IOWA -- A woman whose poodle was killed by pit bulls is outraged the attackers could be returned to their owner.
Kandi Fleshner called on Waterloo City Council members to strengthen their animal control ordinance in the wake of the attack last weekend.
"The city ordinance for attacks on a dog or human is just a joke," said Fleshner, who was incensed after learning the pit bulls' owner was making plans to retrieve the dogs which are being held in quarantine by Black Hawk County Animal Control at the Cedar Bend Humane Society.
"I'm out of control with this," Fleshner said during the oral presentations portion of Monday's council agenda. "My son is absolutely devastated that we no longer have our dog."
Fleshner said she was walking her poodle near Edison Elementary School Sept. 10 when it was attacked by three pit bulls, which ripped her pet from its leash and ran off with it. The poodle was located three blocks away and died before reaching a veterinarian.
Fleshner said she wants to be part of efforts to toughen the city's animal control ordinance and would be willing to start a petition drive to force action. She also said she'd like to see pit bulls banned from the city.
Mayor Buck Clark said he would ask council members to review the ordinance to determine whether they supported changes.
The ordinance received a major overhaul in the spring of 2008.
If a dog is deemed "potentially dangerous" based on an attack to a person or domestic animal, the owner must register it as potentially dangerous with the city, pay a $50 registration fee, provide proof of at least $300,000 in liability insurance to cover injuries caused by the dog and have the dog affixed with a permanent registration number.
The ordinance also makes it easier to destroy those dogs or ban them from the city if they commit future offenses and are thereby determined dangerous.
Council members had discussed possibly banning certain breeds of dogs in 2008 but dropped those plans before they ever came up for a vote.
(WCF Courier - Sept 21, 2011)
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