Man shoots two pit bulls during attack; both die

A Northern California man shot two pit bulls during an attack Tuesday -- killing one and injuring the second so severely it later had to be euthanized, authorities said.

The man heard his neighbor screaming for help, so he ran toward the Isleton home to find out what was happening, said Sgt. Lisa Bowman of the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department.

That’s when he saw two pit bulls attacking his neighbor, Bowman said.

The neighbor apparently had tried to intervene as the dogs began attacking one another, but they turned and attacked him instead, the Sacramento Bee reported.

The man yelled at the dogs to stop, but they charged him, Bowman said.

Fearing for his safety, the man said, he shot the dogs.

One of the dogs died at the scene. The second was transported to a Sacramento County animal shelter, where it was later euthanized, county spokesman Zeke Holst said in an email.

Animal control will examine the dogs for rabies and will visit their owner’s home to check on the welfare of any remaining pets.

“This appears to be a random dog-on-dog attack,” Holst said.