9-Year-Old Rescued Pit Bull Detains Intruder Until Police Arrives

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How do you usually secure your house? Most people secure their houses by locking their doors and windows or setting up a security system. However, few people will opt for a dog, especially a pit bull. According to Friends of the Forlorn, pit bulls are highly affectionate dogs. Sometimes they get very affectionate with visitors, making you doubt whether it would make a good guard dog. As a matter of fact, pit bulls are very protective of their owners, and we shall see how. When pit bulls sense you are in danger, they will protect you by barking at the threat. Additionally, you can train them to be protective. Having understood a bit about pit bulls, we can now talk about a particular pit bull named Spuds.

How Spuds Rescued Its Owner

The incident took place at a home in Pennsylvania. Leroy Rucker was at his house watching the television with his pit bull, Spuds like he would usually do. Amazingly, Spuds was not the only dog he owned since he had other dogs. Spuds is a nine-year-old pit bull that Leroy rescued. While they were busy watching the television, they had a knock at the door. Before Leroy could open the door, it was suddenly flung open by a strange man. The strange man turned out to be a robber called Robert Burke Jr. The homeowner attempted to fight off the intruder. At first, the pit bull wasn’t bothered since it assumed that the intruder was a regular visitor. The pit bull quickly intervened when he noticed that the owner was fighting the intruder. According to Lane County, pit bulls form very strong bonds with their owners. That explains why the dog intervened when it felt the owner was in danger. Leroy felt he could have easily overpowered the robber without the dog’s intervention. Perhaps, it had to do with the fact that the intruder was 53 years old. However, Robert surrendered after he immediately saw the protective pit bull. However, the pit bull still attacked the robber. After it attacked the robber, it spent its remaining time sitting in the living room. While the burglar was stranded, Leroy took out his phone and informed the police about the matter.

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The Arrest of Robert Burke Jr.

By the time the police arrived at Leroy’s house, they were astonished. All that they found was the dog sitting quietly in the living room. Spuds had managed to keep the burglar at bay for 20 minutes before the police arrived. The police managed to arrest the home invader, but they took him to the hospital for his injuries to be treated. If you look for Robert’s mugshot online, you will see injury marks around his head, eye, and nose. Later on, he confessed to the police that he had been using alcohol, marijuana, and methamphetamine. In case you are wondering what methamphetamine is, it is known informally as meth or ice. According to Web MD, a report revealed that 1.6 million Americans used it in 2017, which shows how it is quickly becoming one of the most abused illegal drugs. Besides using the drugs, he had also burglarized a woman’s house. She punched the woman after robbing her, and that was when he immediately moved to Leroy’s house. As a result, he was charged with simple assault, burglary, criminal trespass, and harassment. However, he was released on a $50,000 cash bail, which means the court is yet to decide his fate.

Spuds’ Popularity

Even before this incident, Spuds was already popular with the community. Thanks to this incident, the pit bull’s story went viral. Now any robber intending to invade Leroy’s house knows exactly what will happen to them if they rob his house. Since the incident, Leroy has explained this incident through interviews on Fox 8 and WJAC-TV. As per to garbage collectors who know Spuds, the Pit bull is extremely protective of Leroy’s home. However, the Pit bull can distinguish between a friendly visitor and a person with ulterior motives. Although Leroy was grateful that Spuds defended his home, he was more grateful that the dog remained a loyal companion to him. Since the community is impressed with the dog, they have gone out of their way to spread the news about the dog’s heroic act. Whether the community knows it or not, they are saving Leroy from getting robbed in the future.

Lessons From This Incident

After reading this article, you probably want to own a pit bull. If so, it would be a good decision. One thing to appreciate about pit bulls is that they are friendly. However, for a pit bull to remain friendly, you have to bond with it for two hours daily. By doing that, it will develop a strong liking towards you and protect you. Pit bulls have a reputation for being fierce. That is because some people judge it due to its fierce appearance. However, do not let its look intimidate you. However, you have to be careful when you take it out to meet with other dogs. Although pit bulls do not instigate fights with other dogs, it does not easily back down from a fight with other dogs. Incidentally, that is how Spuds behaved towards the burglar when he kept him at bay. So, making it back down from a fight is the only challenge you may grapple with.

Conclusion

Home invasions can occur at any time, so you may need to do what you can to protect yourself. A lot of times, people think that they cannot be burglarized. In fact, we usually think it only occurs in other towns besides their town. You would be wrong for thinking that. Although there are many ways you can protect your house, getting a pit bull or any other dog may be the solution. Without Spuds, Leroy would probably have been attacked or killed. On the other hand, Robert’s story proves that the saying, “Crime doesn’t pay,” is applicable here. He may have succeeded in robbing a woman, but ultimately he was overpowered by a man and his pit bull. Even though we are yet to know his motives for burglary, there is no justifiable reason to consider this path.