WEST MILFORD — The female bear hunted by New Jersey wildlife officials since it attacked a West Milford man and his dog on June 24 in Norvin Green State Park was trapped and euthanized Thursday night near where the incident occurred, the state Department of Environmental Protection said today.

The 188-pound, female bruin was caught at about 4:45 p.m. near a West Milford home where it had been causing new problems, said DEP spokesman Lawrence Ragonese, explaining the bear had just ripped into a chicken coop at the house before it ran into the baited, culvert trap set up by wildlife officials days earlier. The bear had three, six-month-old cubs which authorities said should be able to survive on their own.

“We had two previous aggressive incidents with this bear, and when it was caught it was being aggressive again. It was euthanized,” Ragonese said, adding that ten aggressive bears have been put down by wildlife officials and police this year.

The hiker was knocked down, but not seriously injured in the June 24 incident, and his dog is recovering from its wounds. The attack prompted a portion of the park to be closed and the postponement of a local fireworks display as authorities searched for the bruin.

via Bear who attacked West Milford hiker is captured, euthanized | NJ.com.

MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) – Montana wildlife officials say a Washington man was injured by a black bear that bit through his tent at a primitive campsite in the Lolo National Forest in western Montana.

Fish, Wildlife and Parks wardens say Rob Holmes of Ellensburg, Wash., was awakened at about 4:30 a.m. Monday when he felt an animal bite his ear lobe. It took 21 stitches to close the wound.

Warden Capt. Jeff Darrah says it appears the bear was drawn into the area by food and other attractants that were left at a nearby camp site.

The U.S. Forest Service campground southwest of St. Regis will be closed while officials try to capture the bear. FWP Regional Supervisor Mack Long says if they can find the bear they’ll euthanize it because it has become habituated to human food.

via Daily Record-News – Ellensburg man survives bear attack in Montana.

Food and garbage abandoned at a campsite in Mineral County likely attracted a black bear that bit a Washington man on the head early Monday, according to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

Rob Holmes, of Ellensburg, Wash., required 21 stitches on his earlobe after the bear bit him through his tent around 4:30 a.m., as he and a friend slept up Little Joe Road just southwest of St. Regis.

Holmes’ injuries were not life-threatening, and he and his friend had left for home by Monday afternoon.

After the bear bit Holmes, the man screamed. He then grabbed a flashlight and tried to follow it before driving to a Missoula hospital.

“It reacted to people, which is good,” said Mack Long, FWP regional supervisor. “But the downside is that once it is habituated, it’s almost impossible to change.”

Holmes kept a clean camp, Long said, but other campers left behind food and other attractants at the U.S. Forest Service campground, which is “primitive” and not a sanctioned campground.

“He did everything right,” said Jeff Darrah, FWP warden captain in Missoula.

The FWP is currently attempting to track down the bear, which will be euthanized once it’s found. In the meantime, the camping area is closed until further notice.

FWP officials said the radius and patterns of the bite marks on Holmes and in his tent were identical to those found on cans of food and other items at the nearby abandoned campsite.

It is unknown how long that campsite had been abandoned, but the bear likely had visited the site for at least a couple of nights, said Long. It likely was a temporary campsite for transients, he said.

Long put all blame on the campers who abandoned their site and left food and other items behind. He said “attack” is not the correct word for the incident, which will unfortunately lead to a dead bear.

Long said he believes it is the only reported case of a human injury caused by a bear in western Montana this year.

The message is clear, he stressed: Don’t leave food and other attractants open at a campsite, and never leave food behind.

via Black bear bites through tent, into sleeping man’s ear near St. Regis.

TAMPA — A 7-foot alligator was caught in the parking lot of a Gulf coast middle school.

Authorities say the alligator turned up in front of Stewart Middle School's cafeteria early Monday.

Hillsborough County school district spokeswoman Linda Cobbe said the alligator was found before students arrived and they were kept away. No one was hurt.

A Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officer caught the alligator in a back parking lot. It has been turned over to trapper to be euthanized.

via 7-foot gator caught outside Florida middle school.

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Sad story all around. That picture makes it sadder, they don’t look like dangerous dogs.

PIT BULLS EUTHANIZED AFTER ATTACK ON WOMAN

Story Published: May 7, 2009 at 5:50 PM EDT

Story Updated: May 8, 2009 at 9:49 AM EDT 

Three pit bull dogs were euthanized Tuesday, as their owner complied with a judge’s order the dogs be killed.

The three – including a puppy – attacked a woman in Theresa in April.

The owner of the dogs wanted to fight the judge’s order, but didn’t have the money to do so.

Linda Wilcox was attacked as she was out walking.

“All of a sudden, they were on top of me,” Wilcox told 7 News at the time.

