Lisa Clarke, executive director of Doorstep Inc., was walking a dog on a leash about 3:15 p.m. when a tan and white pit bull, which wasn’t on a leash, attacked the dog, said Topeka police officer Nicole Karr.
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| Looks like an American Bulldog to me |
“She sustained some injuries,” Karr said of Clarke. “I think she was trying to break the dogs apart.”
Karr said several officers responded quickly to the area because students from surrounding schools were walking home.
An animal control officer was able to catch the pit bull, which received minor injuries to its face during the attack after it ran into a fence, Karr said. The pit bull was placed into the back of an animal control vehicle.
Linda Halford, who is animal control manager for the Topeka Police Department, said the pit bull was taken to a veterinarian and then would be transported to the Helping Hands Humane Society.
“We don’t know the owner at this time,” Halford said.
Clarke, who held an ice pack on one of her hands, and animal control officers attempted to load the other injured dog, a golden retriever mix, into a private vehicle, but the dog whined in pain. The dog, whose belly was covered in blood, was then placed into the back of another animal control officer’s vehicle and taken to an area veterinarian.
Halford said while people shouldn’t use their hands to break up a dog fight, it is oftentimes a person’s first instinct. Instead, she said, a board or other item should be placed in between the two animals.
[Yes, your beloved Golden Retriever is suddenly attacked by a vicious pit bull - or American Bulldog - and you're supposed to think clearly enough to not put your hands in to save your pet. Oh and I looooove how they call an unprovoked attempted murder of your pet a "dog fight" as though your dog was just as 'game' as the pit bull in attacking each other. Your dog was screaming for help and fighting for its life to get away from the monster.]
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| Bailey is lucky to be alive, but 'experts' say you should go look for a board while the pit bull rips your dog to pieces |
Nearly one year ago Mayor Bill Bunten and eight city council members voted 9-0 to pass an ordinance amending rules regarding animal control and animal cruelty to enhance public safety, protect animals and save taxpayer dollars.
The ordinance did away with the city’s breed-specific rules requiring owners to obtain special licenses and to implant microchips in any dogs that have the appearance and characteristics of being predominately of any three types of pit bull dog.
The passage of the ordinance in September 2010 overturned rules banning the ownership, keeping, or harboring of pit bulls that haven’t been licensed with the city and implanted with a microchip.
(Topeka Capital Journal - Sept 21, 2011)
