Posted on 02/23/2010 10:10:38 PM PST by Chet 99
Vancouver pit bull attack has owner, humane society at odds
by Susan Harding, KATU News and KATU.com Staff
Originally printed at http://www.katu.com/news/84926487.html
VANCOUVER, Wash. – Bob McDonald never saw it coming.
Parked at the Langsdorf Landing boat launch in Southwest Washington, with the windows down and his basset hound Freckles in the passenger seat, "all of a sudden I heard this screaming sound, and out of nowhere came this Pit Bull."
McDonald said he tried to free the dog on this own: "I was trying to hold onto her with one hand and hit the Pit Bull with the other." But he couldn't stop the attacking dog.
"He was pulling her literally out of the car," McDonald said. "She was of course screaming, and I could see a death lock on [the other dog's] face."
A nearby fisherman tried to come to his rescue, hitting the Pit Bull until it let go ... only to have it attack again. McDonald said he finally was able to kick the dog away.
McDonald said he reported the attack to the police and animal control. However, he said, no one appears to be interested.
With pink stitches down her nose, Freckles suffered deep wounds that ripped her nostril and tore into the bone. She is, however, recovering and in good spirits.
Tracking down the dog That same day, McDonald said he heard a stray Pit Bull had been taken to the Southwest Washington Humane Society. He called to identify the dog, but said he was denied.
"They said 'There's nothing we can do for you; we won't let you ID the dog," he said. "I said, 'Why? That doesn't make sense.'"
McDonald now believes the Pit Bull that ripped up his dog's face is now at the Southeast Washington Humane Society, getting prepared to be adopted out. His worries that what happened to Freckles could happen to a child of the adoptive family.
"I explained to them what happened," McDonald said. "I wanted to ID the dog to let them know how dangerous this animal could be, because if this had been a child in the car, he would have killed it. [The child] would have been dead before you could stop it."
Kate Goudschaal at the Humane Society of Southwest Washington tells us that "Legally, by law, in order for us to comply there has to be a complaint filed with animal control and, as of now, there hasn't been [a complaint filed] in this particular case."
McDonald said he did make a report to animal control. However, he said so far he hasn't heard back from them.
What's next? The Humane Society spokesperson emphasized that a dog that is aggressive to other dogs may be safe with people, even children. The Humane Society would not let us shoot any video of the suspected pit bull, saying it would hurt her adoptability – and the dog could be innocent.
"It's really hard to tell what's really truthful in this situation and what's not," said spokesperson Goudschaal. "...With dog-to-dog aggression, that's workable. Some breeds just genetically don't prefer being around other dogs."
The Humane Society will hold the Pit Bull for five days to see if its owner comes forward. Then they will evaluate its behavior before putting it up for adoption.
This Pit Bull was found in an area where those in the shelter industry say lots of pets are "dumped and left to fend for themselves."
Strange, I thought all these people believed it was the owners, not the dogs.
The Humane Society will hold the Pit Bull for five days to see if its owner comes forward. Then they will evaluate its behavior before putting it up for adoption.
After the five days, if it's the guilty dog, adopted it and have it put down.
So, they won’t let him identify the dog. And they’re trying to find an owner to adopt it. Hopefully, people reading this article will think twice before adopting from this shelter.
Glad to hear the other dog is OK.
(As a side note, it seems every single article these days is filled with misspelled words and errors, and this one is no exception.)
BOOM!...
The last two states I have lived in have had a standing rule not to allow the adoption of pit bulls or pit bull mixes from their local shelters. Too much liability. They put them down instead.
Dog of Peace alert
This is when a Glock 29 in the glovebox comes in handy.
It’s the owners that breed these dogs to be aggressive.
See? Got both. Some are bred simply to be great companions.
I have Akitas. They are dog aggressive. They’ve given each other stitches. They love kids.
That said, they seem to have worked out their issues and I don’t have any little kids. And I wouldn’t take in a pit I felt was bred to be a fighter, I really think only certain people shoulc adopt such a dog. People that are fully capable of dealing with any issues that arise.
Letting the dog wander the neighborhood is one of the things that disqualifies a person.
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