She was knocked down, hitting her head. And she got at least one bite.

“I just lay there screaming.”

Wilcox struggled with reporting the incident, she said, but ultimately decided she had to.

“I thought this could happen to somebody else.”

But Mary Cook, the owner of the dogs, found the judge’s order to be extreme.

“Just ’cause they’re ‘pits,’ that’s given them a bad name,” she said at the time. “There’s little dogs out here that bite worse than they could.”

She also said her dogs had never before attacked anyone, and thought her animals should get a second chance.

But Tuesday, the judge’s deadline, she took them to a veterinarian who euthanized them.

Link

State: Cougar killings come down to liability

The debate over what should happen when cougars encounter humans is heating up again. After a New Mexico Department of Game and Fish warden darted a female cougar in the backyard of an Eldorado home April 20 and later euthanized it, angry callers and letter writers lambasted the agency for “trigger happy” tactics. Albuquerque resident Charlotte Salazar thinks just the opposite. Her 5-year-old son was attacked by a cougar last May during a family hike on a popular Sandia Mountain trail. Salazar believes wildlife officers aren’t doing enough to control the cougar population. The debate over what should happen when cougars encounter humans has changed little in 30 years, said Marty Frentzel, public information officer with the state Department of Game and Fish. For the state, the decision over euthanizing a captured cougar comes down to one word: liability. Game and Fish Department officials worry about getting sued if someone is attacked by a cougar that was captured and released elsewhere. That fear isn’t unwarranted. In a 1996 incident in Arizona, a black bear that had been captured, tagged and released into a mountain range near Tucson badly mauled a teenage girl in her tent. The girl’s family sued the Arizona Game and Fish Department, claiming the agency shouldn’t have released a bear when it knew the animal had previously shown no fear of humans. The state settled the case out of court for $2.5 million…Santa Fe New Mexican

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It did attack four people. I don’t see how it could be trusted around people anymore. 

Peabody pit bull that attacked four sentenced to death

By Matthew K. Roy
Staff writer
 

PEABODY — The pit bull that attacked three women and a police officer at a Peabody mobile home park has received a death sentence.

The city’s animal control officer issued an order to have the dog, Bronson, euthanized within 90 days, police Capt. Dennis Bonaiuto said yesterday. Lilian Pinto made her decision after owner Brian Stevens and his lawyer appeared at a hearing last week in the Peabody police station.

Pinto based her ruling on the “totality” of the pit bull’s actions, Bonaiuto said.

Bronson is responsible for more than 50 wounds suffered by Cassandra Osgood, 23, of Danvers during an April 9 attack. The dog mauled her friend Sarah Malave, 24, of Middleton and injured Stevens’ girlfriend, Jamie Brickman, 27. Patrolman William Swaczyk is still recovering from arm injuries the dog inflicted when the officer wrestled it off Malave.

In 2007, Stevens suffered puncture wounds on his forearms, his right thigh and buttocks when the dog turned on him.

Stevens, 27, learned of Bronson’s fate over the weekend in a letter from the city.

“We knew that this was coming,” his lawyer, Jeremy Cohen, said yesterday. “We will appeal it to the chief of police, and we will ready an appeal after that to district court if it doesn’t go well.”

At the hearing last week before Pinto and Capt. Joseph Berardino, Cohen argued that Osgood and Malave provoked the dog. He accused them of using illegal drugs, wrestling inside the mobile home and falling on top of the animal. Osgood has denied using drugs and disputes Cohen’s claim that Brickman yelled at her and Malave to stop wrestling.

“Obviously, I believe, under the circumstances, that it is the right decision,” said Kevin Barry, Osgood’s lawyer.

The dog will continue to be kept at the Borash Veterinary Clinic in Peabody during what could be a lengthy appeal process.

“There is a life at stake here,” Cohen said, “and (Stevens) wants to pursue this as far as he can.”

Link

Pit bull victim says attack not her fault

By Alan Burke
Staff writer
 

PEABODY — Cassandra Osgood is angrily denouncing a strategy of blaming the victim — herself — for a vicious attack by a pit bull.

Osgood, of Danvers, singled out especially the accusation by the dog’s owner, Brian Stevens, and lawyer Jeremy Cohen that drug use was involved in the incident at a Peabody mobile home. She denies using drugs or alcohol prior to the attack.

Three women and a police officer were injured in the incident, with Osgood suffering the worst, sustaining up to 50 wounds and extensive scarring. A hearing was held Tuesday before Peabody police Capt. Joseph Berardino and Animal Control Officer Lilian Pinto to consider the dog’s fate. A decision is expected within 72 hours of the hearing.

“There is no doubt that the dog did this, but he was agitated into doing it,” Cohen told the hearing in an effort to save the animal. Rough play between Osgood and another woman set the dog off, he suggested.

