Arvada police confirmed that the dog owners euthanized the pit bull, and the landlords said they served an eviction notice because of the attack reports.
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| RIP Uno |
Janelle Jerman was walking her 2-year-old Yorkie mix Uno on Monday night near 62nd Place and Yukon Court, when she said two pit bulls jumped out of a car window and attacked.
"They grabbed my dog and disemboweled him right in front of me," said Jerman. "I just screamed for all I was worth. The neighbors came running and the owners of the dog did come and drag the dog off of mine."
Her dog died a short time later, while in surgery.
The story sounds all too familiar to neighbor Kimberly Greene.
"It's just horrible that this happened to someone else," said Greene.
Her West Highland terrier, Chloe, still has the stitches where her leg was amputated. Three weeks ago, Green said that the same pit bull that killed Uno attacked her dog.
"The dog came out of nowhere, like a hawk attacking a mouse, and just got her and didn't let go," said Greene.
7NEWS Reporter Jaclyn Allen tried to talk to the owners, but they didn't answer the door.
Arvada Police spokeswoman Susan Medina said police are still investigating what happened, but that if it's not a person who was attacked, police don't automatically remove dogs.
She said a summons had been issued against the owners for the first attack.
Jerman said she thinks Arvada needs tougher laws against aggressive pets, so that what happened to Uno doesn't happen to other dogs.
"He brought me so much joy and so much happiness," said Jerman. "I did everything right. I took her to training. We walked on-leash. How do you prepare for something like this?"
Some neighbors were relieved to hear the pit bull had been put down, but said it was too little too late.
"That dog should have been hauled away the first time it attacked that first dog," said Lisa Briles.
Briles said she and other neighbors have repeatedly called animal control to report aggressive behavior.
"I had animal control officers tell me I needed to learn how to be civilized with my neighbors," said Briles.
Arvada Police Spokeswoman Susan Medina said officers routinely see dog-on-dog attacks, and they are not treated the same as attacks on people, which is why the dogs weren't immediately confiscated.
"They're due their day in court," said Medina. "We did operate within the perimeters of what our procedures are."
Medina said after Uno was attacked, police gave the dog owners an option: a court order to euthanize the dog or take responsibility themselves. Medina said the owners put down the pit bull at a local animal hospital.
Medina said the second dog involved in the attack was an Australian Shepherd, not a pit bull, and that while it did also jump out of the car window, it did not actually attack the other dog.
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| Pit bull owners house. The dogs jumped out of the white SUV and mauled Uno to death |
Jerman said the dogs were working in tandem, and that the second dog was aggressively "herding" people to keep them away while the pit bull killed Uno.
Police, who were canvassing the neighborhood Wednesday afternoon, said they were investigating charges against the dog owners.
Medina did not have details about the previous history of the pit bull, but Jerman said officers told her the owners were issued a summons last year for having a vicious dog
(KMGH Denver-Aug 25, 2011)
