MOTORIST SAVES MAN ATTACKED BY 2 PIT BULLS; 65-YEAR-OLD MAN ESCAPES IN PASSING CAR AFTER DOGS TEAR HIS FLESH IN SAN FERNANDO.

Byline: Michael Coit Daily News Staff Writer

Quick thinking by a passing motorist probably saved the life of a 65-year-old man knocked to the ground and bitten repeatedly Monday by two pit bull dogs, authorities said.

Jose Morales was pushing a shopping cart filled with cans and bottles near the intersection of Griswold Avenue and Fifth Street when a large pit bull attacked his face and neck, and a smaller pit bull clamped onto one of his arms, officials said.

A motorist saw the 5:30 a.m. attack, honked and distracted the dogs long enough for the bleeding man to seek refuge in her car. The unidentified motorist prevented more serious injury, said Brian Humphrey, spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department.

``I would credit her quick thinking in having minimized his injuries and likely saving his life,'' Humphrey said. ``The woman was calling 911 when the larger dog continued. He approached the car and was snarling.''

Morales was treated for cuts at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills and released, a hospital spokeswoman said.

The attack, which authorities said was unprovoked, came a day after an 8-year-old girl was hospitalized when she was attacked by a pit bull at the home of a family friend in Tujunga.

After Monday's attack, San Fernando police subdued the dogs, and officers with the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control removed them from a home in the 500 block of Griswold Avenue. The dogs will be quarantined at the Castaic shelter, while officials determine whether to return them to their owners, said Sgt. Jerry White of the animal control agency.

The dogs escaped through an open gate, White said. Animal control officers also will inspect the owner's home and determine whether improvements are needed to keep the dogs within the property if they are returned, White explained.

``We're going to do a property inspection before we even consider releasing them. They can be ordered to do anything up to and including an enclosed dog run,'' White said.

The owners could be cited for maintaining dangerous animals, allowing them to run loose or maintaining a public nuisance, said White, who wouldn't release the owners' names while the incident is under investigation.

``The big, key issue is ownership responsibility. That's part of what we're going to look at here,'' he said.

White said the animal control agency could seek a court order to seize and euthanize the dogs if they can convince a court the dogs are dangerous. ``If we don't think they should be out in the public, we don't place them,'' he said.

Pit bulls and other dogs can be seen in many yards throughout the San Fernando neighborhood, and stray dogs are sometimes seen on the street, residents said.

``Every now and then a big dog will go running by. When I see a big dog go by, I shut the garage door,'' said Albert Hankforth, who operates an income tax business out of his garage near where the attack occurred.

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Map: Site of dog bite - San Fernando