Nikole Babb, nbabb@cherryroad.com
When Joann Ragatz was on her routine four-mile walk, she didn’t expect to be viciously attacked by two dogs, but that’s exactly what happened. The attack left her soaked in blood with a black eye, a torn bicep, and many other painful injuries. She says that she just wants to ensure that others are aware that this could happen to them on public property if they don’t stay vigilant.
It was a cool Saturday morning on November 23 as Joann took a walk down the Redbud Trail like she does nearly every day. Little did she know she wouldn’t be able to complete her routine walk due to severe injury. Unlike her other walks, Joann didn’t have her husband alongside her or her two poodles, Thea and Dollie. On this particular day she went alone, which shouldn’t have been anything to cause concern.
As she approached the end of the trail near Augusta, Joann noticed two English Mastiff dogs loose on the public trail. She had seen them loose before and would be cautious not to get too close due to their large size and her petite stature. She’s aware how dangerous dogs can be if they believe they’re protecting their own home. Saturday was no different when she saw the two dogs; Joann turned to head back towards her home in Andover when she was knocked to the ground in extreme pain.
“I didn’t hear them bark at all,” said Joann. “I was listening to an audio book like I always do, but my headphones allow outside noise to come in. They just attacked me, and it felt like I was hit by a freight train.”
As Joann was knocked to the ground, the two dogs began to attack her further. They began to bite her left bicep, tearing as hard as they could. One went for her face and barely missed, scratching her undereye, leaving it bloody and black. As Joann felt the dogs bite her ponytail, she screamed for help, thinking she may die on the trail due to the pain and damage the dogs were doing to her body. After a few minutes, a nearby neighbor heard her screams and came to help.
A man who remains the hero of Joann’s story didn’t identify himself to her after she was able to get away. He simply came to help. The man came running from his home positioned at the south side of the trail, shouting at the dogs and hitting them with a log to scare them away and telling Joann to getaway as fast as she can. She walked a mile down the trail until she felt she couldn’t go any further, calling 911 for help. Another bicyclist stopped and called her husband Tom to notify him of the incident.
“If it wasn’t for the man who came to get the dogs off of me, I might have died,” said Joann. “I just couldn’t get them off. I thought, I’m going to die here, this is it for me.”
Once Butler County Emergency Services and the Butler County Sheriff’s Office were on scene, they began to evaluate Joann. The EMS personnel that initially began work on Joann’s injuries before transporting her said that her compression jacket saved her life. He explained that the jacket kept her skin and injuries from being too far exposed and kept her from bleeding out on the trail. Had she not been wearing it, she may not have survived the wait.
After hearing this news, Tom wrote to Lulu Lemon, the brand of the compression jacket, to let them know their jacket saved his wife’s life. Tom the jacket being her favorite, Lulu Lemon wrote back to Tom and sent a $50 e-gift card to go towards a replacement for Joann.
Later, Joann was transported to Ascension Via Christi St. Francis Hospital in Wichita where the emergency team went straight to work on her. Her right bicep region had been so severely damaged that a chunk of her arm about four inches long had to be removed surgically, and her bicep torn in half. Fortunately, Joann had been wearing an armband on her left bicep that held her phone as she exercised, which protected her from further damage, but still left a one inch long cut which needed stitches and a large bruise.
Furthermore, her left pinky was also severely cut and torn but is healing with stitches, her undereye is also healing, her neck and ankle had bites that are healing, and her knees were skinned raw with gravel stuck in her skin from being dragged down, shredding her running leggings. Joann has gone through two surgeries so far with at least one more scheduled as a skin graft to close the open right bicep that is currently a very large, open wound.
One of the muscle bellies connected to the bicep is not functional while the other is working to do what the other can’t.
The worst part of everything is that fitness and health is the center of Joann’s life. She’s exercised with weights and cardio her entire life, making a four-mile run or walk a daily routine. Her health is the most important thing to her, next to her husband and children. She and Tom met at the old Exertech Fitness Center located at Parklane in Wichita that closed in the 90’s. Tom had moved to Wichita to open and manage the club in 1985. From there the two fell in love with each other and fitness together. Through the years, they’ve made it a top priority to ensure they hold each other accountable for their health.
“For us, walking and running, lifting weights – that’s our life,” said Tom. “We’ve worked our entire lives to be fit and healthy and it feels like this is her reward, to be horribly injured.”
Aside from the physical setbacks, their daughter is set to be induced to give birth to their granddaughter in early December. With her injured bicep, it leaves Joann wondering if she’ll be able to hold her granddaughter.
Although the couple have fought off smaller dogs before while utilizing the Redbud Trail, the two never thought this terrifying accident could happen to one of them. They want to let others know to keep their dogs contained on their own property and for those who utilize public spaces to always be hyper aware of your surroundings.
“I just want people to know that this can happen to them, too,” said Joann. “Keeping the dogs contained and off of public property while they aren’t monitored would’ve prevented this from happening.”
Just an hour after the incident, the owner of the Mastiff dogs took them to be euthanized. The owner of the dogs stated in a police report that his wife had let the dogs outside before she went to shower when they left the property.
A dangerous dog of a Level 3, is defined as:
“Level 3: Any severe bite to a human requiring significant medical attention, wound closure, or other emergency medical attention; or an attack or bite with a demonstrated history of bites or attacks; or repeated non-compliance with Police requirements that indicates a risk to the public; or circumstances otherwise indicating a pronounced and obvious risk to public health or safety.”
Even though Joann has a long recovery ahead that will include physical therapy, occupational therapy, and post-traumatic stress disorder counseling, she was making laps to get in her four-mile routine before surgeries and during the day at the hospital. When she goes to sleep, she often relives the situation in her nightmares. Joann remains optimistic for her return to work at Selzter Elementary School, although the future of her complete recovery will be unknown for now. She was discharged from the hospital on Tuesday morning.
12/05/2024 10:57am: UPDATE: This post was updated to include the correct day.
