GLENBURN — A Hudson man charged with stabbing another man during a fight inside a dog kennel has been held on $10,000 bail.

Jesse Merritt appeared in court on Monday on a charge of aggravated assault.

Prosecutors say the 25-year-old Merritt stabbed 38-year-old Alan Hartley of Glenburn in the face during a fight last Thursday in what was described in court as a fenced-in kennel area on Hartley’s property. In original police reports it had been described as a dog cage.

Hartley’s wife tells WABI-TV that her husband was protecting their dogs from Merritt, who was threatening to harm them.

Merritt said he acted in self-defense from an attack by Hartley, and his lawyer said in court his client didn’t have a knife. No knife has been recovered.