Katie Costello has dedicated much of her life to training dogs.  She and her staff at the The Canine Campus often assess animals in local pounds to determine if they would be a fit for service work.

"So, when you do an assessment, you are looking at say 15 to 20 minutes of dog's life.  It could be a good 15 minutes, could be a bad one.  You don't know.  It is a little snippet, not a whole picture," said Costello.

In September, Costello and her staff interacted with the dog, that earlier this week, killed another dog and injured two people in Girard.  Back when the team met with the dogs at the Mahoning County dog pound, he showed no signs of aggression and was considered for service dog training.

However, he was never paired with a person.  So, he only completed one part of four parts worth of training.  Only about 30 percent of dogs actually make it through all four steps, which take about a year.

The dog was sent back to the pound where he was later adopted.  His owners tell 21 News, he also showed no signs of aggression in their home.  Costello believes the dog's prey drive kicked in on the day he attacked.

"This could happen with a dog that was adopted from a breeder.  You can't take the dog out of the dog,"  said Costello. "Any animal that is taken out of, especially a shelter or pound, there is going to be background baggage that is there that you're going to need to work through."

Costello says the key to making that transition is keeping your dogs contained, having good veterinary care, as well as continued training.

The owner of the dog, Courtney Chupka, will be in Girard Municipal Court to answer to charges of violating the city's ordinance prohibiting vicious dogs.