Dog owner Lucas MacNeil defends Rottweiler-cross after Richmond dog attack

The owner of the dog at the centre of a vicious attack oftwo women in Richmond, B.C., last week says he plans to defend his Rottweiler-husky cross, currently being held as city officials determine if Yogi should be put down.

Last Wednesday,Yogi attacked three people in a park, leaving one,Kati Mather, in critical conditionafter she was bittenmore than 100 times. She has successfullyundergone emergency surgery and is recovering.

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Lucas MacNeil, the dog's owner, is also the boyfriend of Mather'stwin sister, Jessi. The two women were playing in the park with Jessi's three-year-old son when the dog attacked, according to the young boy's father.

Officers found KatiMatheron the ground, covered in blood and trying to fend off the 35-kilogramdog. A Good Samaritan was also hurt.

"My dogwas taken without permission from his home when Ihave stated many times not to take my dog without me," said MacNeil on his Facebookpage, where he has been posting photos and videos of Yogi.

The video is part of a social media campaign that portrays Yogi as a sweet, lovable dog.

Since last Wednesday,the Rottweiler-husky has been in isolation at the Richmond animal shelter.

"Yogi is deemed a dangerous animal because of the incident that happened, which was very serious," said Eyal Lichtmann with the Richmond Animal Protection Society.

"His behaviour has been mostly normalmaybe a tiny little bit aggressive at times depending on the individual that's working with him, but other than that he's actually been pretty good."

Putting the dog down may be an option.

"There's a variety of optionswho cares for the dog, how the dog is cared for going forward, up to and including euthanasia," said City of Richmond spokesman Ted Townsend.

A decision is expected soon.