Another dog has been blamed in the deaths of Junior and another dog at an apartment complex.
The dog, which is a pit bull, was allowed at the complex because it met all the requirements. It was deemed safe to be there. That does not make the loss one man feels any easier to deal with, though.
Tony Yeary has never felt loss like this.
“Ten years in the Marine Corps, I should not be doing this,” said Yeary. “I am tougher than this, I am just beside myself.”
Junior the dog got his name because Tony Yeary had no other children. The 6-month-old Dachshund was ripped out of Yeary’s arms, and ripped apart, right in front of him.
“He dragged Junior to the side of the lake and mauled him relentlessly,” said Yeary. “(The dog was) shaking him and bitting him. Junior was looking at me and I could not help him.”
Junior was one of two dogs killed in less than five minutes by a pit bull named Apollo.
Neighbor Angie Howard saw one attack and heard the other.
“This animal was screaming this blood-curtilling death scream, and it didn’t stop,” said Howard. “And the desperation on this man’s face to get his animal out of this dog’s mouth was unreal.”
Neighbors said Apollo did not go out for walks with its owner, did not interact with other dogs. Instead, he spent most of his time tied to a tree, until the day he got loose and attacked two dogs.”
“That dog came out of nowhere,” said Yeary. “He was like lightning.”
Apollo is a rescue dog adopted from The Humane Society for Hamilton County. The dog passed all of the shelter’s tests and was adopted. The north east side apartment complex does not allow pit bulls, but they made an exception.
“They knew what that dog was, and they put that dog here,” said Yeary.
Apollo’s owner said people have the wrong idea about his dog.
“You can ask anybody around here, including my neighbor, wonderful dog,” said Apollo’s owner.
So why would he kill?
It is what Yeary wants to know as Junior’s ball, and collar, provide constant reminders of what was taken.
“That dog had blood in its mouth, it knew exactly what it was after,” said Yeary. “It’s a vicious animal. It is not going to be rehabbed, in my mind, but I am not a dog therapist.”
The dog is being quarantined for 10 days. A judge will then decide what will be done with him. There is some good news in this heartbreaking story, though.
Junior was brought in from Serbia and now his brother is now on his way here. Tony Yeary is hoping this new dog can fill the void left by the death of his best friend.
(Fox 59 - May 14, 2013)
