‘I grew up sleeping beside my dogs – then they ripped my face apart in an attack that nearly killed me’

A man who grew up sleeping next to his dogs has revealed the moment two of them ripped his face apart in a vicious attack that almost cost his life.

Joshua Dixon used to love playing with his two dogs, Shoop and Bam Bam.

Until one day, when they viciously mauled his face.

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The unprovoked attack began after the now 26-year-old had slipped on black ice, startling one of the pitbulls.

Despite screaming ‘stop’ repeatedly, it was no use, and he was left lying in a pool of blood before he fell unconscious.

“I felt numb and cold,” the mental health professional told Need To Know.

“I kept screaming, but no one could hear me.

“When my dad finally came outside and saw what happened, he rushed me inside and asked for mum to call for an ambulance.

“All I remember saying was: ‘Why can’t I see?’ The pain began to fade into shock.”

Joshua, from Chicago, US, had always been a lover of dogs, including sharing a bed with them growing up.

Bam Bam, who had been living with his family for a few months, wasn’t too certain about his new owner, though.

He said: “He kept barking at me and lunged whenever I walked past him.

“While he and Shoop were our pets, they were also used to protect the home.

“Shoop was a sweetheart – but Bam Bam, I always had a bad feeling about.

“He was never gentle and always seemed like he was holding himself back from attacking.

“My dad was overly confident no dog would ever harm us, but I didn’t feel certain about that.

“Bam Bam was dangerous.”

The pitbull had originally been kept in a makeshift pen outside, until he was allowed to roam the garden freely when the family was confident he wasn’t a threat.

But, in December 2007, that’s when the heart-stopping attack happened.

He said: “It was after school and I went through the back gate.

“Bam Bam ran out and I remember being warned not to let him escape.

“I pulled at his tail and shut the gate behind me.

“As I turned, I slipped on black ice and he approached me barking.

“He then attacked my face.

“Shoop came out and tried to attack Bam Bam, but, in the process, she pulled at my face.

“I was being mauled by both dogs.”

He sustained major, life-threatening injuries, including losing both of his ears, his entire nose, upper and lower left eyelids and also his whole left cheek, as well as the majority of his right and half the left side of his lips.

At the hospital, Joshua underwent intensive surgery which lasted 26 hours.

He was then placed in a coma for four weeks to recover.

Both dogs were put down.

Over the years, he’s had 60 reconstructive surgeries, including facial, skin grafts and functional procedures that allow him to breathe and speak.

He also struggled mentally, though he worked hard to bring himself back from the brink.

Joshua, who runs his own clothing brand, Admire Wear, said: “I’ve been stared at, bullied, yelled at and called names such as: ‘Ebola face’, ‘Chainface’ or ‘Zombie face’.

“I’ve been spat on by [people] passing by and been told things like ‘Why are you still alive? I would kill myself if I were you.’

“Or ‘You should die; you look disturbing’.

“I’ve lost friends and family due to my facial impairments and I’ve been uninvited from gatherings.

“In school, I ate alone in the corner of the lunchroom.

“No one – except my high school sweetheart, who is now my wife – would let me sit next to them.

“Despite this, I didn’t let it stop me from trying to live my life and accept my reality as normal.

“[Before my wife], I was stood up on many dates and was told ‘You look uglier in person’.

“My wife, however, has never judged me.

“Not even when we were kids.

“She loves me in a way that makes me forget I look different.

“She sees beyond my scars and parts of me I didn’t even know were still there.”

The whole ordeal hasn’t put him off dogs, either.

In 2021, he got a miniature Australian Shepherd named Chloe.

He added: “The whole ordeal has taken away my sense of a normal childhood.

“My life became hospitals instead of playgrounds and I had to grow up much faster than most kids.

“At the same time, it gave me purpose.

“I don’t hate pitbulls.

“I can’t hate something that God gave life to.

“Humans failed them.

“I don’t live in fear; but I do live in awareness.

“Trauma teaches you to read situations differently.

“I pay attention to body language, energy and how animals are handled by their owners.

“I don’t put myself in situations where I feel unsafe.

“And getting a dog was part of me reclaiming control rather than letting fear control me.

“I chose not to give up and, instead, share my life openly.

“I’ve persevered through everything to build a life of purpose.

“With education, responsibility and respect for animals, this could’ve been prevented.

“The warning signs were there.

“This wasn’t just about the dogs; it was about human decisions.

“Don’t ever assume: ‘It won’t happen to me’ and respect animals for what they are.

“All it takes is one decision to change yours – or somebody else’s – life forever.”

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