{"id":27123,"date":"2025-03-21T18:10:59","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T18:10:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/popularnews.pw\/?page_id=27123"},"modified":"2025-03-21T18:10:59","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T18:10:59","slug":"6-month-old-dies-after-family-members-dog-attacks-her","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/popularnews.pw\/?page_id=27123","title":{"rendered":"6-month-old dies after family member\u2019s dog attacks her"},"content":{"rendered":"

A heartbreaking and utterly tragic accident has left a community in mourning after the loss of little Ember Renee Southard, who was just 6 months old.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Fell to her knees in the driveway<\/h2>\n

Reporting on the death of a young child always strikes at the heart, but the memory of Ember Southard deserves to live on. Unfortunately, this sweet baby girl never had the chance to learn to walk, talk, or experience the joys of life.<\/p>\n

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Her brief time on Earth came to a devastating end on March 14, under the worst possible circumstances. According to\u00a0WFLA<\/a>, Ember, from Bibb County, Alabama, tragically lost her life following a dog attack.<\/p>\n

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Although the incident occurred at a family member\u2019s home in Shelby County, Ember was from Bibb County. The attack took place around 10 a.m. on Friday.<\/p>\n

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According to Ember\u2019s mother, Anna, it all happened when she was supposed to take her grandmother to a doctor\u2019s appointment. The mother had planned to take her daughter with her, but her family reassured her that 20 minutes would be fine.<\/p>\n

They hadn\u2019t even checked in at the doctor\u2019s office, and hadn\u2019t been gone for more than 20 minutes when they received a phone call from the family member who was watching Ember. Southard rushed home and arrived just behind the ambulance.<\/p>\n

When she saw her daughter, Ember already appeared lifeless. She fell to her knees in the driveway, her knees bleeding from the impact. She heard the words \u201ddog attack\u201d and quickly learned that Ember had been attacked by an American Bully, an 11-year-old dog that had been around many children and had never harmed one before.<\/p>\n

A family pet<\/h2>\n

Ember was rushed to the ambulance, with Southard riding in the front. She begged for Ember to be okay, but she knew deep down that her daughter wasn\u2019t going to survive. She had already known the moment she saw Ember\u2019s blue, unmoving body.<\/p>\n

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The trauma team at Children\u2019s did everything they could, but before Ember was taken to the operating room, they told Southard that it was very uncertain and unlikely that her daughter would survive. Despite their grim prognosis, Southard continued to plead for Ember\u2019s survival. At 1:10, Ember passed away, despite the efforts of over a dozen doctors.<\/p>\n

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GoFundMe<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Police report that the dog responsible for the attack was a family pet. At the time, two dogs were in the house, and both were immediately taken into a 10-day quarantine by animal control.<\/p>\n

Now, the Alabaster, Alabama Police Department is investigating the tragic incident. No arrests have been made, as authorities are waiting for decisions from the Shelby County District Attorney and Grand Jury.<\/p>\n

In an\u00a0email interview<\/a>\u00a0with WLFA, Anna, Ember\u2019s mother, shared that a family member had fallen asleep with Ember on their chest.<\/p>\n

\u201dShe had the sweetest smile\u201d<\/h2>\n

When Ember slipped off, she was mauled by the dog. The family member, who is epileptic, had a seizure after Ember was already in the ambulance.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy daughter was so sweet,\u201d Southard recalled. \u201cShe had the sweetest smile, the cutest squeal. Ember was such a joy. Such a good baby. She always had a little smile and big beautiful eyes. She hated to be cold or wet. I can\u2019t even describe the feeling of cleaning the blood off my daughter, of wrapping her body in warm blankets so that she wouldn\u2019t be cold. Only me and my grandparents saw her first after she passed. I didn\u2019t allow anyone else to see her until she was as clean and warm as she could be.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cEmber\u2019s nickname was Noodle. Because as a newborn, she had little noodly toes, and the name just stuck. A wittle noodle. A perfect noodle. She was loved by so many people. Ember was an expert at smiling at you before spitting up on you. She had the sweetest voice. She had just learned how to roll over. There wasn\u2019t a soul that met her that didn\u2019t absolutely love her. She had wild blonde\/red hair and big bright eyes. There was never a more perfect baby than my noodle.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Anna, she won\u2019t be pressing charges, even though her initial reaction was to do so when she was devastated and angry. However, she says she will\u00a0NEVER<\/em>\u00a0forgive this family member for falling asleep with her daughter on their chest. Never.<\/p>\n

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Could have been prevented<\/h2>\n

Anna believes this tragic incident could have been prevented.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy daughter is gone forever because they couldn\u2019t follow a simple [expletive] rule. I follow safe sleep rules to the letter, and I never allow my children around dogs like that. Always supervised with me holding them. I don\u2019t believe charges should be continued, and I will not be actively pressing them. I think the punishment of knowing what their neglect did to my daughter will haunt them for the rest of their life, as it should. It was an accident. An avoidable accident, is still an accident.\u201d<\/p>\n

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family with funeral expenses, and many have offered their support. But Anna has a plea for everyone who wants to help at this time:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe main thing the community can do for me is hold their babies closer. Follow safe sleep. Keep dogs, ALL DOGS, away from your baby. Any dog can kill an infant. There\u2019s no reason to risk it. It\u2019s never worth it. Please, please keep your children away from dogs and follow safe sleep. This dog was 11 years old and had never harmed a human, much less a child.\u201d<\/p>\n

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GoFundMe<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

My heart breaks for you and your family, Anna. There are no words. Rest in peace, little Ember!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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