By Jeff Lehr

Globe Staff Writer

WEBB CITY, Mo. - Was Fiddy Cent the pit bull formerly known as Cain?

The pit bull that bit the face of a 9-year-old girl on May 30 may have been the same dog that a municipal judge expelled from the city limits last year for being a vicious animal, Webb City officials said Wednesday.

The owner of Fiddy Cent and a past owner of Cain have denied to Webb City animal-control officer Christy Grimmett that the two dogs were the same dog. But Grimmett, who worked the case last August when Cain reportedly broke off his chain, jumped a fence and cornered a 6-year-old neighbor boy up against a house, remains skeptical of their denials.

"The dog (Fiddy Cent) was identical - same build, same coloring, same eye coloring as Cain," Grimmett told the Globe on Wednesday.

Fiddy Cent was tracked down, taken into custody and killed last week after inflicting a serious bite on the cheek and neck of Emily Wilkins about 3 centimeters from her mouth. Grimmett said the dog took a full bite of the girl's face, tearing her cheek open and puncturing her neck in one spot.

The girl was treated at the emergency room at St. John's Regional Medical Center in Joplin.

She was released later the same day after receiving 53 stitches.

"Considering the circumstances, she is doing well," Emily's mother, Lisa Guild, said Wednesday.

Fiddy Cent's owner, Preston M. Blaney, 33, was cited Tuesday. He was accused of harboring a vicious animal, not having the dog licensed and not having the dog vaccinated for rabies. The citations followed a weeklong investigation by Webb City police and animal control. Blaney is to appear June 21 in municipal court in Webb City.

The Wilkins girl was in the company of Blaney's daughter May 30 in Blaney's yard at 209 S. Ball St. when the attack took place, according to Grimmett and Webb City police reports.

Guild described the Blaney girl as a neighborhood acquaintance of her daughter's. They live four doors away from the Blaneys.

The girl later told Grimmett that she had gone to the Blaneys to get an air pump. She asked Blaney's daughter if she could pet their pit bull and was told to be gentle. After a few pets, the dog growled, and the Wilkins girl took her hand away, she told Grimmett. The dog then barked once, jumped up and bit her, and knocked her down, according to police reports.

The hospital reported the bite to Grimmett the same day, and she went to Blaney's home to quarantine the dog for rabies.