Springfield, Missouri

From the Springfield News-Leader of November 20, 2005

Man shoots pit bull to halt attack

A Springfield homeowner on Saturday shot and killed a pit bull that entered his home and attacked his dogs.

Two dogs, including the pit bull, had allegedly jumped the fence of the man's home and killed a dachshund in the yard. Then, according to police, the pit bull went into the residence and killed a dog there and injured two others.

Springfield police were called out to the 2300 block of N. National Ave. shortly after 2 p.m. after a caller reported hearing gunshots fired in the area.

Police Cpl. David Cash said witnesses saw a man in the back yard of 2327 N. National Ave. carrying a revolver in his back pocket.

Cash said that when he arrived he heard another shot fired.

Based on reports, Cash said a pit bull and collie had jumped the fence from a neighboring yard and attacked four dachsunds there. It is not known which dog killed the dachshund outside the house. The collie fled after the first attack.

The remaining three dachshunds ran into the house, and the pit bull followed them inside.

Cash was told that a commotion started in the basement, but the pit bull followed the dogs throughout the house.

"He shot the pit bull to stop it," Cash said of the homeowner. "He shot it multiple times."

Both dogs killed were attacked at the throat; at least one of the dogs killed was "picked up by the neck and swung around," Cash said.

One of the injured dachsunds was wounded in the abdomen.

Sgt. Dana Carrington said that the homeowner later shot one of the injured dogs to put it out of its misery.

A city maintenance crew was going to pick up the pit bull's remains, which were still in the house.

Loretta Deckard, 2323 N. National Ave., was attending to her 2-month-old daughter, Emma, when shots were fired Saturday.

Her two older children, Braydon, 3, and Lanina, 1, were playing outside with their 4-year-old cousin, Patricia, 4 at the time.

"I know a gunshot when (I) hear one," Deckard said. "I heard this lady screaming, 'Oh no! Oh no!'"

The older children told Deckard they saw the dogs being killed. Braydon told his mother he saw their neighbor with the revolver in his back pocket.

Deckard said that while the children seemed to be OK, she planned to clean out her son's toy collection of any toy guns.

"I don't want him to pretend to do what he saw," she said.

Deckard recalled seeing a pit bull a month ago roaming free, but she didn't know if it was the same dog that was killed Saturday.

Cash said that although the investigation was preliminary, he didn't expect charges would be filed against the homeowner, whose name was not immediately made available.