Six-month-old Ember Renee Southard tragically lost her life following a dog attack at a family member’s home in Shelby County, Alabama, on March 14. Ember’s mother, Anna, had briefly left to take her grandmother to a doctor’s appointment after family members assured her the baby would be safe.<\/p>\n
According to Anna, the family member caring for Ember fell asleep while holding her. When Ember slipped off their chest, she was attacked by an 11-year-old family dog that had never previously shown aggression toward children. Despite the efforts of medical teams at Children’s Hospital, Ember passed away later that day.<\/p>\n
Remembering her daughter, Anna described Ember as a joyful baby with a beautiful smile, bright eyes, and a loving personality that touched everyone she met. Although devastated by the preventable tragedy, Anna chose not to pursue charges against the family member involved, calling it “an avoidable accident.”<\/p>\n
Now, she hopes others will learn from her family’s loss by following safe sleep practices and keeping infants away from dogs, regardless of the animal’s history or temperament.<\/p>\n
“The main thing the community can do for me is hold their babies closer,” Anna said. “Follow safe sleep. Keep dogs, all dogs, away from your baby. Any dog can kill an infant. It’s never worth the risk.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Six-month-old Ember Renee Southard tragically lost her life following a dog attack at a family member’s home in Shelby County, Alabama, on March 14. Ember’s mother, Anna, had briefly left to take her grandmother to a doctor’s appointment after family members assured her the baby would be safe. According to Anna, the family member caring…<\/p>\n