Osgood, who says her wounds are not healing well, contrasts this strategy of blaming her for the attack with her own initial reaction to the ordeal. At first, she expressed sympathy for the dog and accepted an apology from Stevens.

“Now he’s accusing me of illegal drug use — No! (The dog) got me everywhere but my face. Now something’s wrong with my right arm. People need to see this. I’m feeling this dog needs to be put to sleep.”

She also denies the version of events presented by Stevens’ girlfriend, Jamie Brickman, who said she yelled at the girls to stop wrestling prior to the attack.

“This was just a bullet that missed me,” Osgood says. “Thank God he didn’t get my throat. Or my face. I’m scarred for life.” She adds that she now needs plastic surgery and doesn’t believe that she should have to pay for it.

Cohen has acknowledged that he expects an order to euthanize the animal, but that can be appealed to the District Court within 30 days.

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Considering just how rare Mountain Lion attacks are, it seems like lately officials are euthanizing way too quickly.

Cougar killed after
entering courtyards

Updated: Thursday, 23 Apr 2009, 4:23 PM MDT
Published : Thursday, 23 Apr 2009, 3:35 PM MDT

• Web Producer: Todd Dukart

ELDORADO AT SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – Game wardens have killed a cougar who entered the courtyards of two Santa Fe-area homes.

The 100-pound female cougar was captured and euthanized after she was found Monday at the homes in the Eldorado subdivision.

Game warden Desi Ortiz said the cougar showed no fear when he arrived at the first home. The animal stared back at him as he positioned himself with a tranquilizer gun.

Ortiz said he hit the mountain lion in the hind leg with a tranquilizer dart. She jumped over the wall to the courtyard and went missing.

A short time later, Ortiz was called to another home where a cougar was seen staggering into the courtyard.

New Mexico Department of Game and Fish officials said the original plan was to move the animal to the Jemez Mountains, but she was euthanized after officials determined she was too dangerous to people.

Dan Williams with Game and Fish said in a news release the cougar appeared to have lost its fear of humans.

Tips to avoid encounters with mountain lions and other large predators, according to Game and Fish:

• Do not feed wildlife. Use native plants, not non-natives, so as to not attract deer, which are the primary prey of lions. Remember, predators follow prey.
• Do not let your pets roam around outside. Bring them in at night. If you keep pets outside, provide a kennel with a secure top. Do not feed pets outside where the food can attract lions or other smaller animals which lions prey upon. Store and dispose of all garbage securely.
• Closely supervise children. Make sure they are home before dusk and not outside before dawn. Make lots of noise if you come or go during times when mountain lions are most active — dusk to dawn. Teach your children about lions and what they should do if they encounter one.
• Landscape or remove vegetation to eliminate hiding cover for lions, especially around areas where children play. Make it difficult for a lion to approach unseen.
• Install outdoor lighting, especially in areas where you walk, so you can see a lion if one were present.
• Close off open spaces below porches or decks.
• Place all livestock in enclosed sheds or barns at night. Close the doors to all outbuildings so that an inquisitive lion is prevented from going inside to look around.
• Also, if you encounter a mountain lion:

Stop or back away slowly if you can do so safely.

• Stay calm when you come upon a lion talk calmly yet firmly to it and move slowly.
• Immediately pick up all children off the ground and tell them to stay calm.
• Do not run from a lion as fleeing behavior may trigger the instinct of the lion to attack.
• Face the lion — do not turn your back — remain in an upright position and look as large as possible (raise your arms, open up your coat, if your wearing one).
• Carry a walking stick and use it to defend yourself by keeping it between you and the lion. If the lion approaches closer or behaves aggressively, arm yourself with the stick, throw rocks or sticks at the lion, and speak louder and more firmly to the lion. Convince the lion you are dominant and a danger to it.
• Fight back if a lion attacks you. Use any possible object within reach as a weapon, such as rocks, sticks, jackets, a backpack or your bare hands. Lions have been driven away by prey that fights back. Stay standing and if you fall down try to get back up on your feet.
• Call police if you feel you are in danger.

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It’s not really clear whether if the bear was even chasing the woman, but it got put to sleep. Why couldn’t they just relocate it?

