A Coquitlam, B.C., dog owner has been charged with bylaw violations following an alleged dog attack in the Burke Mountain area on Monday, according to RCMP.
The charges come after a family said their 10-year-old dog Romeo is recovering from an attack by five off-leash dogs.
Romeo’s owners said a man was walking on Highland Street with five off-leash hunting dogs when the canines unleashed a coordinated attack on the much smaller dog.
One family member who asked not to be identified said the owner of the dogs did not intervene, walked away and even flipped the bird.
“He just watched as my parents were kicking his dogs off of our dog,” she said.
“My mom was screaming ‘Help!’ and the guy just stands there and is like, ‘They’re just playing, man.'”
RCMP said members of the public called them to identify the man after video was posted to social media. A 36-year-old Coquitlam man now faces five counts of having an animal off-leash.
Police warned against posting controversial incidents to social media, saying they can lead to tension and anger in the community.
Investigators said they have contacted everyone involved in the incident and encouraged them to use the civil court system if they wish to pursue the matter further.