Case Details
Case Snapshot
Case ID: 248
Classification: Burning - Fire or Fireworks, Fighting
Animal: dog (pit-bull)
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Pit bull set on fire after being forced to fight
Oakland, CA (US)

Incident Date: Monday, Jan 8, 2001
County: Alameda

Charges: Felony CTA, Felony Non-CTA
Disposition: Alleged
Case Images: 1 files available

Alleged:
» 15 year old boy
» 12 year old boy

Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

Two Oakland boys were in custody yesterday for allegedly setting a 3-month-old pit- bull terrier on fire after forcing it to fight another dog.

The youths, ages 12 and 15, told police they threw flammable material on the stray dog�after it beat another pit bull puppy in a fight they staged outside an East Oakland apartment building, said police Sgt. Arturo Bautista.

One of the boys cares for the female puppy that lost the fight, and the attack may have been the boys' revenge, authorities said. A third boy, age 14, is also being sought in the case.

The injured puppy suffered burns on one-fourth of its body, including on its face, back and legs, and was recuperating yesterday at the Veterinary Centers of America Bay Area Animal Hospital in North Oakland.

Veterinarians at the hospital have named the hapless, 19-pound puppy Theodore and have been giving it painkillers and antibiotics intravenously, feeding it high-calorie food and applying soothing aloe vera on its skin.

The injured puppy is about six pounds underweight, slightly emaciated and already suffered from mange before its ordeal, said veterinarian Carl Singer.

"He's really pretty strong," Singer said. "He may not need surgery."

The puppy will probably stay at the animal hospital for three to seven days before it is transferred to the Oakland Animal Shelter on 29th Avenue in East Oakland. There, animal control officials will decide whether the puppy can be adopted.

After the puppy won the fight about 4:30 p.m., the boys sprayed him with some material from a canister, threw flammable material on the puppy and ignited it with a match, Bautista said.

The boys then chased the dog into a vent underneath an apartment building at 1436 71st Ave. in East Oakland, where part of the building also caught fire, Bautista said.

Firefighters quickly doused the blaze. It was unclear whether the flaming dog set the building on fire or if the boys started the building fire. Animal control officers took the other dog, which had some previous scars but was uninjured in the fight, to the Oakland Animal Shelter.

Two of the boys were taken into custody on suspicion of felony cruelty to animals and attempted arson. They were being held at Alameda County Juvenile Hall in San Leandro. Because of their ages, their names were withheld.

Relatives of the 15-year-old boy said he had a soft spot for animals and couldn't fathom him doing what authorities allege.


Case Updates

A third accomplice, 15-year-old boy who admitted to a felony charge of dog fighting, has been released but will wear an electronic monitoring device. He will be sentenced on the 14th of Feb.

All three will undergo psychological evaluations and could face up to three years in a juvenile detention facility, says Alameda County Assistant District Attorney Walter Jackson.
Update posted on Jan 8, 2003 - 4:50PM 

References

SF Gate News

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