[Purple]

'Toy' Dog Attacks 80-Pound Pit Bull

Vince Gerasole
Reporting

(CBS) WAUKEGAN The owner of a 10-pound "toy" dog was cited over the weekend when her dog attacked an 80-pound pit bull.

Garry Laffredi was walking his 2-year-old pit bull Capone near his apartment complex Thursday when a neighbor's Pomeranian named Tiger came running at them and attacked the dog.

"(Capone's) not a bad guy. He's real friendly. He's people friendly," Laffredi said. "He loves other dogs. (But) this little Pomeranian ran out and starts biting him on the foot."

Laffredi also said Capone "loves everything."

"He walks around with the squirrels. I got ducks coming to the back door. They dont even fly away when he comes out," said Laffredi.

Pomeranians, which are classified as Toy dogs by the American Kennel Club, can be as small as three pounds and resemble a fox in appearance, generally having a bushy orange coat and pointed ears.

Laffredi said the Pomeranian bit Capone's foot hard enough "to draw blood" also managed to nick Capone on the top of the head as he tried to pull the pit bull away on a leash.

Eventually, Laffredi said, Capone "grabbed the dog and more or less set him off to the side" before the two dogs were separated.

It was not the first time Laffredi had a run-in with the 10-pound dog.

Laffredi says this was the third attack by the unleashed Tiger. He was bit in the hand two weeks ago by the Pomeranian but chose not to report it, he said.

No one answered the door at Tiger's home as CBS 2 searched for a comment, but Laffredi identified the dog at the window as Tiger. He's an owner who is proud that his powerful best friend never fought back.

"You hear nothing but bad about pits, but it's the way you bring them up," he said.

Waukegan animal warden Tina Fragassi said she was not surprised when her office fielded the report about Thursday's attack.

"They stand their ground, those little dogs," she said.

"My mother had one at one time. They're cute little dogs, but they can be nasty," :Laffredi said. "Sometimes the little dogs are meaner than the big ones."

The Pomeranian's owner, who declined to comment, was cited with failure to prevent a dog bite, owning a dog running at large, not possessing a dog license, and not having updated rabies shots.

Each citation comes with a $25 fine, Fragassi said.

[buddysmom]

While I'm glad the media is telling a story that shows a pit bull in a positive light, it's sad that this should be such a big news story. Anyone who has been around dogs at all knows that the litttle ones can be NASTY and any loose dog running up to a leashed dog is a potential dangerous situation.

UGH and I can't belive what a tiny slap on the wrist the pom's owner got ... $25 per count ... WTF?!

[CynthiaATL]

In my experience with Poms has been the ones that are Nasty are some vicious little sum B%#ches.

But again that is not all I have met some sweet ones.

Now my Shih Tzu growing up used to try and attack every big dog.

And I agree Buddysmom that was a double standard. If it was a "pit bull type" dog it would have been a WHOLE nother story.

[PitRottMommy]

$25???!?!?!!?!?!?!?

I'm not even going to bother making the comment about prophylactic rabies vaccinations in humans.

Good thing I wasn't working this case. The Pom's owner...yeah, would no longer be an owner.

And the smaller dogs are almost always worse than the bigger ones.

>>>>Now if I could just get the kennel staff to understand than a vicious toy dog at "eye" level in dog kennels AREN'T a good idea...



Sami