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NE-Ashland City council addresses dangerous dog issue

Vicki

Administrator
City council addresses dangerous dog issue





By Suzi Nelson

Published: Thursday, June 11, 2009 3:11 AM CDT

ASHLAND – The president of the Ashland Dog Pound came in front of the Ashland City Council to request help with pit bulls in the community.

Julie Starns said two pit bull attacks in May prompted her to request the city beef up its dangerous dog ordinance.

“I am here tonight to ask the City of Ashland impose laws similar to Omaha or Lincoln for owners of these dangerous dog breeds,†she said.

Starns told the council that the first dog attack was on an Ashland police officer who was attacked while serving an arrest warrant. The dog was quarantined at the Ashland Dog Pound for 10 days and returned to its owner, who is only allowed to let the dog out of the house if it is muzzled and on a leash, she said.

The second was an unprovoked attack that occurred at an Ashland residence when a pit bull ran out of the owner’s yard and attacked an elderly man, according to Starns. The dog was also quarantined. After discovering that it had also bitten someone in Omaha prior to coming to Ashland, the dog was euthanized, she said.

Starns said taking care of these animals was very difficult for the dog pound, which is run solely by volunteers. The dog pound had to be shut down while the dangerous dogs were being housed there because the kennels are not strong enough to ensure a pit bull cannot escape, she said.

A police officer took over the duties of caring for the first pit bull when it was quarantined. Starns was in charge of the second pit bull, and said it was kept in the kennel the entire 10 days because she could not handle letting it out for walks. In fact, she said the dog was so menacing that she threw the food under the kennel and gave it water with a hose.

“The second quarantine was a sad situation for the dog and left a huge mess for me to clean up,†she said.

Starns added that the local veterinary clinic is not insured or equipped to handle dangerous dogs, so they are not an option.

Starns suggested that quarantined animals be allowed to stay in the owner’s home, but with restrictions.

“They’re going to be less violent in their environment,†she said.

City Attorney Mark Fahleson said the city has been working on this matter.

“I would just state for the record, that under the direction of the chief of police and city administrator, we’ve been working on a new ordinance section dealing with this situation which we hope to presented to the council maybe the July meetings,†he said.

Fahleson said the city currently has a dangerous dog ordinance, but that it needs to be “tightened up.â€

Starns said not only are dog pound volunteers and police officers worried about these pit bull attacks, but so is the general public.

“I know my neighbors are concerned,†she said. “At one house next to me they do not let their kids go outside and play.â€

Council member Sue Brauckmuller was not in favor of copying Omaha’s dangerous dog ordinance, saying it is too strict and targets not only dangerous dogs like pit bulls, but also dogs that resemble pit bulls.

“To make a breed specific law I’m totally against it,†she said.

Starns agreed that any dog can bite and bad owners are often to blame. But in the case of dogs that are bred to be aggressive, the city needs to take action.

“Other cities have already taken action and I would hope that our city would choose to be proactive instead of waiting for someone to be killed,†said Starns. “There is a very real possibility that the next attack could be fatal.â€

Mayor Paul Lienke asked that Starns have some input on the new ordinances before they are put on the city council agenda in July.

http://omahanewsstand.com/articles/...d_gazette/news//doc4a3025af9fda1886632889.txt