ILLINOIS -- To the Editor:
Re: Tim Sheridan’s letter, “Pit bulls at Large” (July 21).
How sad for Tim that he lost his beloved collie because of a vicious, loose dog and then had the situation labeled “dogs at large,” a petty offense. Pit bulls and pit bull mixes need to be dealt with differently because of the possible latent aggression in them and their lethal, no-escape bite. There can be disastrous consequences when unattended pit bulls encounter other animals or people.
Over a period of years, a pit bull in our neighborhood bit 10 of our revered dogs and badly ripped up three. Even though the owners knew the dog was aggressive to other animals, he was, for many years, allowed to play loose.
As you can imagine, it was terrifying to have an animal that was loved so much be jumped and bitten by a vicious pit bull. Though both Animal Control and the police department knew about the dog, nothing was done to remove him, so the biting continued until 10 dogs had been bitten and traumatized. We need good communication between these two departments when there’s been a vicious dog attack, and anyone whose dog has been attacked needs to inform both.
That pit bull is dead now. He finally got old. We had to wait for his demise in order to feel safe. This should not have been the case, and we are trusting these departments to come up with a plan of action that will keep us and our pets safe.
Marge DeWig, Cary, IL
(Northwest Herald - August 3, 2012)