Angela Stoor said she’s had her dog, Tank, a mixed Rottweiler and American Bulldog breed, for nearly seven years. And she thinks its unfair that city and police officials have decided to label him as vicious based on two incidents — years apart —in which she believes the animal was simply trying to protect her children.
But city and police officials don’t see it that way.
They say the animal bit a boy while he was walking down the street, and a UPS employee who was delivering a package.
“This is a pretty serious incident. Two people have been bitten unprovoked,” said Teresa Watkins, the city’s animal control supervisor.
Under the city’s vicious dog ordinance — which has been in place since 2001, but has never been used until Tank’s case — authorities can deem a dog vicious if they feel they have probable cause to do so. Police and city officials both held hearings on the matter, and both came to the same conclusion: Tank is a vicious animal.
“It’s an unfortunate situation,” Watkins said, adding that she knows Tank means a lot to Stoor’s family, but at the same time, officials believe he presents a threat to people. “If a dog bites people more than once, especially unprovoked, we have to protect our citizens.”
But Stoor doesn't think Tank presents a threat to the public. She said he’s been around people for the past seven years with only the two incidents — the first involving the boy, which occurred back in 2010, and the second which occurred in January. And despite officials’ conclusions, she believes the animal was provoked in both situations since he likely perceived the individuals as threats to her children.
Stoor said the boy ran up to her children while shouting a greeting; Tank bit him, breaking some skin, but he didn’t have to have any stitches, she said, adding that she felt terrible about the incident and did everything she could to make sure the boy was OK.
In the second more serious incident, Stoor said she left two of her children at home while she went to pick up her son from Boy Scouts. While she was gone, a UPS employee stopped at the home to deliver a package.
The children didn’t answer the door at first, but they later opened it wide enough to grab the package while the UPS employee was heading back to his truck. Stoor said her children told her that the man started hollering at them not to let the dog out and that’s when Tank exited the home and bit him. She believes the dog once again perceived the situation as a threat to the kids.
But whether or not Tank was protecting the children, officials say he still bit two people who weren’t intentionally doing anything to provoke him. And that’s why they decided to label him as vicious.
“He’s protective (and he may have been) protecting the family, but he can’t bite people, especially if they’re unprovoked bites,” Watkins said. “Unfortunately, animal control has to step in and take steps.”
Under the ordinance, the vicious animal designation means the Stoors will either have to get rid of the animal, or take several precautions to make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone again. They will have to get a $500,000 liability insurance policy on the dog, and keep him muzzled and on a leash anytime he leaves the property. In addition, they will have to display warning signs at their home, and keep Tank in a locked enclosure among other conditions.
Although the family only has 30 days, as of March 6, to comply with the conditions, Stoor said she plans to continue fighting the designation and the requirements that come with it.
“We feel it’s inhumane to do that to our dog,” she said, adding that if anything, the conditions will turn a good dog — which has been allowed to move freely on the property for years — into a bad one.
And she said Tank is a good dog.
“We have three kids and we could not afford to harbor a viscous dog in our house,” she said, adding that she would have no qualms about getting rid of him if he was a dangerous animal.
But she describes Tank as a family dog who goes with them on camping trips, and even swims and rides snow machines with them.
“He’s like one of my kids,” she said. “He’s such a sweet dog.”
(Idaho State Journal - Mar 29, 2013)
