~Sara Farr
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I need your help. I know a lot of you are activists by nature...
The day after Christmas as I was walking my dogs around the block with my mom and sister, we were attacked by a huge dog that was not restrained, as its owner worked on his truck. The dog killed one of my dogs, and during the struggle I was bitten on the finger (not severely). As things have been unfolding, I have discovered a couple of things I find very disturbing.
1 - even though this dog will likely be declared a "vicious dog" by the city because it killed an animal, the owner will be allowed to claim it at the end of the quarantine period (assuming it doesn't have rabies). The penalty is that he will have to give up the city registration and the dog is supposed to be removed from the city limits. Hmmm... (it gets even better- if we could make a case that it is a "dangerous" dog-- i.e., it attacked a person, not an animal-- the owner could claim it and keep it in the city provided it keep it under lock and key). Note that this dog wasn't currently registered and had no proof of immunization.
2 - after I posted news on our neighborhood listserv I started hearing lots of stories from people who had similar things happen to them-- being attacked by dogs, having pets killed, etc. I was shocked at how common this seems to be. They had similar results, in that the dogs were returned to the owners and insultingly mild (if any) penalties applied.
SO-- I am looking for people who would be willing to share their dog attack stories at the City Council meeting sometime soon. They've been looking for ways to tighten up the local laws about vicious animals, and this could be the push they need. Please feel free to forward to lists you belong to. Have them email me if they want to be notified about how to proceed.
I am a huge dog lover. I know this pales in comparison to the recent dog attacks where people were severely injured and killed. I don't want dogs that can be rehabilitated being put down or anything like that.
I do, however, want to be able to take a walk with my child or dog without being afraid that a known killer dog might confront us around any corner. This dog came at us when we were 50 feet away from its yard. It wasn't protecting its owner or its territory. It was coming at us like I have never seen a dog do. And I lived on the East Side for more than five years, where we saw MANY dogs chase us as a territorial thing. This was something completely different. I want the city to have options.
If you or someone you know was attacked by a dog and would be willing to share your story, please contact me.
Sara Breuer
sara.breuer@lycos.com
WARNING GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION OF
DOG'S ATTACK LISTED BELOW
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This dog ripped my dog out of its collar, which remained attached to the leash. It grabbed him by the underbelly and shook him around until his back broke. It ripped open his belly and tore out his intestines and liver. It took several people to pull him off. The thought that this dog will be set free to do this to someone else makes me ill. I really am on a mission to do something about it.
If you or someone you know was attacked by a dog and would be willing to share your story, please contact me.
Sara Breuer
sara.breuer@lycos.com