Pregnant Woman Hit By Car Running From Bear

Posted: 1:46 PM Apr 23, 2009 Last Updated: 8:29 PM Apr 23, 2009 Reporter: McKenzie Martin  PLAY VIDEO: Pregnant Woman Chased By Bear RAW VIDEO: DOW Tranquilizes Bear

Police say the woman was walking when she saw a bear and she thought the bear was coming after her. The woman reportedly screamed and ran into the street. “I heard a rustle behind me and a bear came out of the creek, I was about 2 feet away from the bear,” Ashley Swendsen said. She says when the bear started following her she screamed and ran away. “I went up a gravel hill and you have to cross a bridge, there’s no pedestrian walk and I was trying to cross the bridge and this lady hit me.” Police say Swendsen, ran into the street near 6700 Vincent Drive, three blocks away from Dublin and Vincent. The driver of the car reportedly took off. Swendsen was taken to Memorial Hospital, where she was treated for a bruised leg. She is 5 months along in her pregnancy and the baby was unharmed. Police say they found a bear a while later in the area, at 1443 Rock Ridge, near Rock Ridge and Turret. The Division of Wildlife euthanized the bear after Swendsen identified her in a picture. The DOW says the bear had become a danger to the area, becoming too comfortable around humans.

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That they euthanized this Mountain Lion seems crazy to me. First, if a crowd of people had gathered to watch it, it probably was not a real threat to any people (certainly no more than your random Pit Bull!). And second, according to comments on the original article, apparently a Mountain Lion Sanctuary was actively trying to get the Mountain Lion to live with them. This does not seem like a good decision.

Without Home in Zoo, Mountain Lion is Killed

By Myers Reece , 04-22-09

Officials for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks were unable to find a suitable home for a mountain lion captured in Columbia Falls over the weekend and were forced to euthanize the animal, according to a press release from regional FWP spokesman John Fraley. Here’s the full press release:  

A 120-pound adult male mountain lion that was captured Saturday evening in Columbia Falls was euthanized Tuesday night after it became clear that no accredited zoo could receive the animal. A local veterinarian assisted in euthanizing the cat.

According to FWP Wildlife Manager Jim Williams, mountain lions in urban areas potentially pose a significant threat to public safety, so FWP policy prohibits relocating captured lions into occupied lion habitat. Lions caught in urban areas are normally killed for reasons of public safety. In this case, FWP personnel in Helena conducted a search to locate an accredited zoo but none could take the animal.

The mountain lion was captured over the weekend. On Saturday evening, April 17, the lion was reported in a tree within the city limits of Columbia Falls at the intersection of 5th Avenue West and 12th Street. FWP Wildlife Conflict Specialist Erik Wenum received a call on the incident at 5:20 p.m. and responded. When Wenum arrived, a crowd had gathered to see the lion, which was about 30 feet up a tree. The Columbia Falls Fire Department arrived with a lift bucket to assist. FWP officials used a tranquilizer dart to capture the animal and the Columbia Falls Fire Department brought the tranquilized lion to the ground.

Wenum then transported the lion to a holding facility. The lion probably entered Columbia Falls via the nearby Flathead River corridor, ending up high in a tree in the middle of the residential area.

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Girl Recovering From Dog Attack

By GABE WELLS

The rottweiler that mauled a 5-year-old girl Saturday in Bethesda was not on a leash, according to village Police Chief Tim Zdanski, who will interview attack witnesses today.

Zdanski said the Barnesville girl who suffered lacerations and bruising to the head, left shoulder and wrist in the attack Saturday afternoon on Judson Street in Bethesda has been released from the hospital. She initially was taken to Barnesville Hospital before being transported to Children’s Hospital in Columbus.

The dog was taken to New Horizon Animal Hospital before it was euthanized. Zdanski said no one else was injured in the attack, but the dog’s owner also sought treatment at Barnesville Hospital for unspecified reasons.

Zdanski said there is a potential for charges against the dog’s owner, but that determination will be made by a Belmont County prosecutor. He said investigators also are working to determine whether the dog had previously attacked people. Zdanski said he does not believe the rottweiler was on a leash at the time of the attack, though law requires dog owners to “have control” of their animals at all times.

“We have to find out if the dog has been vicious before or if this is the first instance,” Zdanski said. “It (a potential charge) may simply be not having the animal under control. This week we will meet with everyone involved for details. Once we have those facts, we will present them to the prosecutor for evaluation.”

According to Zdanski, the attack was not provoked by the girl. He said he suspects the dog attacked the girl because the animal believed her to be a threat to its owner.

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Hog wild: stampeding sow on the attack

> Posted by Barbara Hijek on April 21, 2009 07:50 AM

It was a hog, it was angry, and Cassandra Frank, 26, hadn’t even had her morning coffee yet, reports the St. Petersburg Times.

The 200-pound sow came charging at her. Frank tried to get out of the way, but the hog barreled into her.

Its white tusks pierced the skin on her left calf, and its weight pushed her against a tree.

The wild hog stampeded on. Someone called 911.

The hog bolted up the street, cut across a grassy lot, went through some more back yards and doubled back on the dead-end street.

