A vicious pit bull attack outside a Florida grocery store turned into something nobody expected.
A 91-pound grandmother found herself fighting for her dog’s life with nothing but a cane and her bare hands.
And this 70-year-old grandmother used one desperate move to save her dog that left bystanders stunned.
Pit bull attacks an elderly woman and her dog
Shirley Pasamanick was having an ordinary Monday afternoon on September 1st, walking out of the Plaza Tropical Supermarket in Orlando with her 14-year-old dog Sparky.
That’s when everything went sideways.
"It just out of nowhere bolted at us," Pasamanick told WESH 2. "And I did everything I could. We ended up on the ground."¹
Security cameras captured the entire terrifying scene.
The pit bull came charging across the parking lot like a missile, zeroing in on Sparky with deadly intent.
Pasamanick, all 91 pounds of her, started swinging her cane at the attacking dog with everything she had.
The pit bull wouldn’t let go of Sparky.
She tried prying the dog’s jaws open with her bare hands.
Still nothing.
That’s when this tough-as-nails grandmother did something that shocked everyone.
Grandmother saves the day
With her beloved Sparky being mauled and nobody stepping up to help, Pasamanick made a split-second decision that probably saved her dog’s life.
She bit the pit bull on the back of its neck.
"I couldn’t open his mouth," Pasamanick explained. "So I bit him. I had to! I’m 91 pounds! I have no strength!"²
And you know what? It worked.
The pit bull released Sparky long enough for the grandmother to scoop up her injured dog.
That’s when the real kicker happened.
A man – who Pasamanick believes was the pit bull’s owner – casually strolled over, grabbed the dog’s leash, and walked away like nothing had happened.
"Grabbed his leash, walked away, didn’t check on us to see how we were," Pasamanick said, still incredulous days later.³
No apology. No concern for the elderly woman bleeding on the ground. No check on whether her dog was okay.
Just grabbed his dangerous animal and disappeared.
The cowardice didn’t stop there.
The bystanders who should be ashamed of themselves
Here’s what really gets your blood boiling about this whole situation.
Multiple people watched this 70-year-old woman get knocked to the ground by a pit bull and did absolutely nothing.
They stood there like statues while she fought for her life and her dog’s life.
Even after the attack ended, nobody came over to help the injured grandmother get back on her feet.
"They just stood there," Pasamanick said. "And people are going to see it now that you’re cowardly."⁴
What kind of society have we become when grown adults watch an elderly woman get mauled and don’t even try to help?
This wasn’t some split-second incident where people didn’t have time to react.
The security footage shows this attack went on long enough for multiple people to step in.
Instead, they chose to be spectators to someone else’s nightmare.
Pasamanick ended up with bite marks and bruises on her leg.
Sparky had multiple bite wounds and is still jumpy and defensive days later.
What this really tells us about personal responsibility
Look, here’s what this story really exposes about the world we’re living in.
You’ve got dangerous dog owners who let their animals run loose and attack innocent people, then walk away when the inevitable happens.
You’ve got bystanders who’ve become so detached from basic human decency that they’ll watch an elderly woman fight for her life rather than get involved.
And you’ve got a grandmother who understood something that apparently everyone else has forgotten – when your family is under attack, you do whatever it takes to protect them.
"You gotta take care of your dog," Pasamanick said. "Really, he’s the reason some days I get up."⁵
That pit bull owner should be facing serious charges.
His dog attacked an elderly woman and her pet in an unprovoked assault, and he just walked away like it was no big deal.
Orange County Animal Services is supposedly investigating, but we all know how these things usually go.⁶
The irresponsible owner will probably get a slap on the wrist while this grandmother lives with the trauma.
Pasamanick believes the pit bull should be put down, and honestly, can you blame her?
"Something has to be done. I was shaking for days after this happened," she said.⁷
She’s posted the security footage on Facebook, hoping to raise awareness and maybe identify the coward who owns that dangerous animal.
Here’s a 70-year-old woman who showed more courage in five minutes than most people show in a lifetime.
When push came to shove, she literally bit a pit bull to save her dog.
Meanwhile, able-bodied bystanders couldn’t even be bothered to call for help.
The contrast tells you everything you need to know about what’s gone wrong in this country.
¹ Tony Atkins, "70-year-old woman bites pit bull to save her dog during attack in Orlando," WESH 2, September 9, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ Valerie Boey, "Orlando woman, small dog attacked by larger dog while bystanders watch," WFTV, September 8, 2025.
⁴ Ibid.
⁵ Tony Atkins, "70-year-old woman bites pit bull to save her dog during attack in Orlando," WESH 2, September 9, 2025.
⁶ Alia Shoaib, "Florida Woman Bites Dog to Save Her Own Terrier," Newsweek, September 9, 2025.
⁷ Valerie Boey, "Orlando woman, small dog attacked by larger dog while bystanders watch," WFTV, September 8, 2025.
