After second attack, owners finally agree to destroy dog

WISCONSIN -- A dog being considered for euthanizing by the city has been put down by its owner, the Chippewa Falls Public Safety Committee heard Tuesday. That dog attacked a horse Aug. 7 in Stanley.

Chippewa Falls Police Chief Wendy Stelter said she spoke with the owners of the dog, Matthew and Patricia Wold, who said they had the dog put down the day after the attack.

Matthew Wold said he waited until recently to contact the police department because he didn’t know they had the intention of putting his dog down until he read a story about it in the Chippewa Herald.

He took the dog to his uncle’s residence on a Cadott farm and had it put down and buried there.

Stelter said she would send an officer to the farm to verify the dog is buried there.

The attack on the horse was the second time Wold’s dog had been involved in an attack, which under state law, permits the council to take action.

Generally, taxpayer dollars would be used to fund the court costs and euthanasia fees associated with putting down an animal.

“This is a pretty dramatic change to the current ordinance,” Council Member Mike Hanke said at Tuesday evening’s council meeting.

At the earlier committee meeting, Hanke said; “City taxpayers shouldn’t be paying an extra penny in their pocket to put some of these dogs down.”

City Attorney Robert Ferg told the council that the city would always ask the court for the costs of having an animal put down. “I would be hard pressed a court ever saying ‘We’re not going to give you costs.’” Ferg said.

The proposed ordinance change would say that all dogs be kept on six-foot leashes while not on the owner’s property. If the animal has been deemed dangerous, the owners are required to muzzle it and keep it on a four-foot leash when in public.

The owners will be subject to a $169 fine for a dog in public without a leash, and about a $180 fine for a dog running at large.

“You could actually charge them two violations,” Stelter said.

The city is considering recommending a fee increase to $232 for unleashed dogs.

“If the dog is in your yard, it doesn’t need to be leashed, but as soon as that animals leaves your property, it needs to be leashed, and that includes the sidewalks which are city property,” Hanke said.

Bridget Givens, city clerk, said she would create a pamphlet informing the public of the ordinances when they register their animals.

The council will vote on the proposed ordinance at a later date.

(Chippewa.com - Sept 17, 2013)