OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – An Omaha family is in tears tonight after a beloved pet was attacked and killed by two dogs roaming loose.
Where the dogs came from has the owner of the deceased pet pointing toward a neighbor’s backyard.
The family lives near 23rd and Q Streets. Their daily routine of letting out the family pet turned into a never-to-be-forgotten nightmare for a 14-year-old when two large dogs on the loose attacked her Yorkie, Benji.
“They had Benji in their mouth, and I was just trying to scare the dogs away, and I was so scared I didn’t know what to do,” the teen said.
We won’t identify Benji’s family, who fear retaliation by the owners of the attacking dogs. The teen’s mother said she ran out to find their mauled little dog by his chain, ripped apart in the attack.
“My dog was here and I picked him up, then I ran, and I laid him on the porch,” she said.
Another family member took Benji to a vet, but the Yorkie couldn’t be saved.
“He was chained in his own yard and he literally got ate up by two vicious dogs, in his own yard,” she said.
Their rental house doesn’t have a fence, but mother and daughter say that shouldn’t matter.
This dog attack is not only tragic but unfair because they followed the rules, they said. The 10-pound Yorkie let out his own backyard on a chain, they say they never let him roam.
The mother said she chased after the dogs she alleged got loose from a neighbor’s backyard, but the Nebraska Humane Society animal control officer didn’t write a citation.
“It’s a basic she said/he said because we have no specific evidence showing the attack, that we can identify the dogs, and in the area, there are numerous pitbulls, and it affects our ability to bring a solid case for prosecution,” said Steve Glandt, vice president of field operations at NHS.
While not witnessing the attack on Benji, two nearby senior living center residents who also don’t want to be identified claim they have seen dogs that they alleged escaped the neighbor’s backyard.
“We seen them get loose and run around the neighborhood. Run around our parking lots here, and it disturbs me because we all have little dogs around here,” a neighbor said.
The neighbor interviewed by animal control declined an on-camera interview or recording but said their dogs were home when the attack happened.
”I feel for the victims, I feel their frustration, and we are frustrated too when we are not able to act on a limited amount of information,” Glandt said.
The Humane Society said the case isn’t closed, but Benji’s family knows more evidence is needed to solve the vicious attack.
“I just want justice for my dog,” Benji’s owner said.
Glandt said Benji’s family could file a civil lawsuit because the burden of proof is not as high. The family said cremation of the dog cost about $300 and they expect several hundred dollars more for a vet bill from the clinic that tried to save the dog.
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