'Spartacus' the dog stabbed: Owner, LAPD speak out
SOUTH LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The owner of Spartacus, a pit bull that was stabbed in South Los Angeles, and the LAPD are speaking out about the incident.
After undergoing two hours of surgery, Spartacus left the Pet Care Center on Monday. But he isn't going home, because the person who stabbed him is still out there.
"He's lucky to be alive because they did not get the jugular at all, so it appears that it was just a hatchet job, just slicing, slicing, slicing," said Alex Kyrklund of the Pet Care Center.
Spartacus' owner said her neighbor hit Spartacus over the head with a shovel and slashed him several times with a knife, apparently because the neighbor just didn't like pit bulls. The Ghetto Rescue Foundation helped Spartacus' owner get him to the hospital early Saturday morning.
"He's hollering at my window, 'Next time I see your dog, I'm going to kill your dog, I'm going to kill your dog," said the owner, who did not want to give her name. "This man doesn't have any scars on him, any marks on him, or his dog."
Veterinarians at the Pet Care Center say Spartacus was still remarkably loving to humans even though he had just endured such pain at the hands of one.
"Even though he was cut open and bleeding, he was still kissing everybody, loving on them, it was almost like he was more concerned about saying hi to everyone than he was about his own wounds," said Tricia Simon with the Pet Care Center.
"This is also testament to how wonderful these breeds are because this dog could have done damage to this person, but allowed this horrible abuse," said Kyrklund.
However, the LAPD Animal Cruelty Task Force says so far their initial investigation has revealed that the incident was likely a case of self-defense, and not animal cruelty.
In a statement, the LAPD said they have spoken to "independent" witnesses, and their animal cruelty experts believe the person was "faced with a dog who was at-large and in attack mode."
The LAPD says their investigation is ongoing.
