MOLOAA BAY — With one pet dead and another wounded, residents of the Moloaa Bay area say they are upset over two recent pit bull maulings. On Monday, a pit bull attacked and caused the death of another dog at
MOLOAA BAY — With one pet dead and another wounded, residents of the Moloaa Bay area say they are upset over two recent pit bull maulings.
On Monday, a pit bull attacked and caused the death of another dog at Moloaa Bay, said Toni Wagner of Anahola. The owner brought two unleashed pit bulls to the beach and one of them grabbed a little dog by the neck and dragged it away, she said.
“This time someone’s precious pet was killed,” Wagner said. “Please don’t bring these vicious dogs to public places, especially without being leashed. A child could be next.”
A county spokesperson confirmed with Kauai Police Department an incident was reported on June 10 that involved multiple dogs. The report stated the owner of a miniature pinscher was walking her dog to the beach at around 5:25 p.m. when it was attacked by a pit bull, which was accompanied by another pit bull and a black puppy. All three dogs were apparently secured to a fishing buoy but got loose.
The owner of the pit bulls reportedly grabbed his dogs to stop the attack and left soon thereafter, according to the police report. The owner of the dog that was attacked also left to seek treatment for their injured animal.
“The owner of the pit bulls has not been identified,” said County spokeswoman Sarah Blane. “The incident remains under investigation and anyone with information can call police at 241-1711.”
The owners brought the wounded pet to veterinarian Dr. Scott Sims, who performed surgery but could not save the animal, according to Wagner, who lives across the street from the beach access and said she heard the screaming dog owner on Monday.
“There were dogs on the beach with no leashes and one of them grabbed that little dog and dragged off and killed it,” she said. “It is just horrifying that they are bringing these dogs down here.”
The pit bull owner grabbed his dog by the collar, apologized to the victims, and then high-tailed it off the beach with her own dogs, she said.
“They did go to the aid of the lady whose dog was being mauled, and then they ran away,” she said.
Wagner said that a few days earlier someone brought an unleashed pit bull to the bay, and it ran into her neighbor’s yard and grabbed a little dog that belonged to one of their guests. The pet wasn’t killed but there were people visiting with a baby there, she said.
Moloaa Bay is considered “a safe place” where the neighborhood dogs are socialized and get along.
“If I see people with pit bulls come down I ask them not to,” she said. “They say they can control them but obviously they can’t.”
These were the first incidents in several months. She recalled last year going out to tell a man not to bring his pit bull on the beach.
He was angry but eventually left, she added. It is important to her to maintain the reputation of the area as a safe place.
“This is the first time there has been an attack,” she said. “I really worry that something more will happen.”
The police can do nothing until a dog does something first, she said. These dog owners could have been cited for the attacks but they left before police arrived and no one got their license plate numbers.
“A lot more people have dogs that don’t attack and they worry about their dogs and children,” she said. “There should be enough to make something happen.”