Nine men — Robinson, other rescue officials and animal control officers —cornered the hog.

She charged again.

St. Petersburg Fire Rescue Lt. Dan Robinson had hunted wild hogs in north Florida as a boy.

But this 15-year veteran jumped over a six-foot wooden fence to get out of the way — cutting his forearm in the process.

Finally a pole with a lasso was used to capture the hog, which was later euthanized.

After the ordeal, Frank had a tetanus shot — and her coffee.

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Pit Bull Attacks Boy

By 

Jon Lewis 

@ April 21, 2009 6:52 AM Permalink | Comments (13)

(WSB Radio)  A four year old Rockdale County boy is recovering after undergoing surgery following an attack by a pit bull.

Nathaniel Stafford’s stepfather says the 4 year old is an animal lover. 

A friend left the dog, named Chaos, chained in the backyard.  When the boy wandered by, the dog went after him.

“I’ve never seen anything like it in my entire life,” says the stepfather, Brian Caron.  The dog ripped off the boy’s scalp and parts of his face.

“Right now they don’t if they’re going to be able to save his ear or not,” Caron says.  “They said if they can’t save it they’ll put an ear on for him.  Whether it’s fake or not, he’ll still have an ear.”

No charges will be filed against the dog’s owner.  The pit bull will be euthanized.

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Follow the link to see video footage of the coverage.

Woman gives up pork after being attacked by pig in her own yard

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (NBC NEWS) – Cassandra Frank was at home Monday morning when her boyfriend told her he thought he saw a pig on the lawn.

When Frank went outside she was stunned. An enormous sow was staring her down.

“This one was pretty large,” Frank said. “I guess it wanted to be in charge of somebody.”

The 200-pound pig charged her. Frank ran across the yard, but the sow caught up with her.

The animal used its tusks, striking her in the back of the leg. After awhile, the pig ran off.

Frank, who got a cut and bruises during the attack, called 911, worried that the animal would attack children in her neighborhood.

St. Petersburg Fire and Rescue Lt. Dan Robinson along with Pinellas County Animal Control officers, found the pig in a nearby yard.

It was still ornery as the officers approached.

“At one point during the capture, the hog had me running for cover up a six-foot wooden fence,” Robinson said. “They’ll shred you up if you’re not careful.”

Robinson said this was the first time in his 15-year career that he’s responded to a wild pig call.

Frank said her friends gave her a some grief today for running from the pig and seeing authorities and reporters at her home.

“What was going through my mind was ‘get the hell away from it’,” she said. “I’ve never seen a pig that big.”

Animal control officers were able to lasso the sow, which suffered a broken leg during its capture. It was later euthanized.

Frank said she was saddened when she learned of the sow’s death, although she expects to have a phobia of pigs from now on.

“I don’t want to be anywhere around pork,” she said.

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These stories really seem to emerge with disturbing frequency.

Pit bull attacks, bites Woodburn woman in the face

by Stuart Tomlinson, The Oregonian

Friday April 17, 2009, 3:31 PM

A 62-year-old Woodburn woman was bitten in the face and seriously injured today by a pit bull that attacked her while she was walking her dog, police said.

Sgt. Jason Tlusty, a spokesman for the Woodburn Police Department, said the woman was walking her dog in the 2300 block of Miller Farm Road just after noon when her dog was attacked by a pit bull.

When the woman attempted to stop the attack, the pit bull turned on her and bit her in the face.

Tlusty said the wounds were not life-threatening, but they were serious. The woman, whose name was not released, was taken by ambulance to Meridian Park Hospital for treatment.

Police and code enforcement officers for Woodburn located the dog — a gray, juvenile pit bull — and its owner a short time later not far from where the attack occurred.

The 50-year-old owner told officers that the dog had gotten away from her. The dog was taken to the Marion County Animal Shelter where it will stay in quarantine for at least 10 days, said Officer Josh Rains.

After that, a municipal court judge will determine whether the dog’s behavior is classified as a level 3 or level 4 behavior.

Under Woodburn ordinances, the judge can decide to either order that the city euthanize the dog; have it sent to a secure animal shelter at the owner’s expense; or order the dog to be removed from the city limits.

Anyone with information on this case is asked to call Officer Josh Rains of the Woodburn Police Department at 503-982-2345.

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Poor guy was attacked by two Pit Bulls while leaving his apartment. Follow the link for video coverage.

