Deaf Grandmother Mauled to Death by 3 Dogs While She Walked Her Dog: 'Never Heard Them Approach'

A Missouri family is mourning the loss of a grandmother who was killed in her backyard by a neighbor’s three dogs earlier this month.

Gladys Anthony, 62, was attacked outside her St. Louis, Mo., home on Jan. 15, St. Louis Metropolitan Police said in a statement last week.

Her family says Anthony had taken her dog out after returning from work. Anthony, who was deaf, had no idea that the dogs had approached her, according to a GoFundMe set up in her honor.

"Because my aunt was deaf, she never heard the dogs approach," the organizer wrote. "She had no warning, no chance to protect herself."

Anthony's husband was also attacked while trying to rescue her, per police. (He was not identified as her husband in the police statement, but First Alert 4 identified him as such, citing police).

When officers responded to the scene, they found the 73-year-old man trying to fend off the dogs with a broom, reportedly after he’d fired shots at them, St. Louis police said in their statement.

The man, who has not been named, survived the attack after sustaining “several bites to his arms and legs,” police said.

Responding officers were able to chase the dogs away after using pepper spray on them.

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In the fundraiser set up for Anthony, she is remembered as “a woman of unshakable character” who worked as a school custodian and was known for her generous nature.

“She had a way of making everyone feel valued, seen, and loved. She was the one who made sure no one ever went without a warm meal, the one who checked in on you to make sure you were okay,”  the family said in the GoFundMe.

"To see her life taken in such a violent way, in the place she should have felt safest, is something we cannot come to terms with.”

The dogs were located in the neighborhood inside a residence where they live, police said. The owner is cooperating with the investigation, according to police.

The victim's daughter Keisha Anthony told First Alert 4 that she wants the dog's owner to be charged and for the dogs to be euthanized.

As of the time of publication, St. Louis police tells PEOPLE, no charges had been brought against the owner. It wasn’t clear if authorities were considering euthanizing the dogs.

As of the time of publication, it wasn’t clear if authorities were considering euthanizing the dogs or charging the owner.

Local animal control did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

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