Witness: Owner Stabbed Pit Bull Before “Massacre,” Dog Shooting

The dog was stabbed by its owner before deputies opened fire at a Lancaster home

A man stabbed his own dog with a kitchen knife Monday morning at a Lancaster home in a wild attack that ended with deputies shooting and killing the dog.

Two people were hurt when the dog bit them after being stabbed. A man in his 60s and a woman in her 20s were treated for puncture wounds and scratches at a hospital. The dog's owner also was injured.

Deputies responded to a bloody and chaotic scene at the home, where they shot and killed the dog after it bit the people.

Residents told NBC4 the early morning attacks occurred after the owner, who was visiting the home in the 45000 bock of Foxton Avenue, stabbed the animal with a kitchen knife.

Witnesses told NBC4 they do not know why the man stabbed the dog.

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A homeowner entered the room to find the owner and bloody dog, residents said. The dog bit her and continued to lock on to Caitlin Dixon's arm.

"He yanked me around, and I fell to the ground -- he had me the whole time," said Dixon.

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The dog released her when her husband repeatedly punched the dog and hit it with a bat.

"I was just beating him over the head and back," said Ricardo Dixon. "Then he lunged at me, and I hit him again.

"It looked like a massacre in here."

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Deputies attempted to use non-lethal rounds on the dog shortly after they arrived, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Deputies chased the dog into a bathroom and opened fire after the dog charged, according to the department.

Video from inside the home showed blood in several rooms of the house and a bloody knife on a floor.

The dog's owner had not been located at 10 a.m.

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