BILLINGS – A Billings man is in the hospital after facing his second pit bull attack in just six weeks. Westley Fuchs, 35, is listed in fair condition at St. Vincent Healthcare.
On Friday afternoon he was attacked by two pit bulls as he tried to leave his basement apartment at 1103 Sunnyside Lane. A neighbor called 9-1-1and soon a whole slew of city officials crowded the small street. 
“This is probably the worst pit bull attack that I’ve seen,” said Animal Control Officer Nancy Lindstrom. “We found two pit bulls loose in the front yard and a third inside the house.”
The dogs were stained with blood from the man they had just attacked, and continued to show signs of aggression.
“They were barking, when we approached they were lunging at the fence, jumping up on it,” Lindstrom said. 
Just to be safe, animal control officers called for backup from the Billings Police Department. If the dogs got too close, officers were prepared to act.
“If the dogs got too close to an officer, we asked that they shoot the dogs because we all want to go home at the end of the day too.”
Police said this was a particularly tense situation as the victim was basically trapped in the basement of the house as the dogs that just attacked him were loose in the front yard.
Officers were finally able to catch the dogs and Fuchs was able to get out of his home and on his way to the hospital. Lindstrom said the owner gave them permission to put the dogs down and they were euthanized Friday afternoon. She wanted to add that not all pit bulls are this aggressive. 
Animal control officers said Justin Lingle, the owner of the dogs, was cited for two counts of dangerous behavior and one count of an animal at large. Each count could come with six months of jail time or a fine of $500. Lingle could also have to pay restitution to the victim.

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Stories like this are so sad.

Woman critically injured in Great Dane attack

 

12:42 PM CDT on Wednesday, April 15, 2009

 

By ASHLEIGH REUTER / The Dallas Morning News 

A 59-year-old woman is hospitalized after she was attacked last weekend by her prize-winning Great Dane in her yard.

Barbara Chambers was in her backyard in the 500 block of Cranbrook Park with her two show dogs – her Great Dane, “Lemonade,” and a poodle – when Lemonade lunged and attacked her late Saturday night, Garland police spokesman Joe Harn said.

Chambers was listed in critical condition at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, the hospital said.

A neighbor witnessed the attack and said there was no apparent reason for the dog’s sudden rage, police said. Police subdued the Great Dane with a Taser, and the dog was later euthanized by Garland Animal Control. The poodle is in quarantine at a veterinary hospital.

According to From the Heart Kennel’s Web site, Lemonade was a prize-winning male brindle show dog.

Diana Oats of Garland Animal Control said Great Danes are tame and that it was unusual, especially for a show dog, to be aggressive.

Jason Chessher, a director of health at Garland Animal Control Director, said there are not many reports of Great Dane attacks, but that that may due to the scarcity of the dogs in the area.

Link

Coyote Still Roaming East End Neighbourhood

Tuesday April 14, 2009

CityNews.ca Staff

A clever coyote continues to prowl an east end neighbourhood, though city officials have been trying for weeks to capture it.

The coyote was first spotted last February when it jumped a fence in the Neville Park Blvd. and Queen St. East area. It attacked and killed a chihuahua, Zoe, after jumping into the yard of a residence backing out onto a ravine.

The pet’s owners said they spotted the predator back in their yard over the weekend, and they’re not the only ones. Residents have been taking photos of and even painting the coyote, who some have taken to calling Neville.

“I would be happy to co-exist with him,” one local artist suggested. “I love having him in my back garden.”Officials warn homeowners who’ve taken a shine to the creature that he does pose a threat, as evidenced by what happened to Zoe. They say the coyote is too tame and must be moved.

Though there was talk that the coyote might have to be euthanized, the city is now reportedly trying to capture the animal in a box trap so it can be moved to a zoo or wildlife refuge.

“We’re focused on the box traps, because the best thing about the box trap is you not only catch it but it’s movable,” noted Rob Andrusevich with the City of Toronto. “That’s our number one option.”

If you see a coyote near your home, give Toronto Animal Services a call at 416-338-7297.

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Here’s a thoughtful defense of the breed. 

Here is what responsible owners have to say!

It is time to ban this breed?

The Province April 14, 2009

There is no doubt there are many wonderful pit bulls in the world. People familiar with the breed often talk about how social they are, that they love to play, and that they make great family pets.

Unfortunately, pit bulls have three strikes against them:

1.When they bite, they don’t easily let go and the damage to their victim is almost always severe.
2. They scare the hell out of people. Yellow Lab walks down the street with its owner and people smile. Pit bull walks down the street with its owner and people cross the street.
3. They don’t attract quality owners. That’s not to say all pit bull owners are questionable pet owners, just that an inordinate number of questionable pet owners are attracted to pit bulls.
On Friday, a pit bull savagely attacked a three-year- old in Surrey. No doubt the family is devastated by the incident. The father of the injured boy has accepted responsibility for not keeping a better eye on his son.”I can’t say it’s the dog’s fault,” the dad told Global TV.

