeat, NO DOG is immune to potentially biting someone, especially if the dog isn’t properly supervised and/or socialized. I think that we should re-evaluate ourselves on categorizing breeds based off of society’s skewed and uninformed viewpoints. As I always say, any large breed of dog, not properly raised is a threat to hurting someone. I wasn’t there, so I can’t speculate on Mr. Rhames’ dogs, but I’m asking those of the media and anybody reading this….please don’t stereotype this breed (English Mastiff), as you have already done with my breed (APBT). Each case is unique to itself.
P.S. Magnus, I’m not small or petty….I guess I could say that ya’ll two are the insecure ones based on what seems to be an overfascination with shooting stuff. If you don’t like dogs, don’t be around them, that’s it!, but don’t crucify those of us that are responsible breeders,owners, and/or handlers of large dogs.
We shouldn’t say that all Blacks are criminals, all Muslims are terrorists, or all Whites are biggots or racist…and the same holds true with dogs, they’re personality is shaped by their owners/handlers just like our personalities may be shaped by our parents/families or friends.
I think it is sad. Those dogs deserve a fair trial. Not all of them killed the caretaker. It might have been one of them only. If the other dogs licked up some blood or took a couple body parts after the caretaker was already dead, then they were just tasting him, not attacking him. So, they are not guilty of a crime. Maybe the caretaker was perpetuating some sort of plot against Rhames, so the dogs took him out. Then they’d be heros. Lastly, authorities say the caretaker had a heart attack. Maybe the guy died and he told the dogs his last wish was to be consumed by the very animals he loved so much. So, they were just following orders? This would be like the Nordish sailors who would feed their deceased to a pit of crabs…a worthy way to be consumed.
Anyway, I say fair trial for the dogs. You’ll find out which of the above scenarios really happened by trial. If it was one criminal minded dog - the others shouldn’t suffer. If you did some hypnosis and other type of animal communication you could find out who actually did it. If the dog confesses or if we find out it’s all justified, then the result might be better.
Well the CDC Report does say the Mastiff is ranked 16 on the list of killer dogs. So, the media should let the public know that these animals are menance unless retrained or muzzled as they can flip out and kill people like lions. Yea, it could be like those lions and tigers that attacked Sigfried or Roy or whoever that was. I hear they feed Mastiff raw bloody meat - that’s what they eat. So, maybe the caretaker was coked up, forgot to feed them, died of a heart attack and the dogs said “I gotta eat” and he then became food.
RabidPooch has the most unbiased, informative, and objective (i.e. not full of emotion and subjective Opinion) post I’ve seen. Kudos to you.
First of all - everyone needs to quit throwing the term “Mastiff” out there so loosely, including DogExpert. English Mastiffs are one of the most gentle breeds of ALL dogs, low energy, affectionate dogs, hence why they are considered the “gentle giant” of all dog breeds. However, Bull Mastiffs, Neopolitan Mastiffs, French Mastiffs, (so-called) American Mastiffs, Tibetan Mastiff’s, Corso’s, etc… get my drift? These are all DIFFERENT breeds with very DIFFERENT temperments!
Ironically, those same people who are penalizing a breed (rather than the owner or the temperment of that dog) that are talking about shooting? Are you the same people who say that we shouldn’t impose gun control restrictions because guns don’t kill people - people kill people? Yes, I KNOW that dogs are living creatures and guns are not, but the point is still the same that a BREED as a whole is not responsible. Just because there are men that beat up & kill their wives… should we muzzle and lock up all the men? I mean, come on!?!? (Although personally, I don’t think I mind that idea…lol)
Has anyone noticed the media also has a tendency to sensationalize and exaggerate and/or misreport the facts? Has anyone bothered to clear up what kind of dogs these actually were? No, but the reality is that there is fall-out to everything. Hide and watch - we have a presidential election coming up and I guarantee we will now have some half-wit senator who will try and author yet another bill trying to outlaw certain breeds (which whether you agree or not - breeding is a way of living for a lot of people) just because there is media exposure here….
And for the record, yes, I’m owned by an English Mastiff and I RESEARCHED several breeds and used to have labs… I deliberately chose this breed, not for the ego boost, but for the sense of security of having an intimidating - yet not aggressive - family oriented dog in my home. And I abhore little dogs that piss everywhere and bark and BITE… Those yippy little taco bell dogs may not be killers, but I prefer not to have a dog that is stricken with “Little Man’s Disease” and has to prove how big or bad they are.
And a single mother and when my home was broken into - she didn’t hurt the guy that was IN MY HOUSE at 4 am while my daughter and I were asleep - but she scared him enough that he ran through the entire house (from the back door) and out the front door and didn’t grab a damn thing in his hurry… he took a slide in her 10 qt steel water bowl across the kitchen, knocked over a chair and all she did was bark and chase… and possibly saved our lives.
Oh and as for feeding raw, bloody meat… it’s called the BARF diet or Raw diet… (look it up) and it’s done with a LOT of breeds for the health benefits of not feeding processed, full of unnecessary crap, dog food (like rice? Dogs are carnivores! Come on!) It is done to promote better overall health, a better coat, better teeth, etc… and isn’t done to make them vicious, blood thirsty, man-eaters.
If I had the time and dedication I would do it too… and I’m just a single mother with one English… but I care about her health and nutrition! But it’s not like people take these dogs out to hunt for their fresh kill… they aren’t hunters and they aren’t retrievers… so that makes them even LESS likely to be a random attack dog, much less to attack without some kind of reason.
Crazy I heard …NOT SURE HOW TRUE IT IS…from that the coronors report stated that the man died of a heat attack and the bite marks were actually tug…pulls on him, they are saying someone else was there to make the 911 call since their were no phones outside or near the body, foul play is suspected…again i have no clue of the accuracy though.
CHECK OUT THIS PICTURE…APPEARS THAT HE ENJOYED HIS DOGS, I CAN’T WAIT TO HEAR HIS DEFENCE FOR THEM…
http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/images/gallery/ving-rhames-big-dog_268×289.jpg
MAGNUS YOU STUPID IDIOT, PEOPLE LIKE YOU SHOULDNT HAVE GUNS LIKE YOU SAY PEOPLE SHOULD NT HAVE THESE DOGS, WELL YOUR DUMB ASS SHOULDNT BE WALKING AROUNG WITH FIREARMS. THATS WHY PEOPLE SHOOT AND ASK QUESTIONS LATER BECAUSE OF IDIOTS LIKE YOU.
bad bad … poor
Half of you are just plain ignorant. If you will do a little bit of research befor you run off at the mouth….You would have found out that Rhames’ had Ambullneo Mastiffs. A hybrid breed that was created in the 1980’s. Not a bullmastiff! And for the person that said that bullmastiffs were bred to hunt large game….. Pick up a book and read it!!!!! They were bred by poachers in England in the 1800’s. The bullmastiff was bred to knock down poachers and hold them….Not to maul them. Bully’s aren’t biters by nature. And for those of you that mentioned the cropped ears……that’s how an ambullneo mastiff is supposed to look. Most of you need to do a bit or reading and research befor you go running of at the mouth!!!!!!!1
Pages: « 1 [2] Show All
Comment and Share!
E-mail to a Friend or share on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and more!