St. Michel man and dog attacked by pit bull terrier

CTV Montreal: Man wants pit bull terriers banned Carmine Loffredi and his 5-month-old dog were attacked last week by a pit bull. The young puppy was bitten at least nine times.

A St. Michel man is demanding his borough ban pit bulls after he and his five-month-old puppy were attacked last week.

Last Thursday Carmine Loffredi was walking his dog Marley down a street in his neighbourhood when a loose pit bull charged them.

"Once he saw my dog that's when he actually crossed and lunged toward myself and the dog. I picked up my dog to save her from actually being attacked by the pit bull but the pit bull was so vicious that he jumped on to me," said Loffredi.

The young dog was bitten eight times on the leg and at least once in the chest, then the dog turned on Loffredi.

"The sheer power that this animal had knocked me down twice believe it or not," said Loffredi. "There was not much I could do. I punched, I kicked. He just kept coming back."

The pit bull then locked onto Loffredi's hand.

"He was just going to shred me to pieces, you know? Like he was just swinging his head from one side to another."

The attack finally ended when Loffredi picked the dog up over his head and slammed the animal down.

"When I slammed him to the ground I knocked the wind out of him for a second," said Loffredi, when said he then started choking the pit bull.

A neighbour showed up with a chain and dog was secured.

Loffredi was taken to hospital for stitches and a tetanus shot, but with a daycare down the street Loffredi wants the pit bull put down and wants the borough to ban the breed.

The Executive Director of the SPCA says the breed isn't the problem, but the behaviour is.

"At one point it was German Shepherd dogs that were considered to be potentially dangerous or inherently dangerous," said Nicholas Gilman. "Then it was Rottweilers, then it was Doberman Pinschers. For the last 20 years or so it's been pit bulls."

Hundreds of pit bulls are adopted annually from the SPCA.

"We just don't have any more problems with pit bulls at the Montreal SPCA than we do with any other breed," said Gilman.

He said one to two per cent of all dogs, no matter the breed, are potentially dangerous.

Loffredi has filed a police report and is now waiting for the borough to take action.

In the meantime, he still has not received an apology from the dog's owner.