Woman Badly Injured In Dog Attack

BROOKSVILLE - An 85-year-old woman suffered severe injuries to her face after a Cocker Spaniel attacked her Sunday in her Brooksville home at 17025 Budowski Road.

The victim was home alone and apparently scrubbing the floor on her hands and knees when the dog began biting her.

"It was just God awful," said Betty Rymer, the victim's landlord and a distant relative.

Rymer's husband and grandson were making repairs next door and heard the woman screaming. They rushed over to find the victim, Marguerite Seeger, just inside the front door with "severe lacerations" to her face, a report states.

The dog ran away from the men and into a bedroom where it was closed in.

A reporting deputy said he could not inspect the dog because it was "very aggressive" and could only open the door a crack. Animal Control took custody of the dog.

Rymer said the victim needed at least 60 stitches to her face and a plastic surgeon has been called in to inspect the damage. Seeger is on morphine for the pain.

Seeger is showing the first signs of Alzheimer's disease and is confused about whether she was attacked or fell, Rymer said.