Allegheny County sheriff's deputy shoots dog in North Braddock
NORTH BRADDOCK, Pa. (KDKA) — An Allegheny County sheriff's deputy shot a dog in North Braddock.
"I was in my bedroom up here," said Paul Oravec. "I heard boom, boom, boom and then I heard squealing."
When Oravec heard the gunshots on Monday from his North Braddock home, he never imagined his family's 5-year-old pitbull, named Pretty, would be the victim.
"I looked out and my dog was over there in the street doing circles with blood just dripping," he said.
Oravec said when he came outside, an Allegheny County sheriff's deputy admitted to shooting the dog and apologized.
In a statement to KDKA-TV, a spokesperson with the sheriff's office said:
"In the course of serving legal process on a property in North Braddock, Monday, February 12, an Allegheny County deputy sheriff discharged their weapon, striking a dog that had left an enclosed area on an adjacent property. Sheriff Kraus in the process of reviewing the events leading up to the discharge of the weapon."
"They said my dog charged them," Oravec said. "They said the body camera showed that the dog was charging them. I don't buy it 'cause she's terrified of everybody."
Oravec says he believes Pretty jumped the fence, as she does every day, to eat the neighbor's cat food. She then comes right back.
Oravec calls Pretty the "sweetest dog" and says anyone who knows her would agree and dismisses any suggestion she was aggressive toward the deputy.
"If she charged, then it's 100% justifiable, but I can't fathom that," he said.
Pretty was seen at a veterinarian's office on Monday night. She was re-evaluated on Tuesday by another vet who said Pretty is lucky because the bullet missed her organs. She is expected to be OK.
She was sent home and told to come back in two weeks for another look.