INFO UPDATE by WHAM News: Pit bull's owner has agreed to have the dog put down.
Greece, N.Y.- Greece Police are investigating a dog attack Saturday that killed a chihuahua.
Police say Animal Control officers responded to California Drive and Haviland Park around 4:00 p.m. Saturday for the report of a dog attack.
When they arrived, officers found a pit bull running loose after escaping from its home down the road.
Police say before they arrived, the dog attacked and killed a chihuahua on California Drive.
Neighbors say the attack happened in a flash.“I just saw the dog, he ran up in the yard and grabbed my little baby and ran off with him,” said Laurie Shea, whose dog was attacked.
“In about a two minute period, the dog came up the yard, grabbed Romeo and then brought him down here and really started going at it. The owner had to tackle him,” one witness said.
Shea was celebrating her daughter's birthday with family and friends on her lawn when an unknown pit bull from the neighborhood attacked her chihuahua Romeo.
Shea rescued Romeo after her nephew died.
“He's been such a good boy ever since,” Shea said.
“The dog just wouldn't let go of him, witness Donna Adamo said. “He was shaking him in his mouth.”
As a pit bull owner, Shea's friend Kim Alessi says it's a shame this attack happened, considering pit bulls already have a bad reputation.
“It's not the dog's fault,” Alessi said. “A dog does what a dog does, it's part of their nature to do that.”
Alessi says it's up to the dog's owner to train them properly.
Shea now hopes the pit bull's owner in this case takes responsibility.
“I just hope he does the right thing and signs the papers to put the dog down because he's obviously dangerous,” Shea said.
Authorities say both dogs were unleashed at the time.
No people were hurt during the attack.
The pit bull is currently in custody with Greece Animal Control.
