Firefighter killed by own dog only owned it for a week

BIG ROCK, Ill. — Dawn Brown, the firefighter killed by her family dog, had only owned the dog for a week, police say.

Big Rock Fire Protection Firefighter Dawn Brown was found by her husband on Monday with bites to her neck from a mastiff the couple had adopted a week ago from a family member, according to the Daily Mail.

Officials say Firefighter Brown and her husband had adopted the canine after the family member said they did not want it anymore.

“It was an extremely muscular-looking dog with a large head,” Kane County Sherriff’s police Lt. Pat Gengler said. “It looked big and strong.”

He added that the family members did not want to get rid of the dog because of aggressive behavior, but because they could not care for it anymore.

When Firefighter Brown’s husband called 911, it was her fellow firefighters who responded.

“To pronounced one of your own dead is probably one of the hardest things we have to do,” Big Rock Fire Cpt. Debra Raymond told the Chicago Tribune.

“She was one of those that, people when they call an ambulance it’s probably one of the worst days of their life,” Bristol Fire Department Chief Michael Kalyna said. “She had that ability to get that person to calm down, put things in perspective and by the time she was done with them Dawn ended up being that patient’s friend.”

It will likely be Firefighter Brown’s husband’s decision as to whether or not to terminate the mastiff.