February 5, 2008

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn – The owners of a five-pound Pomeranian are calling for action following an attack by two pit bulls earlier this week.

John Fena and Edwin Schumacher say there was nothing they could do to save their five-pound puppy Gretchen. She was attacked late Monday, as she walked around her fenced in back yard.

According to Schumacher, Gretchen and the couple's other Pomeranian were doing their business when the pit bulls jumped the fence.

Fena says he tried to get Gretchen out of the dog's mouths. He recalls thinking that if he let go of her leg, the dogs would tear her apart.

At one point the melee almost entered the couple's home. By that time both men were frantically trying to save their dog. Unfortunately, the pit bulls were too strong for the delicate pup and Gretchen died later that night.

Minnesota recently beefed up it's dangerous dog laws. Local animal control says the attacking dogs in this case fit into the new definition – which states that if a dog attacks another animal off its owner's property, it can be labeled dangerous.

Schumacher says he feels as though people who own pit bulls in his neighborhood think the laws don't apply to their dogs.

Fena and Schumacher's other Pomeranian managed to escape attack that night. As for the two pits, they ran off. Animal control has increased patrols in the area in search of the dogs. For more on Minneapolis' dangerous dog laws, go to ci.minneapolis.mn.us.

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