TEMECULA - A recent Saturday afternoon in an attractive residential neighborhood turned violent and bloody after two pit bulls escaped from their fenced backyard, pushed their way into a yard nearby and mauled to death a Pomeranian while injuring an Australian shepherd.

Witnesses said the assault was gruesome, and it has left the neighborhood shaken.

"The sound that I heard - it was such agony," said neighbor Bob Morgan.

The deadly attack also has devastated the owners of both sets of dogs in the close-knit Vail Creek community in southern Temecula, said those involved in the incident, which occurred Oct. 21.

The owners of the slain dog, the Quinones, said that, even while they grieve over the loss of their 7-year-old Pomeranian, Riley, they are upset that the two pit bulls were not immediately put to sleep.

Holly and Julian Quinones said they want to share their story with residents, as the city is thick with dog owners. They said they hope their loss can serve as a lesson on the need to tightly secure all backyard fences, as a Labrador running loose also played a role in the melee.

"Our 3-year-old son could have been in the backyard," said Holly Quinones. "There are tons of kids that run in this neighborhood freely. We want to be protected."

As of Tuesday, the pit bulls were alive and quarantined by the Animal Friends of the Valleys in Lake Elsinore, according to a woman who answered the phone there. Executive Director Willa Bagwell was out sick, she said.

In an interview last week, Bagwell said the agency plans to conduct a "potentially dangerous dog hearing" Thursday, before deciding whether to release the pit bulls back to their owners.

She also said the only way the agency would release the dogs was if the owners, Michael and Genevieve Lowry, built a secure kennel in their backyard and agreed to other strict monitoring rules.

Even though court documents show that at least one of the pit bulls was involved in a September 2004 attack in which a young boy was bitten, Bagwell said she could not by law euthanize the pit bulls as a result of the most recent attack, and also believed they could have one last chance.

"If we have an indication where they are not in a kennel, not following the guidelines, then we impound the dogs and publically petition the Superior Court to have the dogs euthanized," she said.

The fate of the pit bulls and the upcoming hearing remained unclear Tuesday.

Holly Quinones said the Lowrys signed a written agreement Monday stating they agreed to put the dogs to sleep and pay for the Quinones' veterinary bills. She said the couple agreed to signing the statement after Holly Quinones went to their house late last week to talk about Riley's death.

The owners of the pit bulls did not return phone calls seeking comment and there was no answer at the door of their home Tuesday when a reporter went there to interview them.

According to neighbors, the attack took place at dusk in the gated community of 155 homes. A loose Labrador had apparently riled the two pit bulls and prompted them to escape.

The Labrador, who belongs to another neighbor in the community, apparently ran for cover, and the barking of the Quinones' dogs attracted the pit bulls. That ultimately led the pit bulls to break down the Quinones' fence and attack the Pomeranian and shepherd, witnesses said.

According to neighbors Kathie and Bob Morgan, who witnessed some of the attack unfold from the front of their house, the sounds coming from the Quinones' backyard were very disturbing and prompted neighbors to come running, one of whom even brought a pistol.

The Lowrys' teenage son apparently heard the pit bulls get loose and ran to the scene, while the man with the gun threatened to shoot the pit bulls if the young man didn't control them and get them out of the Quinones' back yard, Kathie and Bob Morgan said.

"It was the scariest thing I've ever been through," she said. "The dogs were covered in blood."

Holly Quinones and her 11-year-old daughter, Myreia, were not home at the time. They arrived after receiving frantic calls from neighbors.

"She wanted to see Riley, but we told her no," Kathie Morgan said. "It was just horrible."

Towels were placed over the Pomeranian. Animal control confiscated the pit bulls and also took Riley away. Neighbors have since sent the Quinones' cards, books and flowers to help them cope.

The Quinones' other dog, the shepherd, is healing well but still bears battle scars.

"We had the dog for seven years," Julian Quinones said of Riley. "It was a tough loss."

Holly Quinones said she is upset the pit bulls were not immediately put to sleep, especially considering one of them has a prior history and also considering the violence of the recent attack.

"Knowing that these dogs got loose and proceeded to break through my fence and killed my dog and injured my other dog - that's when, as a homeowner, you say wait a second, where's the security?" Holly Quinones said.

According to a September 2005 interview with Bagwell, only two or three dogs in the area the organization covers have been put down in the last 17 years because they were vicious.

She said that Animal Friends, which contracts with Lake Elsinore, Temecula, Murrieta and Canyon Lake to provide animal control services, works with owners to prevent attacks only after a report has been filed alleging an incident has happened.

She said 280 attacks were reported in 2004 in those cities and Animal Friends met with the owners in each case and set up a specific plan for preventing future incidents. Depending on the situation, a variety of things can be done, she said.

Bagwell said last week that in the case of the Lowrys' pit bulls, the family would have been under extreme scrutiny and the first offense would have landed the dogs back in impound slated for euthanization.

"Our hands are tied," Bagwell said last week. "We work here because we care about the animals, but our No. 1 one thing is public safety. We will do everything we can to make sure these dogs are kept secure."

- Contact staff writer Jennifer Kabbany at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2625, or jkabbany@californian.com.