MINNESOTA -- The 4-year-old son of a former Clay County Sheriff’s Deputy is recovering from head wounds received during an attack last week while he was playing with the retired German Shepherd K-9 owned by his father.
The little boy reportedly suffered a puncture wound to his left temple area and a large piece of his scalp was missing on the left side of his head.. His right nostril was also injured, the ND Inforum.com reports.
The little boy reportedly suffered a puncture wound to his left temple area and a large piece of his scalp was missing on the left side of his head.. His right nostril was also injured, the ND Inforum.com reports.
Former Deputy Ryan Carey rushed his son to the emergency room at Sanford Medical Center in Fargo, ND, on Sunday evening, September 9, after Cuda bit the boy. He indicated that the boy’s injuries weren’t critical. However, the child was transported to a Twin Cities children’s hospital on Monday for surgery, according to the sheriff's department report.
Clay County sheriff’s deputy/canine handler Ryan Carey was fired by Sheriff Bill Bergquist on July 25, 2012, for reasons he says he cannot discuss publicly.
Carey took ownership of his K-9 German shepherd named Cuda on the same day, according to documents obtained from the Clay County Sheriff’s Office. Carey has been a widely acclaimed canine handler with Clay County since June 11, 2001.
Deputy Carey states that he is appealing the termination. Sheriff Bergquist said he can’t discuss the dog bite incident because of Carey’s ongoing appeal.
According to a sheriff’s office report, Carey and his wife made a statement to a deputy that the boy “had been throwing a plastic-bottle toy for Cuda at their rural Hawley residence and everything appeared to be fine. When the boy stopped throwing the bottle and went to hug Cuda, the dog attacked him.”
According to the report, Ryan told them that "Cuda is very protective of his toys."
Inforum.com reports that, in a letter dated Thursday, Clay County Chief Deputy Matt Siiro informed Carey that Cuda had been declared a dangerous dog because of the bite incident and under State law Carey must register him as such with the sheriff’s office.
Addtionally, in order to reclaim the dog, the former Deputy Sheriff must post a clearly visible sign warning there is a dangerous dog on his property, provide proof of $300,000 in liability insurance and implant a microchip in the dog for identification, the letter states.
Carey must file a report within 30 days with the sheriff’s department, verifying that he has met all the requirements. Failure to do so will result in, the sheriff’s office seeking a court order to have the dog impounded, Siiro’s letter stated.
According to a supplemental sheriff’s report, Carey opposes euthanizing Cuda and is trying to find a law enforcement agency to take the dog.
Ryan Carey has been widely acclaimed for his professional and law-enforcement accumen. He, along with two other deputies, received the Combat Cross in 2009 for their actions during the search for and shootout with Vincent Degidio Jr., Degidio was later sentenced to 29 years after he, pleaded guilty to entering a Fargo woman’s apartment on April 3, 2008, and taking her at gunpoint to Moorhead, MN, for the purpose of sexually assaulting her.
In 2010, Carey and Cuda competed in the U.S.P.C.A. Region 18 Police Canine Regional Trials in Rochester, They won the Kojak Memorial Award for first place in criminal apprehension, second place overall out of 82 participating K-9 partners, and first place in the four-dog combined team score with Moorhead Police Officer Justin Vogel and his K-9 partner, Duke, Informa.net reports.
(Opposing Views - Sept 21, 2012)
