Baltimore County police said they are searching for three men who entered a Phoenix home yesterday, killed a dog and confronted the family sleeping inside in an apparent robbery attempt.
Police said two men entered a home in the 14000 block of Old York Road about 4 a.m. by breaking a glass window and unlocking a deadbolt.
Once inside, one man -- who was carrying a baseball bat -- struck the family's Shih Tzu once, killing it.
The men then approached the homeowner, Mark Greene, 42, who was sleeping on the couch and was awakened by the commotion. One of the men went into the kitchen and grabbed a knife, said Cpl. Vickie Warehime, a county police spokeswoman.
The men asked Greene who else was in the house and he told them his wife and 12-year-old son were at home, said Warehime.
The intruders then approached Renee Greene, 33, who was sleeping upstairs and forced her downstairs.
"The son was never involved in this incident," Warehime said.
Renee Greene was able to get away from the intruders and ran out a back door to a neighbor's house, where she called police. When the men realized she had escaped, one of them struck Mark Greene with the bat, police said. He suffered minor injuries.
Police said a third man then entered the home and told the other two that they had to leave.
As the three men left, they took a cellular phone from the family's sport utility vehicle and fled on foot, police said.
The suspects were described as white males, 18 to 25 years old, about 150 pounds, one of them stocky, the other two thin.
Anyone with information should call Baltimore County police at 410-887-2198.