A New Jersey family says that a town police canine broke free from its owner and attacked their 15-pound dog in their own front yard.
Megan Ginchereau said she was outside her Franklin Township home on Feb. 2 with her 2-year-old Yorkie named Charley, enjoying the snowfall. She snapped a cute picture of the pup just moments before the frightening ordeal went down.
"The next thing I knew, I heard my neighbor yell "No!" and then his dog came around to our yard, and I just saw him pick up my dog in his mouth and started shaking him around," said Ginchereau.
The family says the dog belongs to a Glassboro police officer who lives next door. They believe it happened as the officer and the dog were heading into their own house, but the canine broke free from his leash and came over to maul Charley.
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"He finally dropped him after like 30 seconds or so, and I picked my dog up and ran into the house screaming, and my mom came downstairs," Ginchereau said.
NBC New York reached out to the Glassboro police chief, but did not get a response. The chief did tell NJ.com that the borough is covering the veterinarian bills, and the police dog was approved to resume duty on the force.
Outside the officer's home, a new fence was installed. But the Ginchereau family is still concerned about Charley's safety, and wants a fence installed in their yard as well.
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"That would be the only way I would feel safe," said Christina Ginchereau, Megan's mother. "He can do fencing on his property but the reality is the dog got off his leash, in the front yard and charged into my yard."
Charley, meanwhile, is still recovering from the injuries that nearly killed him. The dog is on pain and anxiety medicine after suffering a couple broken ribs and a punctured lung. The dog is still visibly fearful, and still shakes inside his crate.
"There are times where he's just terrified, and I can't get him out to go to the bathroom, I can't get him out to do anything," Christina said. "He just sits there, scared."
