Elsa Davila (inset left) (GoFundMe), (right) the shopping center where the mauling occurred (KPLC/screengrab)
A 64-year-old Louisiana mother of two who shopped for groceries at Walmart in early June and later stopped to give a man in need some money has a "long road" to recovery ahead after that man's dog, described in local news reports as a pit bull mix, mauled her and left her with injuries to her face serious enough to require "reconstructive surgery," the woman's daughters said in posts to raise money on their loved one's behalf.
Elsa Davila went to the Lake Charles-area shopping center in Sulphur on June 2, two Sundays ago, and when she had finished running errands at Walmart, the woman of faith decided to help a man outside who was "begging for money," her daughter Savanna Gonzales said on GoFundMe.
The man, who KPLC named as 37-year-old Kyle Smith, reportedly went on to be arrested for alleged unlawful ownership of a vicious dog and a trespassing offense in connection with the mauling, which Davila's daughters said left their mother with injuries to her "face and stomach."
Gonzales, who said that she and her sister Michelle Garcia are the only family Davila has locally, said on GoFundMe that the attack was "horrible."
"She is a very strong woman and with the Love of Christ, she knows this will pass. She has had reconstructive surgery on her face and is now on a path to recovery," Gonzales wrote, asking for both donations and prayers.
As recently as Wednesday, Gonzales provided an update, saying that her mother is home after undergoing facial "reconstructive surgery" in New Orleans but that her road to recovery will be a "long" one and that more surgeries could be possible, hence the need to raise funds to help pay for mounting medical bills.
"Mom is home for now the skin is not wanting to take on her face as well as it should. We will keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't keep turning colors," she said. "If so she will go back to New Orleans for another surgery, but we are praying the skin doesn't die so no more surgeries."
Davila's daughters also appeared in on-camera interviews with KPLC, Savanna Gonzales detailing that the dog apparently "broke" its leash before the mauling. While Gonzales revealed her devastation upon seeing her mother with a "hole in her face," Garcia remarked that it was "the worst thing I've ever seen in my entire life."
Garcia further told the local NBC and CW Plus affiliate that she works in a store close by and said that the dog was known for "growling at customers" in the past.
Michelle Garcia speaks on camera after her mother Elsa Davila was mauled by a dog (KPLC/screengrab)
As of Wednesday, the GoFundMe campaign on Davila's behalf has raised more than $4,500.