Pit bull euthanized after killing another dog

Pit bull euthanized after killing another dog
ILLINOIS -- Knox County Animal Control euthanized a pit bull Tuesday afternoon following an incident Monday night during which the canine leapt two fences and killed another dog in a Wataga neighborhood, according to police reports.

According to a sheriff’s department report, deputies were dispatched around 7 p.m. Monday to the 100 block of Union Street in reference to a dog attack. Before officers arrived, the 911 caller advised the dog being attacked was dead.

Once at the scene, officers observed several people arguing in the street, some of whom had blood on them. Police also noted a white towel over an object on the street later determined to be the dead dog.

One of the people covered with blood was a 19-year-old woman who told police she had been walking her family's dog when the pit bull attacked her and her pet. She picked up her dog, which was a smaller breed, to protect it.

The pit bull jumped at the woman, biting down on her hair and pulling her to the ground. The large dog then bit the smaller animal around the neck and throat.

A man who heard the commotion arrived on the scene and helped break up the fighting animals before the pit bull’s owner, Dannielle McLeran, 25, showed up.

Police observed a long gash along the deceased dog’s neck, exposing its windpipe and neck muscles.

McLeran said the pit bull had been in her back yard behind a 6-foot fence and wasn't aware how the dog could have cleared it.

The woman who had been walking her dog went to Galesburg Cottage Hospital's emergency room for treatment and was later released.

The pit bull owner was issued tickets for a dog at large and failure to inoculate for rabies, the latter of which would stand until McLeran could present proof of inoculation.

Knox County Lt. Keith Rickard said a county animal control officer had spoken with McLeran and she agreed the best thing to do under the circumstances was to euthanize the pit bull. The dog has since been taken to an animal disease lab to determine the presence of rabies or other abnormalities.

(Galesburg Register-Mail - Apr 16, 2015)