Stray dog on the loose becomes a community threat

KINSTON, N.C. (WITN) -Residents in one neighborhood in Kinston say they have been dealing with the dangerous stray dog for about a month now, and that three people have been bitten so far.

Billy Davenport is one of the people who have been bitten.

“It was broad daylight, you know. it was standing right in between the doors and windows, and the dog snuck up behind and bit me. that was the second time it bit somebody. I didn’t know that at the time,” Davenport said.

According to the residents, the neighborhood has a history of having a high concentration of stray animals, where they usually just roam around abandoned trailers and fields, but this dog has been showing violent, aggressive behavior in an unpredictable manner.

The Lenoir County Health Department says efforts to capture the dog have failed, with residents saying that it is quick enough to escape with just the food in the traps at times.

Pamela Brown, the director of the Lenoir County Health Department says it is important for the public to stay away from this dog for both the safety of the public and the animal.

“A lot of the time the members of the public try to be proactive in finding an owner or a home for an animal, but as soon as you are aware of that animal, it is just fine to give us a call,” Brown explained.

Brown added that stray animals from bigger, urban areas can go through buildings and fields quicker than others, making cases like this more challenging.

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