MAINE -- A dog obedience demonstration went wrong Tuesday when one of the dogs in the ring allegedly jumped the short fence and attacked another dog and its owner who was observing the show, according to York Animal Control Officer Gareth Wilton.
The female victim was scratched and suffered minor bite wounds, according to Wilton, who said he did not have the woman’s identity. Her dog was bitten and taken to a local veterinarian to be treated, Wilton said. The condition of the dog was not known as of Friday afternoon.
The dog that allegedly carried out the attack was an Alaskan malamute, Wilton said. It was in the show ring during the popular Piscataqua Obedience Club dog show held annually in Ellis Park during York Days.
Its owner, Sarah Todd, 40, 17 Rice Ave., Kittery, was charged with an ordinance violation of failure to control a dog, resulting in attack and injury, according to Wilton. The lead investigator in the case is Animal Control Officer Larry McAfee.
Todd has a court date of Oct. 30 in York District Court.
Todd declined to comment Friday. She is employed as a secretary and newsletter editor for the Piscataqua Obedience Club of Kittery, according to www.pocdogs.org. No one else from the club returned a phone call for comment.
The incident remains under investigation, Wilton said. There is the possibility of a potential additional charge of violating to the town of York’s leash law.
The malamute, while in a fenced ring, was not leashed, he said.
Shortly after the reported attack, the alleged victim left, reporting the incident to a reserve officer on bicycle in the Short Sands Beach parking lot, according to Wilton.
McAfee has also spoken to the alleged victim, he said.
The dog show continued.
Robert Rubin of York said he witnessed the incident. The young woman allegedly attacked was seated on the ground outside of the ring when the malamute jumped the fence and went after her dog, Rubin said, describing the alleged victim’s dog as a very furry, collie-like, mixed breed.
“The (malamute) was on top of it, shaking it violently,” Rubin said. “The husband was wrestling the dog off the wife and the dog.”
After handlers took the malamute away, Rubin said, “We checked the dog to see if it had bites. The young lady had a good scratch on her hand. She was very, very upset, crying — it was a horrific scene.”
Robert Rubin said the club’s response was to make an announcement, saying, “Sometimes these things happen.”
“They never came back to see how the dog was doing, never got (the victim’s) name, nothing,” he said.
Rubin’s wife, Robin Katherine Rubin, who owns Mannerly Mutts in York, also attended the show. She has posted her displeasure with how Piscataqua Obedience Club handled the incident on Facebook.
On Thursday she said, “The club’s response was none. I’m a dog trainer, that’s my profession. When these sort of things happen, it reflects on our profession.”
(Seacoast Online - August 02, 2013)
