Please Help Rylan Recover from Pit Bull Attack

On September 12, 2021, my friend's 10-year-old daughter Rylan, was playing with her friends in her townhouse complex when her mother suddenly heard screaming, followed by banging at her door. She went to see what the commotion was all about and was met with frantic neighbours telling her that Rylan needed to go to the hospital because she had been attacked by a pit bull. Suddenly, she saw her daughter being carried towards her covered in blood and screaming for help.

From the description of the events from witnesses, the dog launched itself at Rylan, biting her upper chest, then knocked her to the ground and proceeded to tear chunks of flesh from her body. She suffered major puncture wounds on her chest, upper torso, back and legs. At this time, she is unable to walk. She will need extensive therapy for muscle damage and potential plastic surgery to minimize the horrific scarring from the wounds. To a 10-year-old girl who absolutely loves dogs, this has been extremely traumatizing, to say the least.

Rylan has a long road of recovery ahead of her and while she is a tough little girl, her mother is very worried about the post-traumatic symptoms she is beginning to display, there is no doubt she will need trauma therapy. Since the attack, she has been experiencing sporadic sleep patterns and often wakes up with night terrors. Her mother has been told by the doctor that she will likely need to be referred to a plastic surgeon as she may require several skin grafts to repair the severely damaged areas. Only time will reveal the degree of permanent damage (torn muscle, ligaments, damaged nerves, etc).

While her mother is assuming (and hoping) some of this is covered by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP), she is a single mother and does not have any private health insurance. She will not be able to work for an undetermined amount of time as she is at home caring for Rylan who is not able to attend school at this time due to the injuries she has sustained.

We are asking for help with medical and related expenses not covered by insurance. Please help this wonderful family get back to as normal of a life as possible. We thank you in advance for your kindness and support. We appreciate it more than you know.