Her Dog Was Killed by a Pit Bull in an Alaska Hotel Lobby. Now Her Story Is Going Viral

On Friday, September 25, Alaskan woman Lu Holder and her family became the latest victims of Bully breed violence. It’s a grimly predictable story. Severe and fatal attacks involving pit bulls are so commonplace within the American public consciousness it’s fair to say the breed has earned its infamous reputation and earned it well. But what do you do when the humans positioned to provide safety, concern, help, and empathy fail to act human at all? The Attack While on a re-supply trip to Anchorage, Alaska, Lu Holder, her husband J, their son, and their two dogs checked into a My Place Hotel. A chain that advertises itself on its own website as “pet friendly” and “hospitable”. However, despite this, soon after her Great Dane named Moose’s arrival, he was mauled. As the family stood at the front desk, Lu says an off-leash pit bull wearing a service-dog vest suddenly rounded the corner at full speed and charged directly towards Moose. Within seconds, the dog closed the gap, latched onto Moose’s throat, and began thrashing. Lu barely had time to move her son and the dachshund he was carrying out of harm's way before the dogs collided. J immediately began punching the crazed animal in an effort to force it to release Moose. Once it finally let go, however, it latched onto Moose’s hind leg instead. J continued striking the dog until the animals were finally separated. Moose, Lu says, never fought back. After the attack, the pit bull’s owner allegedly told the family, “He usually doesn’t break skin,” tried to feed Moose a dog treat, and stormed off when it was refused. Later that day, Lu attempted to obtain security footage of the attack from the hotel. According to her account this dog was known, staff told her they “had never seen him do that before” and declined to release the footage, explaining that their General Manager would call her on Monday, two full days after the attack. However, over the next several hours Moose’s condition began to deteriorate. Lu contacted police, and the family brought him to the vet where he was examined, x-rayed, and given medication. According to Lu, veterinarians determined the bite had ruptured Moose’s cruciate ligament. The family returned to the hotel with Moose, hoping he would recover. But he never did. They watched through the night as Moose’s condition continued to decline , and eventually rushed him back to the emergency vet. A fatal blow had already been dealt, though, and Moose succumbed to his injuries surrounded by his loved ones. Multi-system Failure Thankfully, the pit bull behind the attack will most likely be destroyed as per Anchorage Police Department policy, but it’s an attack that obviously never should have happened in the first place, and the circumstances surrounding it continue to raise concern. For one, the pit was off-leash. This goes against stated My Place hotel policy. Secondly, staff comments suggest this was a regular occurrence, and that the woman was a regular guest. Next, after the attack, hotel staff failed to call authorities and neither the owner nor her bloodthirsty dog was evicted from the premises. Additionally, it appears the staff may not keep a “pass-down” log (a common hotel practice for changing shifts), because, according to Lu, when she notified the morning staff about Moose’s death, they had no idea what she was talking about. No one knew an attack had even occurred. So it begs the question, how did staff plan to protect their guests from the violent animal still roaming the halls? During this entire process, a manager was unable to be reached due to undetermined reasons and Lu ended up paying My Place for the room she watched her dog die in, two sodas, and veterinary bills. My Place has not refunded her or offered to pay her vet bill. But what did the guest with the killer dog have to pay? Nothing. That we know of. Allegedly, the owner of the pit bull was well known to Animal Control and APD as not only was she on an assistance program, prior to this most recent pit, she had gone through a long line of dogs so aggressive and poorly trained, they all had to be forcibly removed and euthanized. And yet, she appears to stay at My Place Hotel rent-free. Her lifestyle, funded by government assistance. My Place, your problem Lu is a beloved figure on X, so naturally, thousands have risen to her defense . A reporter even called the hotel where Lu stayed, asking for comment. She reports that the staff said “so what," laughed, and then hung up on her. So out of curiosity, I called too, and after briefly speaking to front desk staff, I was then directed to the General Manager. She informed me that “they were not able to disclose anything or comment about the attack but are taking the situation very seriously.” However, are they? Nearly one week after the death of her dog, Lu reportedly has not received the call from their legal team she was promised. Interestingly, before the gag order was issued, My Place HQ on X did manage to get one last tweet out. It has subsequently been deleted. As an outside observer, all of these incidents struck me as profoundly odd. I’m an extremely seasoned traveler and I’ve never personally encountered this level of apparent incompetence before. Not even at hotels where you’d almost expect it. Most people, most places, possess a modicum of common sense. So I decided to do some digging. I combed through hundreds of online reviews for My Place Anchorage and noticed a pattern. Many of the most serious complaints appear to begin approximately one to two years ago, with some of the most startling posted shortly before Lu’s visit. Guests reported possible mold and stenches so overpowering that, in one case, a guest said they were forced to leave the hotel altogether. According to the review, they were not refunded. Several others described rooms that had not been cleaned during their stay. Or were not cleaned between guests. Dirty, damp towels still hanging, trash left on the floor, and other remnants of the previous occupant were strewn about. Lu herself states that in the 5 days they were there, before Moose arrived, their room was never touched. No fresh towels, no vacuuming, not even a toilet paper restock. Lu had to use some of what she had just bought once the hotel’s ran out. Guests appear to repeatedly book kitchenette rooms only to find them bare. No pots, pans, bowls, plates, or utensils. No way to actually use the amenity they paid for. And unsurprisingly, no refunds either. One mother wrote that she transferred out of My Place so she could be closer to her son after he had attempted suicide and was hospitalized. She said she spent 10 days trying to get a refund from My Place before finally leaving her review. Other complaints mention worn, broken beds, blood on beds, and bedbugs. The reviewer who reported discovering the bedbugs said hotel staff sent all his contaminated clothing to be laundered. He was then subsequently charged for the laundry and the bug-infested room itself. There are also reports of guests receiving the wrong rooms, guests given no room at all, and guests getting prematurely checked out of their rooms. Taken together, My Place Hotel in Anchorage, Alaska, appears to be severely dysfunctional and it appears to have been deteriorating for some time now. In this context, the fact that one dog killed another on the lobby room floor appears to be the culmination and natural crescendo of the hotel's own self-generated entropy. Post Mortem Since the attack on Moose, there has been an outpouring of support for Lu and her family. X user, Daughter of Wolves, has created a GiveSendGo for Lu where slightly over $5,000 has already been raised. Multiple systems failed Lu’s family and I have so many questions: Why does My Place appear to be cutting corners? Why do they seem to never give refunds? Why was a woman with an ownership history of animals so violent they had to be put down, allowed to stay in the same hotel as children and non-violent animals? How was she allowed to continue adopting animals? Why was she allowed to allegedly live at this establishment? How? Why did hotel staff allow her dog to exist in the building off-leash, going against hotel policy? Why is the most deadly and dangerous breed of dog per capita in the US allowed to stay in a hotel at all? There are so many points at which this tragedy could have been prevented. And now a precious family member isn’t coming home after what should have been a simple supply run. Every year, innocent animals and humans are brutalized and murdered by pit bulls. Lu is just the latest. She’s been put in the terrible position where she can either simply accept what has happened or do something about it. And she’s decided to take action. Hotels should be safe . Guests shouldn’t have to fear for their lives or punch dogs. Guests shouldn’t die due to staff complacency and incompetence. So yes, Lu is suing the hotel. This is her case. But it’s ours too. Because I believe we can all benefit, from justice, justice for Moose.