RHODE ISLAND -- Candace Smith doesn’t hate the pit bull-boxer mix that badly injured her dog in July. Actually, she feels sorry for him. [IDIOT!]
The Barrington resident attended a vicious dog hearing on Monday morning at the Barrington Public Safety Building and spoke about the July 28 incident where Paco, a 6-year-old mixed breed, nearly killed her 11-year-old pet cockapoo named Christy.
During her testimony, Ms. Smith described in detail how her dog, which suffered from Cushing’s Disease and epilepsy, began to seize when Paco attacked her...
...how Paco attacked Christy, tearing through the smaller dog’s leg muscles and pulling its leg from the socket. In tears, she recalled how she tried to hold onto her dog while the pit bull-boxer mix pulled them both to the ground.
“I spent 11 hours trying to save her that,” Ms. Smith said, who eventually decided to have her dog euthanized.
She then added: “But I feel sorry for that dog (Paco). It’s not his fault. It’s the owner’s.”
[Hmm, can someone give this woman a brain transplant? Obviously she needs it. Would she feel sorry for the dog if it had attacked and killed her small child?]
Paco’s owner, Kevin Wong, whose last known address is in East Providence, failed to show up for the hearing. In fact, Barrington Animal Control Officer John Duffy said he had spoken with Mr. Wong a few days earlier and was surprised when the dog owner said he thought Paco had already been put to sleep.
“The last time I talked to him (Mr. Wong), he said he was living in New York City,” Mr. Duffy said, adding that it appeared Paco’s owner had abandoned the animal.
Following Ms. Smith’s testimony, the panel comprised of East Providence Animal Control Officer Will Muggle, Barrington Police Chief John LaCross and RISPCA Special Agent Joseph Warzycha voted to have Paco euthanized.
Mr. Warzycha said he has overseen about 60 or 70 vicious dog hearings each year for the past two years and has only ordered three dogs euthanized.
“I think it’s appropriate here,” he said.
Officer Muggle said it was the only time he has ordered a dog to be euthanized. “Basically this is the owner doing this to the dog,” he said.
Chief LaCross said Mr. Wong was an irresponsible pet owner. He was the first panel member to order Paco to be put down.
Ms. Smith, who left the hearing prior to the panel’s decision, said she had spent about $1,400 in an effort to save her dog. She added that Mr. Wong has not offered to pay the bills. The town has incurred about $500 to have Paco boarded at the East Providence Animal Shelter since late July.
(East Bay Rhode Island - Nov 1, 2011)
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