However, in the end, it was the dog that did the biting and it was the dog that was euthanized.
There is no doubt there are many wonderful pit bulls in the world, but the time has come for jurisdictions like British Columbia to ban ownership of this breed for the safety of all.

What do you think? E-mail a brief comment, including your name and town to: provletters@theprovince.com

This is what we think:

NO it is not time to “ban this breed” it is time to stand up and hold the irresponsible OWNERS accountable for thier failer to house, train and socialize their dogs. Banning a breed doesn’t do anything but make the public FEEL safe, do you actually think that people who cant even follow a simple leash law are going to be able to follow a breed ban or the rules that would be implimented with BSL legislation.

WAKE UP, if only all provinces would follow in Alberta’s foot steps, Calgary has some of the best dog legislation in the WORLD and NO breeds are banned !

Proud owner and rescuer of the American Pit Bull Terrier

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Not a Pit Bull this time, but a chow retriever mix. Looks like the boy startled the dog and triggered an attack instinct.

Dog Mauls Boy In One Of County’s ‘Worst Animal Attacks’

Family Dog Bites 7-Year-Old Boy In Face

 

POSTED: 6:51 am EDT April 11, 2009

UPDATED: 9:41 am EDT April 11, 2009

 

NOBLESVILLE, Ind. – A boy was bitten in the face and required several stitches in what the Hamilton County Humane Society called one of the worse animal attacks they have ever seen. 

The attack on Dillon Absher, 7, happened on the same day his family brought the dog, a chow-retriever mix, home from the Fulton County shelter in northern Indiana, 6News’ Renee Jameson reported. 

Dillon’s mother, Kathy Absher, was just a few feet away when the attack happened on the floor of a bedroom on April 3 after the dog licked her son in the face. 

Absher said her son tried to return the affection when the dog attacked. 

“He leaned down to kiss the dog on the forehead and it obviously startled the dog,” she said. “He just attacked his face and split his mouth open.” 

Dillon’s parents rushed him to the hospital. The dog was taken to the Hamilton County Humane Society. 

“It’s important for the public to be aware that any dog can bite … given the right circumstances and environment,” said Rebecca Stevens, of the humane society. 

Animal experts said families planning to adopt a dog should ask about its temperament and make sure the animal is up-to-date on vaccines and has been spayed or neutered. 

“Especially with males, those who are not neutered are almost three times more likely to bite than a male that is neutered,” Stevens said. 

Absher said she will make sure the family’s next dog is suited for children and has been given the proper vaccines. 

“(I will) definitely go to a shelter that does testing on the dogs to make sure how their temperament would be and take our kids and our other dog with us,” she said. 

The dog was placed in quarantine while rabies tests are run. It will likely be euthanized. 

Absher said her son will not need to have plastic surgery, but his wounds will take time to he

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I don’t think any responsible parent keeps an 18 foot python in an unlocked cage when there are children in the house.

Parents charged in python attack on 3-year-old son

Prosecutor cites cage disrepair, risks from snake in charging couple with abuse, neglect

By LAWRENCE MOWER
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

Police on Tuesday arrested the parents of a 3-year-old boy who last month was bitten and squeezed to the point of unconsciousness by an 18-foot python.

Melissa Melendrez, 25, and Anthony Melendrez, 26, are being charged with one count each of felony child abuse resulting in substantial bodily harm and felony child neglect in the Jan. 20 incident in their southwest valley apartment.

The charges stem from concerns authorities had over the cage housing the tiger reticulated python.

According to the couple’s arrest report, the door of the wood and fiberglass cage was being held together by duct tape and had “insufficient” latches with no locks.

At night, Anthony Melendrez would nail shut the door of the cage. Melissa Melendrez worried the snake might escape, according to the report.

The arrests contrast with how authorities dealt with previous animal attack cases, notably two last year in which pit bulls fatally mauled two young children. No one was charged in those cases because prosecutors felt they could not prove that the children were intentionally placed in harm’s way, as the state statutes require.

Clark County District Attorney David Roger said this case is different, partly because it involves a snake.

“We felt that under the circumstances, because the cage was in disrepair and because a python seems to be an inherently dangerous pet, that the abuse and neglect statute applied,” Roger said.

The couple’s youngest son had to be resuscitated by his mother after she stabbed the snake several times with a kitchen knife. The boy has fully recovered, and he and his 5-year-old brother are staying with Patty Robson, their grandmother.

Robson said Tuesday she was upset by the way authorities have handled her daughter’s case versus the cases of others involved in animal attacks. She said her grandson didn’t require any stitches and didn’t sustain internal injuries in the incident.

“There’ve been worse dog bites, and how many people keep a dog properly restrained?” Robson said. “It was a freak accident. It was just one of those things that wasn’t planned.”

