FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Stray dogs roaming a Victoria Park neighborhood may have finally met their match. For nearly three weeks, a pack of three pit bulls have had residents on edge. So far the dogs have killed more than a dozen cats in the neighborhood, but residents told Local 10 the dogs' days may be numbered . A professional trapper from a company called Critter Control has placed several wire cage traps around the area hoping to lure the animals inside with food.

"Once they step on the trip plate it will close behind them. They won't harm the animal. They're just gonna close behind them and lock them in," said Rob Schindler, a Critter Control trapper.

It's the latest effort to nab the pack of pit bulls. On Wednesday, animal control officers and police scoured the yards and back alleys with guns and tranquilizers after someone spotted the dogs, but the pit bulls eluded capture.

Residents like Dodie Nelson are eager to take back their streets. "I'm afraid to let my dog out because she might get attacked, or I might get attacked," Nelson told Local 10's Roger Lohse.

The cages have been strategically hidden around houses where the dogs have killed cats in the past. The cages are also camouflaged with tree branches because experts say the dogs are street smart.

"They’re going to certain houses to get the cats, so they're going to be in the yard, snooping around looking for the cats, and that will give them the opportunity to run past the trap or into the trap, smell the food and go on in," said Schindler.

Experts warn residents to not try to catch the dogs, and to call police or Broward County Animal Care and Control instead.

Credits: Local10.com