34-year-old man charged with animal cruelty after police say he attacked neighbor’s dog with machete

HOUSTON - "He’s my other little baby," said Ruben Lara. "I got four kids, five with him."

6-year-old Mocho has been a part of the family since he was just two weeks old.

"He means a lot to us," said Yuzzette Ruiz.

34-year-old neighbor Fausto Requena Jr. is no stranger to the family.

"He had previously told us that he wanted to kill our dog," Ruiz said.

On Monday, the backyard gate was open in Northeast Houston and Mocho got out.

"My husband goes in and when he comes out, the dog is bleeding," Ruiz said. "My mother-in-law seen him and he’s just gushing out bleeding a lot. We panicked."

"I felt horrible," Lara said. "I couldn’t stop crying."

SIGN UP FOR FOX 26 HOUSTON EMAIL ALERTS

"A lot of these clinics charge $1,500 to $2,000 just to be seen for an emergency," said Jeanette Rodriguez. "They didn’t have the funds for that."

Rodriguez didn’t know the Ruiz family or their dog.

"Immediately we reached out to a few other people, who also assisted by making a post on Facebook to get some help," she said.

Two rescue groups Dawgs Fight Back, based in Boston, and Houston K-911 rescue, donated the funds needed to save Mocho’s life.

FOR THE LATEST NEWS UPDATES, DOWNLOAD THE FOX 26 NEWS APP

"I want to thank all of them people. Without him, he wouldn’t be here," Lara said. "Thank God we got that help and he’s all right."

As for Requena, he’s charged with animal cruelty.