Dog shot by Baltimore police, euthanized after biting its owner

A dog was shot by Baltimore police and later euthanized after it bit its owner, department officials said. 

Officers were called for a reported dog bite on Thursday, around 3 p.m. in the 6500 block of Hartwait Street. When they arrived, officers found the dog's owner, who had been bitten and was injured, according to police. 

The dog, which was not restrained, charged at one of the officers. Two officers then fired their weapons, hitting the dog, officials said. 

During the response, an officer suffered a ricochet gunshot wound to his foot and was taken to a nearby hospital, police said. The dog's owner was also taken to a hospital after the incident.

Both of them have since been released, according to police. 

Animal Control officials were notified of the incident and called to the scene to remove the dog. Police said the dog was later euthanized. 

The department's Special Investigations Response Team (SIRT) is investigating the incident.

A similar incident played out in January, when police were called to the scene of an animal bite in the 900 block of St. Paul Street. 

Two officers shot and killed the dog as it attacked its owner in the hallway of an apartment complex. The owner of the dog, Kyle Sharp, was hit by a stray bullet during the response. 

He said the officers "did what they were supposed to do," when his 14-month old dog "snapped" and began attacking. 

"His pupils got very big, and it wasn't him," Sharp told WJZ in October.

Body camera footage of the incident showed the dog attacking Sharp as he was exiting his apartment. 

According to Sharp, the reaction came days after the dog had been neutered. He blamed the aggressive behavior on the dog's anti-anxiety medication, Trazodone, which was prescribed after the surgery. 

"I don't fault him for the way he acted because it was instinctual to protect himself when he felt endangered or confused," said Sharp.