Strange tame birds hopped here and there or rose and swept down wind with plaintive pipings that, in spite of their lack of fear, lent them a spirit of wildness akin to the aloof savaging of winter winds in bared trees.
"The Adventures of Bobby Orde"
Stewart Edward White
I know perfectly well that you wouldn't have dreamed of savaging the Family as you seem to have done if it hadn't been for what I said to you at Roville.
"The Adventures of Sally"
P. G. Wodehouse
As Billy lay supine in the dirt, Alan heard a distant howl, not like a wolf, but like a thing that a wolf had caught and is savaging with its jaws.
"Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town"
Cory Doctorow