A dog eating a watermelon helped cause a Boston man to repeatedly stab himself to prove to his brother he wasn't afraid of pain, police say.

A police report said the two unidentified brothers got into an argument this week after a dog belonging to one of the men consumed a watermelon owned by his brother, the Boston Herald said Thursday.

Tuesday's argument over the missing watermelon escalated into a shouting match between the siblings that allegedly caused one brother to repeatedly stab himself in order to show he didn't care if he got hurt, police say.

Police officer Jamie Kennealy said when police arrived at the scene to help take the injured brother to the hospital, the other brother allegedly tried to barricade himself in a room.

Kennealy told the Herald the brother used a saw and hammer to place numerous pieces of wood across the door to keep police out of the room.

During his barricading construction project he stated that he wasn't going to get arrested for stabbing his brother, he told the Herald, adding that police were content to leave him alone after learning the other man's wounds were self-inflicted. (c) UPI