Nearly $36,000 has been raised for the family of a 7-year-old girl who was attacked by multiple dogs in Minnesota.
The donations have been pouring in to help cover medical expenses for Sumaya Farah Ali’s recovery. The child was walking from school with her mother when the animals surrounded them, according to her family’s GoFundMe. Her family had only been living in the United States for four months when the incident occurred.
Police in St. Paul, which is about 12 miles from Minneapolis, discovered Ali with severe injuries at a yard by Dale Street and Van Buren Avenue last week, KARE 11 reported. Officials said about five to seven dogs mauled her.
A bystander, identified as John Albert, said that his teen son was also walking home at the same time as Ali and told him what was happening, according to the report. He was able to drive the dogs away from the area.
“These dogs ripped up the ground. I looked at the little girl and saw blood on her face,” Albert told the outlet. “That’s when I realized what my son was talking about.”
Ali’s mother, Sacadiya Farah, attempted to fight the animals during the attack. She said in a translated interview that she’s unsure “how she’s going to be able to live with these dogs if they’re not caught,” the outlet reported. Since the incident, five of the dogs have been sent to local animal control, and the owner is working with law enforcement.
The suspected dogs bit her nose, ear, and thigh. The doctors applied stitches, but the family is hoping to gain access to a plastic surgeon so she will have minimal scarring, per the fundraiser. In a Feb. 11 update, Ali’s family said that she has been going to doctor’s visits.
“We came back from the doctor today after getting some more shots. We have to go back two more times but so far no major damage to her eyesight. The swelling in her face is going down a lot and today she was feeling happy and talking.”
Earlier this month, a Michigan family announced that 40-year-old Harold Phillips succumbed to his injuries after three dogs brutally attacked him.
