RUTHERFORD COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA: A 12-year-old boy from North Carolina, Hunter Bishop has been mauled by a pack of 10 “hungry” pit bulls.

On Saturday, August 26, 2023, Bishop was attacked by the “starving” dogs when he was riding his bike to a friend’s house in Rutherford County.

The family members of the boy who is a seventh grader at Polk County Middle School, told ABC affiliate News 13 that he was airlifted to Prisma Health Greenville Memorial Hospital in South Carolina, where he has undergone at least four surgeries.

The fifth surgery is expected to take place on September 2.

What happened to Hunter Bishop?

The boy’s mother Amber Barnes described the horrifying incident to News 13. Finding her son surrounded by the pack of dogs, Barnes said, “They looked like they were starving, honestly.” The mother located the hapless boy in a ditch.

She mourned, “The way I looked at it, they were eating my son.”

After two people pulled the dogs off Hunter, he was taken to the hospital where he was put in critical care.

Barnes told the local news outlets that when Hunter was going to his friend’s house, the dogs came out of nowhere and surrounded him on Grassy Knob Road.

As per the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office, the dogs attacked the boy around 35 miles southeast of Asheville.

The Sheriff’s Office had plans to meet with the district attorney to discuss whether to bring charges against the dog owner(s).

What happened to the dogs that attacked Hunter Bishop?

Barnes told News 13 that the sheriff’s office informed her that three of the dogs had been quarantined. But she opined that it’s not enough for her.

She said, "Putting some dogs into custody is not going to get justice for my son," before adding, "They’re going to be out in 10 days and somebody else is going to get hurt."

The mother also slammed the dog owners for not being able to take care of the animals and said, "If you can’t take care of dogs, give them to someone who can and make them, let them be raised right."

Hunter Bishop to remain in hospital for more weeks

The seventh grader, who loves fishing, football, and basketball, will be staying in hospital for a few more weeks.

The heartbroken mother doesn’t know when Bishop will be able to go back to school. She said, “It's unreal that he's still alive.”

As per The Digital Courier, the doctors struggled to get enough undamaged skin to graft in these wounds. The photos released by the outlets show Bishop bandaged in several places.

His father Derek Bishop wrote in a Facebook post, "I love you son. I love you more than words can ever explain. I'm sorry you're having to deal with this but you keep that head up and keep strong."

He added, "Everything's going to be okay. I just thank the good Lord thay he was looking after my son that day.i love you Hunter ray."

Barnes organized a GoFundMe page where she wrote, "Hunter barely survived, thankfully he did. My son is a fighter! He is still in bad shape in the Greenville memorial children's hospital."

She wrote that due to his hospitalization, she could not go to work.

Citing the reasons, she wrote, "Due to this occuring I have not been able to work and it's been a struggle for funds getting back n forth to the hospital and other expenses. Anything helps."