A recent dog attack that severely injured a 5-year-old Utah boy has struck a chord with a Cheyenne family that hopes to help him and his family navigate a difficult and lengthy recovery process.
Robert and Teila Walker know too well the anguish and uncertainty facing the family of Leo Feller of Hurricane, Utah, who was severely bitten in the face on Oct. 25 while attempting to pet a neighbor’s dog.
The news about little Leo brought a flash of déjà vu for the Walkers.
Five years ago, their then-6-year-old son Bridger was similarly hurt in a dog attack while protecting his then-4-year-old sister, Brielle, from a German shepherd.
Bridger was bitten multiple times on the face and head but still grabbed his sister’s hand and ran away with her to keep her safe. She escaped the attack unharmed.
“If someone had to die, I thought it should be me,” Bridger later said of the attack.
Leo Feller, 5, of Hurricane, Utah, suffered a brutal dog attack that left him with severe facial injuries. The attack is similar to one suffered by Bridger Walker of Cheyenne, who was then 6 and now 11, who had to get 90 stitches to sew up his face when he got between a vicious dog to save his younger sister. (Courtesy Photos) 
Leo Feller, 5, of Hurricane, Utah, suffered a brutal dog attack Oct. 25 that left him with severe facial injuries. (Courtesy GoFundMe) 
Leo Feller, 5, of Hurricane, Utah, suffered a brutal dog attack Oct. 25 that left him with severe facial injuries. (Courtesy GoFundMe) 
Leo Feller, 5, of Hurricane, Utah, suffered a brutal dog attack Oct. 25 that left him with severe facial injuries. (Courtesy GoFundMe)
The Attack
Since then, Bridger and his family have been on a mission to help other dog bite victims and their families cope.
“It’s really a dark day (when a serious dog bite occurs), but there comes a day when it’s just a memory,” Robert Walker told Cowboy State Daily, adding he and his wife have not heard back from Leo’s family regarding their offer of support.
Leo, who lives in an RV park, was visiting an 8-year-old neighbor when the dog lunged and bit him in the face, said Dylan Wall, who also lives in the neighborhood.
Wall was repairing the brakes on his minivan when he heard Leo let out a scream and watched as the boy ran by.
Wall took off his shirt, rushed over to Leo, and used it to apply pressure to the boy’s bloody face while his wife called 911.
“God told me to help him right away,” Wall said. “It looked like someone had put a firecracker in his mouth, that’s how bad it was.
"If I weren’t outside, he would have bled out for sure.”
Not First Attack For Dog
Others have also reported scary encounters with the dog, including Wall’s nephew, who was nearly bitten, and his landlord, who reported that the animal lunged at him.
“There should have been a decent owner there with a happy dog, and not one that likes to eat children,” Wall said, adding that Leo’s lingering injuries and scars — physical and emotional — will last a lifetime.
Despite surgeries, Leo’s severed salivary gland is leaking, and he has lost permanent movement in his jaw.
“Leo only has half a smile now,” said Wall, who has set up a GoFundMe campaign to assist in the boy’s recovery.
The dog that bit Leo exhibited aggressive behavior after the attack and is expected to be euthanized by Hurricane City Animal Control.
“Hurricane City does not take lightly the action of euthanizing any animal, but must carefully weigh the dangers that this animal poses to the citizens of Hurricane,” police said in a statement.
The dog that attacked Bridger Walker was also euthanized.
Bridger Walker was 6 when he stepped in front of an attacking dog to save his 4-year-old sister Brielle. It took 90 stiches to close up the wounds from the attack. “If someone had to die, I thought it should be me," he said after the attack. (Courtesy Robert Walker) 
Five years after Bridger Walker, now 11, stepped in front of an attacking dog to save his younger sister Brielle, then 4, the Cheyenne pair, along with their parents and three other siblings, have experienced a whirlwind of attention from around the globe. Brielle says her brother's her hero, and he says what he likes most in live is being a "normal boy." (Greg Johnson, Cowboy State Daily) 
Bridger Walker and sister, Brielle, remain close five years after he saved her life. Bridger also has been adopted by the boxing community. This championship belt was given to him by the World Boxing Council. (Courtesy Robert Walker)
Bridger Reaches Out
Bridger, whose heroism in protecting his sister made international headlines, received 90 stitches to his face.
He also underwent laser treatments by Dr. Dhaval Bhanusali, a renowned New York City dermatologist.
When the mother of a college-age daughter in Florida who was attacked and mauled by a dog learned of the Walkers’ story, she contacted them.
The Walkers connected her with Bhanusali.
The woman’s daughter later graduated from medical school, chose dermatology as her specialty, and did her residency with Bhanusali.
The dog attack has had an indelible impact on Bridger and his family, prompting them to help others, Robert Walker said.
After his incident, Bridger reached out to another Cheyenne boy who had been mauled by a dog and gave him an iPad he had bought with his own money for Christmas.
Bridger has said an iPad helped him during his recovery, and that it would likely do the same for the boy.
The Walkers also wrote a children’s book published in 2024 titled “You Can Be a Hero” that tells the story of the dog attack from Brielle’s point of view.
‘Bridger Challenge'
Bridger’s bravery also enabled him to spend three weeks in Thialand last year attending a training camp at the invitation of the World Boxing Council and Tourism Authority of Thailand.
An action figure modeled after him may be coming in the future. Additionally, family friend Bo Jackson, a former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL and Major League Baseball star, phones him regularly.
Bridger also delivers his “Bridger Challenge” at area schools, telling kids that just because something bad happens, it doesn’t mean they have to be afraid.
More recently, Bridger gave a keynote speech at a security industry conference in Dallas about overcoming adversity.
“No life should be defined by good or bad,” Robert Walker said, explaining the theme of his son’s talk. “For him to fixate and define himself by that event would give him a victim mentality.”
Now five years removed from his terrifying dog attack, Bridger is 11, and the scars on his face are greatly faded, but still apparent.
They haven’t taken his smile, however, nor his drive to use his experience to help others.
Scott Schwebke can be reached at scott@cowboystatedaily.com.
