FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A Fort Lauderdale man is heartbroken after his five pit bull-mix dogs were euthanized by Broward County Animal Care following a chaotic incident that left a woman and her dog injured.

Renex Dorvil, the dogs’ owner, said the situation unfolded after a neighbor’s dog approached his fenced yard and began scratching at the fence. He believes that triggered his dogs to escape.

“At some point, four of the dogs got out — and things got chaotic,” Dorvil said.

Dorvil wasn’t home at the time of the incident but received a call Monday morning while at work alerting him that his dogs were involved in a fight.

“If the other dog did not come to the fence, that would not have happened,” he said.

According to Broward County Animal Care, officials responded to assist Fort Lauderdale police around 7:45 a.m. Officers managed to contain three of Dorvil’s dogs, but reported that four of the five displayed aggressive behavior. Two had to be tased by police.

Though the dogs had never shown aggression at home, Dorvil said he made the painful decision to surrender all five, fearing they could hurt someone else in the future.

“My dogs are not aggressive with somebody in the house. Never a problem with us,” he said. “I miss them because I love them. Those dogs were like family to me.”

Despite his grief, Dorvil said his thoughts are with the woman who was injured.

“I cannot talk to her. I cannot see her. That hurts me — for that old lady who got hurt,” he said.

The sixth dog involved in the incident belonged to the victim, who took her pet to a veterinarian for treatment. Dorvil was cited for each of his five dogs.

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