However, this would be no ordinary stroll. The crackle of gunshots would soon fill the air, two dogs would be injured and two people, Capriotti and his daughter, bitten.
The attack
On Sunday about 6:30 p.m. as the sun faded, Capriotti put a leash on his yellow lab, Romeo, not quite two years old, and walked out of his Whirlwind Court residence and headed for a large, sloping area near Barren Ridge Road, which sits behind his home.
As they walked, Romeo, as he is apt to do, had his head down and was sniffing everything in sight. "Romeo likes to smell every blade of grass," Capriotti joked.
As they continued to walk, now about 125 yards from their home, Romeo fell slightly behind Capriotti. A short while later, Capriotti said he felt a tug on his leash, and then another. When he turned around to see what Romeo was doing, he noticed two large, white American Bulldogs bounding up the hill. The two dogs were closely followed by a smaller black dog.
"They were headed right for us," he said.
It was déjà vu. About eight weeks ago, the same pack of dogs had done a "hit-and-run" attack on Romeo, Capriotti said, knocking him to the ground before running away.
Startled at the sight of the dog pack, Romeo dipped his head and tugged at his leash as Capriott tried in vain to pull him up the hill. Almost instantly, both his collar and leash slipped off his neck, and Romeo took off running in an attempt to avoid the dogs.
"By the time that happened, they were up the hill and pretty much on him," Capriotti said.
As Capriotti's dog made a break down the hill, one of the large American Bulldogs was running next to him, nipping at Romeo, Capriotti said. The other dogs joined in. Within seconds, Romeo was down and on his back in a defensive position.
"Then, pretty much the most horrible thing I ever saw started," Capriotti said.
The dogs tore into Romeo, Capriotti said, biting and pulling him at different angles. Romeo yelped as the other dogs growled and bit into his flesh.
"It was just loud and vicious," Capriotti recalled.
Capriotti said he tried kicking the dogs away, and also tried to yank them off Romeo to no avail. The female owner of the dogs also joined the fray in an effort to stave off the attack, according to Capriotti. After what seemed like several minutes, Capriotti said he began to tire as the attack wore on.
Romeo was still on the ground at the mercy of the pack.
"The two big ones are on his legs and throat, thrashing back and forth," Capriotti said. "They weren't going to stop until he was dead or not moving any longer."
Finally, Capriotti's daughter emerged onto the deck of their home. "I hollered down at her to get my gun," Capriotti said. A minute later, his 20-year-old daughter, along with his wife, arrived with the still holstered and unloaded weapon. Capriotti said he loaded the gun and undid its safety.
Three warning shots quickly filled the air. The pack of dogs backed away from Romeo, but the incident was far from over.
"It didn't take long for them to re-engage," Capriotti said.
At that moment, Capriotti decided he would have to turn the gun on the dogs. Capriotti said he straddled Romeo, who was still under attack, when he saw one of the dogs, the female, circle around.
Mindful that he was in a subdivision full of families and children, Capriotti said he waited until he could used the slope of the hill as a backdrop before firing at the female. She was shot near her hindquarters and took took off running.
Continuing to stand over Romeo, Capriotti said he pressed the barrel of the gun against the head of the male American Bulldog, who was still in attack mode. Capriotti, though, said he could not pull the trigger.
"I just didn't feel comfortable with the shot," he said.
Capriotti – along with the owner of the dogs in question, his daughter and wife – continued to struggle with the two remaining dogs. Both Capriotti and his daughter would get bitten in the process – he on the thumb and she on the leg. Finally, Capriotti and his family members were able to get Romeo inside their home, while their neighbor held onto her dog, ending the attack.
Puncture wounds dotted Romeo's body, and he was treated both Sunday night and Monday morning. Capriotti and his daughter went to a nearby branch of Augusta Health, where they received tetanus shots and had their wounds cleaned.
Shortly after the attack, deputies from the Augusta County Sheriff's Office arrived and took a report.
The aftermath
Charges against the couple who own the three dogs are pending, according to Pat Coffield, administrator for Augusta County. Coffield said two of the dogs in question were not licensed, and he said citations will be issued. Three charges of dogs running at-large are also pending, he said.
Reached on Thursday, the couple declined to speak about the incident.
Coffield said all of the dogs were vaccinated for rabies prior to the Sunday night incident. He also said it's his understanding the dog that was shot did survive.
"All four (dogs) are being quarantined at home," he said.
Coffield also noted the Augusta County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office is considering charging Capriotti with discharging a firearm in a public place. As of Thursday, no charges had been brought against Capriotti.
As for Romeo, Capriotti said he's "licking his wounds" and also has multiple bruises.
"He's still in some pain," he said
(Staunton News Leader - Oct 23, 2014)
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