FARGO - Ever since Monday, Tori Ziegelman relives that moment in her head over and over.

It was a day, she says, traumatized her and her 11-year-old son, Trenton.

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"Every day I come home and have to see him not waiting at the door, to be excited and ready to go outside," said Tori Ziegelman.

Tori says it all started with a call on Monday from police. When she got home, she saw her son sitting with her pit bull, 'Gotti,' bleeding from stab wounds.

Police say her dog had gotten into a neighbor's apartment and attacked a chihuahua.

The owner of the chihuahua then stabbed Gotti several times with a kitchen knife, killing him.

WDAY-TV has been following this story all week.

WDAY-TV spoke to the man who stabbed the pit bull Thursday.

He claims it was self-defense, but Gotti's owner says the family has a history of teasing the pit bull and riling it up.

"They should have done more about their children taunting Gotti, teasing him by knocking on my door and running away to get him to bark," said Ziegelman.

Despite the taunting, Tori says Gotti had a gentle nature.

He was even certified as a service dog.

Now, as the Ziegelman family grieves its loss, Tori is hoping to repair Gotti's reputation and get justice for his death.

"He was my son's best friend, he was one of my best friends, he was a part of the family and he got taken from us for all the wrong reasons," she said.