Wilmington residents concerned after one dog kills another

Residents of Wilmington’s Trinity Vicinity said they are keeping a close eye on pets after one dog was killed by another on their block Monday night.

Police and animal control were called to a home in the 1000 block of North Monroe Street at around 10:30 p.m. after receiving a call that a pit bull had attacked a Yorkshire terrier, said Sherri Warburton, the director of animal control for Delaware Animal Care and Control.

“It turns out that the Yorkie had crawled under the fence and went into the pit bull’s yard,” said Warburton. The pit bull then attacked the smaller dog, killing it, Warburton said.

Karl Malgiero, the owner of the pit bull, said he did everything he could to try to stop the dog, but it was too late.

“It is horrible and we are all really broken up about it and how it has affected the community,” he said.

Malgiero said he and his roommate moved into the home just over a week ago with their two dogs, both pit-bull mixes.

“My dogs aren’t dangerous,” Malgiero said, adding that his neither of his dogs have acted aggressively in the past.

The owner of the Yorkie said she didn’t want to talk about the incident. Susan Jacobs, who lives two doors down from Malgiero, said the owner put up a new fence between her house and Malgiero’s this weekend to prevent her small dogs from entering Malgiero’s yard. But there was a small gap between the bottom of the fence and the grass that the small dog was able to poke its head through, Jacobs said.

Although state law classifies dangerous dogs as those who attack humans or other dogs on leashes, Warburton said that does not apply in this case because the Yorkshire terrier came into the back yard and was not being restrained by its owner. Dogs deemed dangerous are taken by animal control until the state Dog Control Panel can determine if an animal poses a threat and should be euthanized or restrained.

“We just feel horrible for the victim,” said Warburton. “She lost a companion animal and our sympathies are for her, but there is nothing in the law that we could do.”

The Wilmington City Council voted in July to remove a special requirement in city law requiring the owners of pit bull breeds to register their dogs in addition to obtaining a dog license. The law was initially put in place in 2000 after residents expressed concern about the rising number of pit bulls in the city and the fear that those dogs were used for dog fighting and aggressive.

This year, support grew to remove that special requirement for pit bull owners to bring the city’s dog law in line with state law to allow for Wilmington to participate in a state-wide animal control program.

Animal advocates argued that the requirement is discriminatory to owners of pit bulls. There were 128 dog bites reported last year in Wilmington involving 19 different dog breeds. Advocates argued that the law should protect the public from any dangerous dog, no matter the breed.

Deborah Kraak, president of the Trinity Vicinity Neighborhood Association, said she is scared to let her cats out for fear that they might be attacked.

“(This dog) has demonstrated that it is aggressive to smaller creatures,” Kraak said.

Jacobs said she is scared to let her dog, named Boo, out in the back yard alone. Jacobs said there are many dog owners that live on the street and they have never had any problems previously with aggressive dogs.

“I would feel much more secure if (the pit bulls) were not in the neighborhood,” said Kraak.

Malgiero said he and his roommate haven’t discussed if they will attempt to find a new home for the dog. He added that the pair hope to do all that they can to better their relationship with the community following the incident.

Contact Jenna Pizzi at jpizzi@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2837. Follow her on Twitter @JennaPizzi.