Pitbull shooting: dispute after dog attack

The owners of the pit bulls that attacked a neighbor and his dog in Ashburton, causing the man to shoot one of the dogs, have now turned to their lawyers to take over the case.

The owners of the pit bulls were initially praised for taking responsibility for their dogs’ attack on Etienne Fivaz and his dog Soldier on Wednesday morning.

However, the owners, who did not want to be named in the newspaper, told The Witness that they would open a case with the police and declined to comment further.

Speaking to The Witness on Thursday, Fivaz said he was impressed by the decency of the pit bull owners after the incident and that they agreed to pay the veterinary bills for his injured Belgian Malinois-Dutch Shepherd mix.

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“On Wednesday the owner confirmed the problem and I sent her the bill, thanked her and sent her the bank details. She then told me to speak to her husband and he said he could not pay the bill immediately.

“Half an hour later he called and said he was going to file a case against me for shooting his dog,” Fivaz said.

“I had a conversation with officers at Alexandra Police Station, went in to speak to them and gave them a statement,” he said.

Fivaz added that he had also contacted his lawyer.

“If we have to take the civil route, then we have to do that,” he said.

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The soldier is now recovering at home after suffering multiple injuries.

“He is doing well, as expected. The vet had to reattach muscle to bone, which was complicated, and he is heavily sedated.”

His right hind leg was badly injured. His genitals and inner thigh were badly injured and the vet had to put drains everywhere to prevent infection.

Fivaz said he was “very concerned” about the way things were turning following the recent turn of events.

“I’m angry that it had to come to this for owners to take responsibility for their dogs,” he said.