Jean Keating, executive director of the Pit Crew, told The Blade she received paperwork from the Fulton County Dog Warden’s Office designating Bosco, a 2-year-old “pit bull” mix at the center of the controversy, as a dangerous dog.
“We’re definitely going to fight it,” Ms. Keating said, adding the rescue will file for a court hearing on the designation within 10 days as required by state law. “There is a really good chance that Bosco wasn’t even involved” in the bite.
Bosco was adopted Dec. 23 by Gwen and Matt Boughton of Wauseon. He is alleged to have bitten Mr. Boughton on Dec. 26 while at his parents’ house for a Christmas gathering, according to a statement the victim gave to Wauseon police. The minor injury required two stitches.
The Boughtons previously declined to comment, referring all questions to the Fulton County Sheriff’s Department.
After being contacted by Mrs. Boughton, the Pit Crew picked Bosco up the same day and quarantined him in a Pike Township foster home. The rescue resisted authorities’ attempts to take the dog to the county pound, so the sheriff’s department obtained a warrant Dec. 30 and seized him.
Public records obtained by The Blade last week from Brian Banister, Fulton County dog warden, showed Bosco is being held at the pound by the request of the sheriff’s department and will remain in quarantine until Friday.
Mr. Banister said via email on Monday that Bosco is being held in quarantine and is in good health. He said he was working to respond to public records requests from The Blade.
The sheriff’s department released an initial report on the matter, indicating possible misdemeanor offenses committed by the Pit Crew as theft, obstructing justice, and violating a rabies quarantine.
The report notes the investigation, which is still pending, was prompted by a complaint from the Fulton County Health Department.
“The first two aren’t going to stick, and the third one is in question,” Ms. Keating said.
In Ohio, a county license generally proves ownership of a dog. Records do not show Bosco with a 2015 license in either Lucas or Fulton counties.
The sheriff’s report lists Bosco as having a Lucas County tag, but does not note the year. The only tag on file for Bosco with the Lucas County Auditor’s Office is a 2016 tag the Sylvania Township-based Pit Crew purchased for him Dec. 27, a day after placing him in a Fulton County foster home for quarantine.
The tag number listed in the sheriff’s report returns to two different registrants in 2014 and 2015, and neither dog listed to those owners matches Bosco’s description.
County Prosecutor Scott Haselman did not return a call from The Blade on Monday. No charges have yet been filed with the Fulton County Western District Court against the Pit Crew, Ms. Keating, or the foster volunteer from whose house Bosco was seized.
Ms. Keating said she has since discovered there was another dog present in the house on the day Mr. Boughton was bitten. She said that dog, which is owned by Norma and Dennis Boughton, has a previous bite history, and she believes the younger Boughtons’ story isn’t adding up.
The elder Boughtons did not return a call from The Blade on Monday. A bite report from the county health department shows Dennis Boughton’s English bulldog named Rosie bit his finger a year ago.
“None of this makes any sense,” she said. “I don’t even know why they took the dog there at all. There’s paperwork in their adoption packet and we discussed it in their adoption to give [Bosco] a week or two to settle in.”
Ms. Keating said Bosco is being treated as a pawn as part of a disagreement between the rescue and Fulton County. The group is participating in grass-roots efforts to investigate the pound’s overall operations, which have been critical of the dog warden, county commissioners, and county policies.
She fears the county will kill Bosco out of spite, particularly after advocates alerted the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and the Ohio State Board of Pharmacy of violations at the county pound. The complaints were verified by the state, and later corrected by the county.
An online fund-raiser at youcaring.com to help the rescue pay for legal fees defending Bosco raised more than $3,000 in less than a day. A Jan. 2 petition on Change.org titled “Release Bosco to the Lucas County Pit Crew Immediately!” had garnered more than 2,300 signatures as of Monday evening.
Ms. Keating said the public’s support of Bosco and the Pit Crew has been strong.
(Toledo Blade - Jan 5, 2016)
Earlier:
- Pit bull rescue group tried to keep pit bull which bit its new owner from being quarantined at the shelter
- Seized Fulton County pit bull remains in quarantine
- Ohio: Pit bull rescue members hit by criminal charges after refusing to properly quarantine bite dog
- Ohio: Pit bull set free after quarantine in Fulton County
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