A mother is fighting for her life after she tried to shield her children from the family’s pit bulls in a fatal mauling.
The attack took place on Wednesday in west Tennessee outside Memphis, according to the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.
The mother, Kirstie Bennard, 30, sustained severe injuries after stepping in to protect her five-month-old son Hollace Dean and two-year-old daughter Lilly Jane, according to the sheriff’s office.
Jeff Gibson, the uncle of Ms Bennard’s husband Colby, told USA Today on Saturday that “she put her body on top of Lilly’s to try and protect her after the attack started”.
“Both [dogs] started attacking her while she lay on Lilly,” he added.
The young children were pronounced dead at the scene by the authorities, the sheriff’s office said. Ms Bennard was taken to a hospital in critical condition.
Mr Gibson told the paper that Mr Bennard wasn’t home at the time of the attack.
The sheriff’s office later wrote in an update on Thursday that “detectives report that the mother has been upgraded to stable condition at Regional One Health. The two pit bulls responsible for the attack were euthanized this afternoon by Memphis Animal Services. This is still an active, ongoing investigation”.
Mr Gibson wrote on Facebook on Thursday that the mother had “an uncountable amount of stitches and bite marks over her entire body including her face. Both arms and legs are bandaged/wrapped up completely. As of now, it looks like there isn’t any permanent damage other than a heart that will never heal”.
He said the mother is “a f***ing hero!” and that the mauling “lasted over 10 minutes and she never gave up trying to save these babies. Now all of us, family and friends, have to rally around both of them and show them how much they are loved. I don’t know if there can be a healing process but hopefully, we can ALL find a way to cope with this tragedy”.
A friend of Ms Bennard, Kelsey Canfield, told Fox News that the family had owned the dogs, Cheech and Mia, for more than eight years without any issues.
“I can promise you those children were her world, and if there was any inkling of danger, she would have never had those dogs near her kids,” Ms Canfield told Fox. “Those children were everything to them, and they just have a really long journey ahead.”
“That attack lasted longer than any one of us could have ever imagined,” she told the outlet.
“She was initially confused. She’s awake now, and she’s aware” of what took place, Ms Canfield said of the mother.
“They were perfect, they were beautiful,” she added of the two children.
They “worshipped each other,” she said.
Ms Bennard’s sister also spoke to Fox News but didn’t give her name.
“It was not just a loss to my sister but to me as well,” she told the outlet. “That was my niece and nephew.”
Mr Gibson told The Independent: “The dogs have been euthanized and sent to Nashville to be analyzed. The community and media for the most part has been very supportive but of course trolls on social media can be cruel.”
Fox News also noted that family friend Stephanie Chipman wrote on Facebook that “to say that I am at a loss for words and my heart is and has been breaking since I found out is an understatement”.
“Just in absolute shock. Praying so so so hard for the good Lord to hold you and your family tight and help you make your way through this. Here for you always and love you so much!” she added.
Another family friend, Debbie Harvey, wrote on a GoFundMe page that the Bennards are “incredible and sweet”.
“They are so loved in this community and we need to step up to support them,” she added.
