A pit bull dog named Titus is recovering with a foster family in Stephenville after he was stabbed and beaten at a Brownwood residence Sunday.
Police are investigating the dog’s attack as an animal cruelty case and it is anticipated that investigators will seek an arrest warrant, Assistant Brownwood Police Chief James Fuller said.
Titus was stabbed three times and beaten in the 1000 block of Avenue K, a police report states. Titus is in the custody of Angels and Outlaws, a pit bull rescue group in Stephenville, and is in foster care through the organization, the group’s founder, Jennifer Aikman, said.
Titus had attacked and killed a puppy and a cat that lived in the same home as Titus, but it wasn’t necessary for the man who also lived there to stab and beat Titus, Aikman said.
Titus had surgery Tuesday at a Belton veterinarian office, Aikman said. Titus is recovering physically and will recover emotionally, and will be ready to be adopted in three to four months, she said.
Titus, who is about 4 years old, was adopted from the Corinne T. Smith Animal Shelter on Oct. 22, Aikman said.
“He was a good boy. He is a good boy,” Aikman said.
She said the man who adopted Titus had been told the dog wasn’t good with cats, but he was adopted into a home with a cat.
According to a police report by officer Sky Self, Self was dispatched at 12:28 p.m. to the home. Self arrived to see about a dozen people yelling in anger and pointing toward the home. A woman told Self she’d seen a man beating a chained dog in the back yard with what she believed to be a pipe.
Self saw Titus chained by his neck against a fence, covered in blood from what appeared to be stab wounds. Lying near the dog were a PVC pipe, a badly damaged steel curtain rod, and two badly bent kitchen knives. The dog was shaking violently and Self saw bloody paw marks on the wall of the house, where it was evident the dog tried to flee from the yard while being stabbed and beaten Self’s report states.
Self and animal control officer Judy Williams loaded the dog into Williams’ vehicle for transport to a local veterinarian office.
Titus had been attacked out of self-defense, a woman who identified herself as the dog’s owner told Self. The woman told Self her family was in danger.
A man told KTAB-TV he came home Sunday and found his cat and 3-month-old puppy dead, the station reported on its website. The man told KTAB he got a leash on the dog, but said Titus lunged at another dog that was near his young son.
Page 2 of 2 - The man told KTAB he grabbed a knife and stabbed Titus because he was worried about the safety of his son and the other dog.
Aikman said a cat and a puppy had been killed, and another dog had been threatened. Titus is aggressive toward other animals but not toward humans, Aikman said.
“This dog is not vicious because if he was, (the man who attacked Titus) would have bite marks,” Aikman said. “That’s not self-defense. This dog was not trying to attack humans.
“No matter what that dog did — stabbing him is not the answer.”
Fuller, the assistant Brownwood police chief, declined to comment on whether police believe the attack on Titus was a case of self defense. “We’re continuing the investigation,” Fuller said. “It’s been given to our criminal investigation division.
“At the appropriate time, they will seek a warrant for whoever did this. There’s a certain level of responsibility in caring for an animal. If you can no longer care for an animal, if you contact the animal control officer, they will be able to provide you with resources and information.
“If you’re having trouble caring for an animal, let us help you.”
