POLK CITY, Fla. — A Tenoroc High School senior is healing after being attacked by a dog in Polk City. 

  • 18-year-old Sherelle Wilson attacked in early December
  • Neighbor came to her rescue
  • Polk County Sheriff's Office says stray dogs are big problem
  • More Polk County headlines

Sherelle Wilson, 18, said the dog locked eyes with her and then ran after her on December 4 while she was walking home from school.

"I panicked and started running toward the orange groves and it went after me and bit me in the arm. And I fell, and then it bit me in the side," Wilson said. "I was hitting the dog to try to get it off of me."

She'd never seen the dog before. 

"I was really scared and I was also confused, like, 'Is this really happening to me?" Wilson said.

A neighbor came to her rescue. 

"I'm very thankful it didn't bite me in the face or the neck," Wilson said. 

Carrie Horstman with the Polk County Sheriff's Office said stray dogs are a big problem in Polk County.

"We're the fourth-largest county in the state, land wise. We have over 2,000 square miles, so as you can imagine, we get several hundred stray dog calls each month," said Horstman.  

Animal control has also received more than 100 dog bite related calls since November 1, according to Horstman. She said some of those calls are follow-ups. 

With the high turnover rate within animal control, it's not making the job of getting the strays off of the streets any easier. 

"Currently we have four vacancies. That's not unusual for this job. It's a very low paying job. It's a thankless job," Horstman said. 

Horstman added it would help the situation if every dog owner got their dog micro chipped so animal control officers could easily find their owners. Otherwise, she said the officers often spend hours on each call. 

There are only 18 animal control officers assigned to the entire county, half working during the day and half at night. 

Wilson hopes they'll get more animal control officers soon. In the meantime, she's trying to avoid walking home from school.