Delaware: No-kill shelter tried for two years to talk someone into adopting this pit bull. No luck. Then one day, an employee took it for a walk, it attacked a small dog whose owner shot it to death. The end.

DELAWARE -- Wilmington Police say the owner of small dog will not charged after he shot and killed a pit bull terrier that was attacking his dog.

It happened before 9:00 a.m. Monday in Canby Park.

Police say an 8 year-old pit bull named Paco, which had been housed at the Faithful Friends no-kill animal shelter in Wilmington for the last two years, was being walked in the park by shelter employee Lamotte Howard, 23, when Howard decided to turn the pit bull loose.

The pit bull which had to be shot to stop its attack

The pit bull spotted William Blythe, Jr., who was walking his 7-year-old terrier mix named Fitz and launched its attack, picking the smaller dog up by the neck and shaking it from side to side.

Pit bulls either clamp down and strangle/crush windpipe or they violently shake the victim in an attempt to break its neck. 

Police say Howard and Blythe tried to pry the pit bull off the smaller dog, but the pit bull would not stop.

Blythe then got the pit bull into a head lock, pulled out a .9mm handgun and shot the pit bull in the head, killing it. 

The victim dog, Fitz, was taken to a nearby animal hospital to be treated for his wounds. He is expected to recover.

Police cited Howard for allowing the dog to run loose off its leash. He faces a $250 fine.

The SPCA said Blythe will not being charged. Delaware law allows the killing of a dog if it is allowed to run free and attacks another dog that is under the immediate control of its owner.

JANE PIERANTOZZI WANTS YOU TO BLAME THE DEED AND NOT THE BREED -- THANKS, JANE!

Monday afternoon, Jane Pierantozzi, the Faithful Friends animal shelter's executive director, released the following statement:

Faithful Friends continues to investigate this morning's unfortunate incident, involving the injury of two dogs. While one of the dogs involved was a pit bull, we don't believe that to be the cause of the incident. Aggressive behavior can occur within any breed, resulting from genetics or the animal's personal experiences. Faithful Friends is a no-kill shelter that takes animal safety very seriously. We would never knowingly put any person or animal in danger."

(6abc - Oct 1, 2012)