Lynn pit bull put down after biting teen

LYNN – A Pit Bull was euthanized Monday, two weeks after it viciously attacked a teenager and bit him on the face.The dog attack took place on Jan. 14 around 8 p.m. at 17 Ocean Terrace where, according to a police report, the victim and his brother were visiting friends at the apartment, when the Pit Bull, Buddy, reportedly sunk its teeth into the teenager’s face.The victim suffered a facial wound beneath his eye and was administered 25-30 stitches at a local hospital.Animal Control Officer Kevin Farnsworth said the necessary paperwork was underway to first quarantine the animal and then decide whether it should be banned or killed, when the owner, Erin Reynolds, 22, of 17 Ocean Terrace, decided to sign over Buddy right away to be put down at the North Shore Animal Hospital.Farnsworth said the owner’s difficult decision turned out to be a wise one.”Obviously the owner must have felt very bad for the dog, but it was a decision that I would done myself,” he said. “If the dog (attacks) once, you don’t know if it will do it again. So this situation ended up resolving itself.”Two other recent dog attacks in the city have prompted city officials to take a look at tightening laws to protect residents.Shoemaker school teacher and Lynn resident Julie Potter was violently attacked while out for a jog on Lynnfield Street last October, after the mixed breed pit bull escaped from its leash and bit her on her arms and legs.The owner, Robin Edwards of 407 Lynnfield St., surrendered the dog, Shadow, to Farnsworth and it was euthanized.The second incident involved Lynn resident Claire Butcher and her neighbor’s Pekingese dog near 252 Broadway. The dog has its eye torn out from its socket by a Terrier/American Pit Bull that was off of its leash.The owner of the dog, Ashley Lupoli of 252A Broadway, appealed a Magistrate’s decision to have the dog euthanized, but it was later put down.