A Durham woman took her dog out for a walk on Monday not knowing it would be her last time doing so.
Leticia Soto took her small dog, Baby Boo, out onto a walkway at Lovett Square Apartments near Alston Avenue around noon. Shortly after that, her dog was attacked by two bigger dogs, appearing to be pit bulls.
Other WRAL Top Stories
Baby Boo was on a leash. The other dogs were not.
“They immediately swarmed him and yanked him away from me, they snapped the leash, refused to let him go, and I couldn’t do anything," Soto said.
Baby Boo did not survive the attack.
A neighbor shared doorbell video of the attack, but the images and sound are so disturbing that WRAL News is choosing not to publish it.
Soto spoke with WRAL News about the traumatic ordeal through a translator.
"I was screaming and crying for help, but there was no one nearby who could help me,” she said.
Soto's home security camera captured the attack. A neighbor came out to distract the attacking dogs with a stick, but it was too late. Baby Boo had already suffered critical injuries to the neck and chest.
"I pet him, it was as if he had waited to say goodbye to me, because he didn’t stay there much longer," Soto said.
Baby Boo was dead by the time Durham police arrived. Soto was not hurt.
In Smithfield, a pit bull terrier was euthanized in March after biting five people.
In this case, animal services is investigating after searching the area on Monday afternoon. Officials could not find the dogs at that time.
Soto told police this isn't the first time those pit bulls were seen roaming around the area. She said her daughter had been approached by the dogs before and although they didn't attack her, the experience frightened her to the point where she didn't let her daughter out with Baby Boo.
Soto held on to Baby Boo's leash on Tuesday while talking about her cherished pet, pulling out strands of Baby Boo's hair. Baby Boo was 5 years old.
“When the police arrived, he was already dead," she said. "And the police were roaming around to see if they could find the dogs, but they didn’t find them.”
The Durham County Sheriff’s Office generally responds to calls for service from residents regarding aggressive animals.
If the owner of a dog declared potentially dangerous violates a state statute, the owner can be charged with a misdemeanor. The remedy for violating Durham County Ordinance for potentially dangerous dogs is a $500 civil penalty.
WRAL News reached out to the property management company for Lovett Square Apartments to ask how they plan to respond to the news. They have not replied as of Tuesday afternoon.
