Authorities say three people were attacked by dogs that escaped from a yard at a Bagdad home Tuesday.
According to Yavapai County Sheriff's spokesman Dwight D'Evelyn, deputies and animal control officers received reports of a man being attacked by three dogs near a service station on Main Street at about 6 a.m.
D'Evelyn said that when they checked the area, deputies and officers found several aggressive dogs in the yard of a nearby home on High Court.
The dogs apparently had left the yard through a hole in the fence.
While trying to contain the dogs to the yard using pepper spray, two of the dogs escaped and attacked a 14-year-old boy walking by. Deputies and officers were able to get the dogs off the boy and back into the yard.
According to D'Evelyn, the boy received bites on both legs and was bleeding. He was treated on the scene and transported to Yavapai County Regional Medical Center in Prescott.
The first bite victim had already left the area to seek medical treatment, D'Evelyn said.
Attempts to contact the owner of the dogs were unsuccessful.
While deputies tried to secure the fence to keep the dogs in the yard, one of the dogs charged at a deputy. A nearby deputy fired one round from a shotgun, striking the dog in the shoulder.
Then, while checking the perimeter of the backyard, deputies noticed one of the dogs was now chained. Deputies tried again to reach someone in the home and were able to contact a 19-year-old resident.
The resident reportedly told deputies that he'd been asleep and hadn't heard any commotion, including the shotgun being fired.
The 19-year-old helped deputies and animal control officers secure the three dogs, including the pit bull that had been wounded.
The owner of the injured dog was contacted and agreed to allow the dog to be euthanized, rather than face the expense of treating it. The dog was euthanized at a local veterinarian's office and it was sent to an area lab to be tested for rabies, according to D'Evelyn.
The owner of the other two dogs was contacted and told her dogs had been impounded for rabies testing.
A fourth dog was not involved in any of the bite incidents and was allowed to stay at the home.
All dogs resided at the High Court residence, D'Evelyn said.
