TACOMA, Wash. -- Pierce County Animal Control plans to euthanize a pit bull dog named Sara that figures in a bestiality charge.

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The dog can't be adopted because it has a history of biting. And it can't be returned to her owner.

The owner, 26-year-old Michael Patrick McPhail of Spanaway was accused of having sex with the dog. He was charged Thursday with animal cruelty.

McPhail is believed to be the first man in Washington to be charged under a new state law that makes bestiality a felony. If convicted he faces up to five years in prison.

The four-year-old dog is at the Humane Society of Tacoma.

 Background: Wash. man accused of sex with pit bull

The society says it has received numerous calls from people interested in taking the dog, including the Snohomish County animal welfare group, Pasado's Safe Haven.

A Pierce County deputy prosecutor, Karen Watson, says Sara won't be killed while investigators are still gathering evidence in the case.