Taunton cops seek man who slashed dog with machete
A gentle pit bull chowed on a steady diet of Milk Bones and painkillers yesterday while recovering from a vicious attack in Taunton that witnesses claim involved a man who threatened to kill the pooch and stabbed him with a machete “for biting my dog,” authorities said.
The gray pit bull, weighing about 80 pounds, was at the city’s animal control office yesterday. A cone was over the dog’s head to protect fresh wounds where he was stitched up on his neck and near his spine. The dog, whose name is unknown, was attacked by an assailant Monday night on Church Street, cops said.
“It’s absolutely horrible,” said Manuel Massa, an animal control officer who responded to the gruesome scene Monday night. “For someone to come and stab a dog for no reason, it just makes no sense . ... We’ll make sure he gets put in good hands. He’s a good, ol’ boy. He’s handsome. We should call him handsome.”
Taunton police said witnesses saw a man with a machete who was yelling, “I’m going to kill this (expletive) dog for biting my dog.” A woman intervened, but was stabbed. She declined to cooperate with investigators, cops said.
The people involved in the incident are acquainted or related, police said.
Massa said when he found the dog, it was on the ground surrounded by distraught people, with towels wrapped around his neck to stop the bleeding.
Taunton police Lt. Paul Roderick yesterday voiced frustration that no one has been charged.
“We don’t have any video. We don’t have anybody cooperating. The dog can’t talk,” Roderick said. “It’s just sickening and sad. I just shake my head.”
Massa said yesterday the dog is quarantined for 10 days because of its wounds. Animal Control will work with police in order to learn what led to the dog attack.
Massa vowed not to give the dog back to his previous owner if it is learned the owner was culpable, or if the hound remains in danger.
“His spirits are absolutely amazing. He’s very goodnatured,” Massa said.