Tuesday, February 4, 1997
Mauling victim going home today
By ROY A. JONES II / Senior Staff Writer
Twenty-six days after he was nearly mauled to death by two
vicious dogs, 82-year-old Edwin H. Mueller is due to be released
from an Abilene hospital today.
"He's healed up good and he's ready to come home,"
his wife said Monday. "He's already been trying to figure
out a way he can bring in firewood."
Despite having one arm nearly ripped from his body, the retired
farmer calmly talked two Rottweiler dogs into stopping their attack
on Jan. 10. He told investigators the more he had screamed for
help the more vicious the animals became, so he tried speaking
calmly to them, apparently talking them into releasing him.
Then he somehow drove himself home and dialed 911 for help.
Physicians were unable to save his right arm - which a deputy
had described as "hanging by a thread" - and it was
amputated just below the elbow.
Mueller also underwent surgery on his left hand, which was
also severely mangled in the attack, and has undergone skin grafts,
using skin taken from his thigh, his wife said.
After a week at Abilene Regional Medical Center, Mueller was
transferred to Hendrick Center for Rehabilitation, where he has
been undergoing therapy, his wife said.
She said her husband is considering learning to use a prosthesis
for his right arm but wants to see if he can manage left-handed
first.
The dogs were impounded by the Stamford Police Department and
held for observation. Both tested negative for rabies but were
destroyed for the safety of the public. One had broken a chain
before the pair attacked Mueller at an oil tank battery near his
home.
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Copyright ©1997,
Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps Publications
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