ELLENVILLE, NY -- Officials in an upstate New York village are looking for ways to curb aggressive behavior by dogs after several attacks by pit bulls against pets and people.
Over the past two months in the Ulster County village of Ellenville, officials say pit bulls bit an 11-year-old boy in the groin and killed a family's cat and bit the owner in separate attacks.
Last month, a 25-year-old man was charged with fatally stabbing a pit bull he said had attacked his dog, also a pit bull.
Mayor Jeff Kaplan tells the Times Herald-Record of Middletown that he's a dog lover but not a fan of aggressive-breed dogs.
Village trustees are considering ways to curb aggressive behavior, including a ban on dogs in the business district and mandatory muzzles.
Officials say state law prohibits municipalities from having breed-specific rules.
(Wall Street Journal - June 30, 2011)
