A Kansas mother who was brutally mauled by a pit bull while pregnant with twins has revealed the devastating emotional toll of the attack, saying she is now struggling with people gawking at her as she tries to rebuild her life.
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she → maul → life
Audrey Austin was 24 weeks pregnant when she was attacked on July 17 while walking through an apartment complex in east Topeka.
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she → attack → Topeka
Austin, 31, said she was on her way to a relative’s home when two dogs became involved in an altercation involving other people in the area.
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dogs → say → area
One of the animals attacked her, leaving her with severe injuries to her face and a long road to recovery.
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One → attack → recovery
'I was able to call my fiancé and tell him, "Come help me, I’m bleeding,”' Austin recalled to WIBW.
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Austin → call → WIBW
Her fiancé, CJ Austin, described the horrific aftermath, telling the outlet: 'Her face was hanging off.
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face → describe → outlet
But during the attack, Austin said her primary concern was not her own safety but protecting the two babies growing inside her.
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concern → say → her
'When I got attacked, I was more worried about my babies than myself,' she said.
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she → attack → myself
Audrey Austin is continuing to recover more than two months after a Pitbull attack on July 17 that left her with devastating injuries to her face
On October 1, Austin traveled to Kansas City for another appointment on her injured eye, one of many treatments she is undergoing as doctors work to restore her appearance
The ordeal began on July 17, when Austin was 24 weeks pregnant with twins and walking through the Highland Park Townhomes in Topeka.
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Austin → continue → Topeka
She said she was caught in the middle of an altercation involving other people and was attacked by two dogs after they were released
Her fiancé previously said Austin suffered a broken pinky as she desperately tried to shield her stomach.
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she → say → stomach
'All she could think about was covering her stomach, so the dog wouldn’t get to her stomach and hurt the twins,' he said at the time.
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he → think → time
A man reportedly intervened and suffered minor injuries while attempting to get the animal off Austin.
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man → intervene → Austin
Her fiancé later said the man may have saved her life.
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man → say → life
'If it wasn’t for the gentleman - our friend who stepped in - he said the dogs would have killed her,' her fiancé recalled.
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fiancé → step → her
Austin survived the attack, as did her unborn children, but her injuries required extensive medical treatment.
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injuries → survive → treatment
She underwent a grueling 10-hour reconstructive surgery on her face, followed by almost four hours of surgery on her eye after she nearly lost her sight.
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she → undergo → sight
While doctors have worked to repair the physical damage, Austin says the psychological scars have proved just as difficult.
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scars → work → damage
'I’m tired of people staring at me.
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people → ’m → me
I’m tired of just being stared at,' she said.
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she → ’m → ?
Her partner, C.J. Austin, said she broke her pinky while desperately covering her stomach to stop the dog from reaching the twins.
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she → say → twins
A bystander eventually intervened, while a Topeka police officer shot and killed one of the dogs after it became aggressive
She has also developed a fear of large dogs, an ongoing reminder of the attack that she says changed her life.
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she → intervene → life
Yet despite everything she has endured, Austin insists she does not blame the animal itself but holds the owner responsible.
'I don’t blame the dog because I love dogs,' she said.
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she → endure → dogs
It’s how you raised a dog, and it’s how you trained a dog.'
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you → ’ → dog
Her attention is now focused on her twins, Kasai and Kamyiah, who were born at 38 weeks and remain in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
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who → focus → unit
Austin believes the trauma her body endured following the attack and repeated surgeries may have placed additional strain on the babies.
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body → believe → babies
'My body has been under so much anesthesia and so much surgeries that I also think [it] put a strain on my babies,' she said.
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she → think → babies
Despite everything she has endured, Austin refuses to stay away from her children.
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Austin → endure → children
'I see them in the mornings.
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I → see → mornings
I see them every day.
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I → see → them
I come up here, spend the night,' she said.
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she → come → night
Austin said the babies are making progress in the hospital but still require respiratory support as the family waits for the day they can finally bring them home.
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they → say → them
The joyful prospect of becoming a family at home, however, has been overshadowed by the financial and emotional consequences of the attack.
Austin has been unable to return to work because of her injuries and faces additional surgeries planned for December.
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Austin → become → December
Austin said doctors are planning a procedure on her nose known as a forehead flap, where skin from her forehead will be used to reconstruct the damaged area.
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skin → say → area
Her family is also dealing with mounting financial pressures as she remains unable to earn an income while continuing her recovery.
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she → deal → recovery
The attack reportedly followed a fight involving three people in the area.
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attack → follow → area
According to earlier reports, the six-year-old son of one of those involved let two dogs outside, one of which attacked Austin.
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one → accord → Austin
The dog involved was shot and killed by Topeka police after reportedly becoming aggressive toward an officer at the scene.
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dog → involve → scene
The second dog was taken into animal control custody.
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dog → take → custody
The dogs’ owner, who has not been identified, previously claimed she had been attacked by two people involved in the altercation and said her dogs were protecting her six-year-old son.
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dogs → identify → son
The incident remains under investigation by the Topeka Police Department.
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incident → remain → Department
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
