ohmidog!

Baltimore police  have charged two teenagers with dousing a pit bull with gasoline and setting it on fire, but a press conference on the arrests was canceled yesterday.

Police said the arrests were made over the weekend.

The suspects were charged as juveniles, and their identities have not been made public. One TV report, however, identified them as 17-year-old twin brothers.

A WBAL-TV report identified the boys’ mother as Denise Griffin. Mrs. Griffin said her sons were taken in for questioning on Friday night.

“I know they didn’t do it. I keep hearing different things around the neighborhood about the dog ran up to there. The dog — nobody said the dog was right there. So, I feel as though I know my boys didn’t do it. It’s a reward out and then wasn’t nobody picked up around there until they said something about a reward,” Griffin said.

The case had raised the ire of animal welfare advocates across the country, and between public donations and those from humane organizations, thousands of dollars poured into a reward fund for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those who killed the dog, who was named Phoenix after she arrived at the Baltimore animal shelter.

Debra Rahl, programs director for Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS), said the $26,000 in reward money will not be paid until a conviction is secured.

“We were all very excited to hear that there was an arrest made, and we’re just hoping there’s justice for Phoenix,” Rahl told the Baltimore Sun. “We’re still very sad that she did not make it, but she didn’t die in vain. It raised awareness of what happens with animals here in the city and across the country.”

“The case is still very much open and under investigation, and we are working with prosecutors to go over evidence and bring this case forward,” Anthony Guglielmi, chief spokesman for the Police Department, ws quoted as saying in the Sun report.

Police officer Syreeta Teel found the burning dog May 27 in West Baltimore, and put the fire out with her sweater. Teel, who has a pit bull of her own, was honored by the city last week .

Phoenix had burns on 95 percent of her body when she arrived at BARCS, but entered with her tail wagging. The spirit she showed, shelter workers said, were a large factor in the decision to try to save her. There were also indications she had been used for dogfighting. She was later taken to Metropolitan Veterinary Associates center outside Philadelphia to receive 24-hour care.

She died Saturday, euthanized after she began to experience kidney failure brought on by her body’s attempts to fight off infection.