A motion from Commissioner George Gainer to grant Marley the dog’s owner one month with a trainer to determine if the dog is indeed dangerous — and whether the label should stick — didn’t receive a second and therefore failed.
Gainer’s motion could not get a second after Commissioner Guy Tunnell read an email to the county from a dog trainer who was bitten by Marley earlier this month as he was trying to take off the dog’s collar.
Marley bit Robert Simon July 13, puncturing the skin on both hands, according to a Bay County Animal Control Division report. Simon, with Dogmata, had agreed to work with Marley’s owners on socialization before the animal was taken to another family, the report states.
“Marley was outside with both parties for over an hour with no incident when Robert went to put Marley back in his kennel,” a Bay County Animal Control report states. “He reached down to remove his collar and leash at which time Marley became aggressive and bit Robert on both hands.”
Dog owner Johnothan Jones has appealed the decision of County Judge Thomas Welch to declare Marley dangerous, which would require the family to meet requirements they say are expensive, cumbersome and unnecessary. He urged the commission Tuesday to de-classify the dog, a move County Attorney Jennifer Shuler said might not be legal as county code gives Animal Control the authority to make that call.
Even after Simon was bitten, residents and Jones urged the commission to remove the “dangerous dog” designation. Jones said Marley had an excellent training session with Simon before the bite occurred.
“During the first session with the dog, (Simon) was purposely pushing Marley to see where his hot points were and test his personality,” Jones said.
He said Marley was obeying Simon’s commands and only bit Simon as he was about to be put back in the pen.
“That’s when he reacted, because he’s been in the same (county) pen for 10 months,” Jones said. “He hasn’t been let out.”
The “dangerous dog” classification, which was approved by Animal Control, a magistrate and Welch after Marley the dog bit a teenager twice, requires Jones’ family to pay for a $100,000 insurance policy as well as adhere to strict caging requirements.
Jones, a Panama City resident and former security contractor in Afghanistan, brought the Labrador retriever-German shepherd mix to Bay County in 2011 as part of a private puppy rescue mission. Last September, the dog bit Jones’ girlfriend’s 15-year-old son, Taylor Freeman. On Oct. 6, Animal Control received a complaint from Jones’ neighbor that the dog had bitten Freeman again.
“I know through a structured plan of rehabilitation for him that he will be able to be integrated right back into the family scenario and environment to the satisfaction that all of us can agree upon,” Jones told commissioners.
However, commissioners questioned why Jones hasn’t brought the dog home from Animal Control after Welch ruled on Memorial Day weekend that he wouldn’t be euthanized. Jones said he didn’t have the money for the caging, and it would be wasted dollars if an appellate judge overturns Welch’s opinion. Under questioning from Commissioner Bill Dozier, Jones said he has raised about $14,000 for Marley’s cause on a GoFundMe account, but those funds have been eaten up by attorney’s fees.
(News herald - July 19, 2016)
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