Man Killed At Rhames' House Identified

Victim Was Live-In Caretaker Of Actor Ving Rhames' Dogs; Mauled By As Many As 4 Mastiffs

(AP)  Authorities have identified the man who died in a dog attack at the home of actor Ving Rhames.

Jacob Adams was 40 and had been living on Rhames' property in Brentwood, California, for about 2 years as a caretaker for the actor's dogs.

The exact cause of the man's death remains unknown. Police have said Adams had numerous bite marks on his body and might have been mauled to death but the coroner says it's possible he might have died of heart failure.

Rhames, 46, who appeared in the "Mission Impossible" series of films, wasn't at home when the attack occurred.

Authorities have seized three bull mastiffs and an English bulldog.

[ampsanne]

I agree with you jinxkity. I posted last night but guess it's disappeared now. My thinking that the man might have had a heart attack, and being that the man was the dogs caretaker they were looking for food and possibly trying to arouse the man by biting at him. Makes no difference though any dog will bite. And there is also a diffence between a Bull Mastif(smaller) and a Mastif(larger). I worked for a veterinarian and he had a German Shepherd that would follow him into the examine room. People would ask if the dog had ever bitten anyone, and his reply was no, but there's always a first time. So you see no matter how well your dog is trained it could happen at anytime. We also had a man that boarded his Mastif with us and it was very gentle, and the ironic part is when he boarded the Mastif he would also board a Persian kitten and they both got along well together. I've often thought I would like to have one, and this certainly wouldn't put me off from having one.

[jinxkity]

Did anyone ever think that the marks may be come after he died? If he had a heart attack the dogs may have simply been trying to 'coax' him awake. I've had all types of breeds all of my life (which, thank God has been pretty lenghty) and if anyone has ever had more than one dog, you'd notice that they will 'bite' legs to try and coax each other to play. These being such large dogs, I'm sure their love bite would, no doubt, leave marks.

[bosco1236]

If this info is correct that could explain that it was not the Bullmastiff breed instead it was "Fila Brasileriro Breed"

I've owned my dog for 10 years and I%u2019ve never had a problem with him. My dog is known to pull someone to safety if he fells that we are in danger. He is very loving with all types of people all types of animals. I%u2019m talking from experience.

Don't get me wrong if the facts show that he was attacked then they need to do what they have too. I pray that the truth is found so that the family has closure. And also hope that if indeed it was the "Fila Brasileriro breed" that they let the public know the facts. And stop giving the Bull Mastiff a bad name.

[bosco1236]

This is an article that Explains how people mistaken BULLMASTIFFS for "Fila Brasileriro"

Bullmastiffs were allegedly responsible for mauling a man to death at actor Ving Rhames' home on August 5, 2007. Although this was widely reported in the press in the immediate aftermath of the attack, it may well be the result of poor fact checking. The dogs responsible for the attack were reportedly over 200 lbs., which is about 50 lbs. bigger than the average male bullmastiff. In addition, many of the reports used the terms "mastiff", "bullmastiff", and "Fila Brasileiro" interchangeably. Each is actually a distinct breed. Finally, previously published articles about Rhames indicate that he owned several "Fila Brasileiro", rather than Bullmastiffs.

[bosco1236]

I%u2019m a Bullmastiff owner here is a little info.

The Bullmastiff is courageous, loyal, calm, and loving with those it knows. It has a very strong protective instinct and will defend its owners against anything it perceives as a threat. However, it does not normally attack to protect. Instead, it simply knocks the intruder over with its massive size and pins them to the ground, or, will simply stand in front of the stranger/intruder and refuse to let them pass. Bullmastiffs become intensely attached to their families and do best when they can live inside with them. Their protective instinct combined with their great size and natural wariness of strangers means that early socialization is a must. The Bullmastiff may or may not get along well with other dogs. Often, male Bullmastiffs do not tolerate other males, regardless of breed. Occasionally, females are also killers of other females. The Bullmastiff, in general, does get along well with children and is very loving towards them. Parental supervision should be maintained when they are with children because these dogs are so big that they may accidentally knock smaller children down.

[kimec4-2009]

I can't imagine that if he was the caretaker of these dogs for the last two years that they would turn on him, unless he beat them. And who would beat a Mastiff? Not me...

[smh612]

In response to Beadazzle, I do not think the dogs should put down. Especially since you said that you THOUGHT the dogs were provoked. I cannot speak about the English Bulldog but I have has two Bull Mastiffs and those dogs are so gentle. I along with my younger sibling use to ride them, sit on them and play with them, they never attempted to do anything. Of course they are capable of doing harm but that goes for anything or anybody. We as humans are capable of killing and doing harm as well, should we be "put down"? No! I think the dogs owners should be responsible for there dogs but if this comes back that the man died of an heart attack then Actor Ving Rhames should be allowed to have his pets back.

[smh612]

In response to Beadazzle, I do not think the dogs should put down. Especially since you said that you THOUGHT the dogs were provoked. I cannot speak about the English Bulldog but I have has two Bull Mastiffs and those dogs are so gentle. I along with my younger sibling use to ride them, sit on them and play with them, they never attempted to do anything. Of course they are capable of doing harm but that goes for anything or anybody. We as humans are capable of killing and doing harm as well, should we be "put down"? No! I think the dogs owners should be responsible for there dogs but if this comes back that the man died of an heart attack then Actor Ving Rhames should be allowed to have his pets back.

[angeldimples]

I think everyone is quick to assume the dogs attacked or mauled him. If he did have heart failure and was dead on the floor...it is possible that the dogs were actually trying to revive him. I'll remind you of the french lady who received the face transplant. She said that her dog had actually been trying to wake her when she was unconscious.

[angeldimples]

I think everyone is quick to assume the dogs attacked or mauled him. If he did have heart failure and was dead on the floor...it is possible that the dogs were actually trying to revive him. I'll remind you of the french lady who received the face transplant. She said that her dog had actually been trying to wake her when she was unconscious.

[ampsanne]

It doesn't make any difference what size a dog is. Who knows what happened here. Maybe the man died of a heart attack, and being he was the caretaker of the dogs they were looking for food, and of course he wasn't responding, and therefore they attacked and bite him. Big or small any dog will be bite. I use to work for a veterinarian and he has a German Shephered that followed him into the examine room. People would ask if the dog would bite. His reply was no, but there's always a first time.

[arohanui-2009]

Seems to me microswinginglimpdik that it is you that is the inferior, sub-human, foul racist pig. Shame on you. Obviously your mother didn't raise you right.

[beadazzle]

Ah so now we have more to this story a possible heart attack. But how does that explain why the dogs attack this man. Who knows what they will finally come up with,i just hope the dogs are put down,reason being is most likely they were provoked some how.

Another point about dogs biting people,is this. Do you know more people get bitten by their pet cat and than dogs and also more people get bitten by the majority of the dog breeds suck as the poodle or a terrior,so why then do we just pick on the big dogs?

Is it simply because of their size and can do more harm than a small dog? It's not fair to the big breeds of dogs to be singled out. If we are going to do that then we should also do it to the small breed of dogs.

Be fair and get educated about any dog breed you intend to buy. Get him and yourself the proper training needed to keep a happy dog and a happy you together. If you own a large or small dog and you know it snips and bits at people,then use your brains and chain the dog up and away from children and people who come to visit you.

Common sense goes a long way and saves you and your dog a lot of hardship of going to court and possibly him getting put to sleep.