Pet Killed, Woman Bitten by Stray Pit Bull Mixes

A 62-year-old woman was bitten numerous times on her hands and her Doberman pinscher was killed following an attack by stray pit bull mixes Friday morning, police said.

Dian Seifert of Westlake was walking her leashed dog, Kalinka, on a trail near Glastonbury Road when the dog was attacked by the strays about 9 a.m., according to a friend.

“They went right at the dobie’s throat,” said Annette Bencke, who was with Seifert when the attack occurred. “[She] tried to separate them and her hands got completely mauled.”

Bencke said she pulled her friend away from the fighting animals and ran to a nearby home to summon help.

“Her hands were pretty badly lacerated,” Bencke said of Seifert’s injuries. “It was definitely a scary experience. I’m still shaking.”

Seifert was taken by ambulance to Los Robles Regional Medical Center and was later transferred to Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Woodland Hills, where she was treated for her wounds and released.

After clinging to life for several hours, Kalinka died of her injuries at Agoura Westlake Animal Hospital, said Heather Wiggins a receptionist.

Meanwhile, three sheriff’s deputies armed with shotguns and a patrol helicopter were called in to search the area for the stray dogs, said Sheriff’s Sgt. Mark O’Donnell. The trackers spotted one of the dogs, but it got away.

Authorities are warning residents and hikers that the dogs, which Bencke estimated weighed 60 pounds each, are still on the loose.

Conejo Valley park rangers have also been alerted that the dogs--one of which was described as being black and white--are roaming the hills.

That worries resident Jim Houghton, who lives near the area where the attack occurred and came to the aid of Seifert. Houghton said he has a 4-year-old son and a golden retriever.

“My problems are coyotes, rattlesnakes, transients and black widows,” Houghton said. “We are borrowing this land from nature, but you would rather have this attack come from a natural animal than a domesticated animal. . . . I would like to make sure that, at least for the next few days, there would be some sort of sweep up there on a periodic basis.”

Times photographer Anne Cusack contributed to this story.