The report doesn’t state how the snake, named Eve, escaped the cage. Eve had been in the home for four to six weeks, according to the arrest report.

Robson said the family had owned the snake before having a third party sell it to the Eden Gentlemen’s Club, on Valley View Boulevard near Spring Mountain Road. The person who bought the python then asked the couple to care for it while the club was being remodeled, Robson said.

But Robson said the man wouldn’t return phone calls when the family tried to return the snake.

Calls to the club have not been returned.

Melissa Melendrez told police that on the morning of the attack, she hadn’t touched the cage and didn’t know if it was secure. She went to the bathroom, and when she came out, her 3-year-old son was in the master bedroom. She could only see his feet, because the snake had flipped him upside down while coiling around him, according to the arrest report.

She then ran to the kitchen, grabbed a knife, and began stabbing the snake. Her son had “light brown stuff” coming from his mouth, and his face turned blue, the report states.

The snake then let go and, as Melissa Melendrez was performing CPR, started wrapping itself around her waist, according to the report.

The snake was euthanized because of the knife wounds it sustained. The boy was hospitalized overnight. Melissa Melendrez suffered bite marks on her hands. Anthony Melendrez was not home at the time.

Police noted in the arrest report that the family’s five other snakes, ranging in length from 3 feet to 11 feet, were kept in cages without locks.

Anthony Melendrez told police that once when Eve was shedding, she pressed against her cage and broke the door and window.

Robson praised her daughter’s response to the attack, but she didn’t know how to feel about the charges.

“I can understand why the charges are in place. No, I don’t feel that my daughter did anything wrong.”

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Since dogs do have an innate chase instinct, one should be careful about running near them.

EUSTIS, Fla. – A Lake County woman is recovering on Tuesday after being attacked by two pit bulls. 

Tracy Whigham was jogging near her home in Eustis on Sunday when the dogs attacked. 

Whigham suffered injuries to both of her shoulders and her left leg. 

The owner of the dogs heard the screaming and ran outside to pull the dogs off Whigham. 

Family members said Whigham is lucky to be alive, and the dogs’ owners said they’re sorry for what happened. 

“We didn’t see this coming at all. I mean they’re great, great dogs. They play really good with our daughter. It’s just very surprising,” Jesica Iaquinta said. 

The owners said the pit bulls were chained in the back yard, and they don’t know how the dogs got loose. 

Officials with Animal Control said the dogs are dangerous and will be euthanized.

Never a headline you want to read. Everyone remember that dogs can be dangerous, and take all needed precautions.

 

Springfield 4-year-old suffers severe facial injuries in pit pull attack

Posted by lrivais March 30, 2009 10:14AM

By PAMELA H. METAXAS 
pmetaxas@repub.co 

SPRINGFIELD – A 4-year-old boy was seriously injured Sunday morning when a relative’s pit bull type dog attacked him when he apparently tried to pet it. 

City police were dispatched to 145 Woodside Terrace at 10:58 a.m. Sunday to investigate a report that a dog had bitten a small child in the face. 

Responding officers found the child suffering a deep laceration to the forehead and side of nose. 

The child, who has not been identified, was taken to Baystate Medical Center for treatment. 

Police Sgt. John M. Delaney, executive aide to Police Commissioner William J. Fitchet, said the investigation indicated the victim’s 30-year-old uncle was baby-sitting for the boy while the mother went out. 

Several other children and adults were in the area at the time of the attack. 

The uncle told authorities the boy petted the dog, and for some unknown reason the pit bull, which was named “Gordo,” attacked. 

Delaney said the dog will be killed. 

Police said the child underwent surgery and was expected to be released Monday. 

He is expected to make a full recovery with minimal scarring. 

Barbara L. Hays, executive director of the Thomas J. O’Connor Animal Control and Adoption Center, said the male unneutered dog is about 4 years old and between 80 to 90 pounds. He has been surrendered to the center by his owner, she said. 

He will be held for 10 days for rabies observation and then will be euthanized. 

Hays said the dog is very aggressive and has been placed in a covered cage in the kennel. 

“It’s hard to tell why he is so aggressive, maybe his early upbringing and early lack of socialization. A bit part of the problem that contributes to this aggression is when the dog is not neutered. They are three times more like to bite,” said Hays. 

“People need to keep in mind these animals are not suitable as companions. They are a public safety risk.” she said. 

Hays said pit bull is not a breed but a mixture of certain breeds. She called this dog a pit bull type. 

At times, “We see pit bull puppies taken from their mothers at 2 to 3 weeks and this precludes relationships with other dogs.They don’t understand dog language and normal behavior. It’s a recipe for disaster. They need to be with mom,” said Hays. 

Presently, the center has 61 dogs and 23 of them are pit bull types. 

“Several are being quarantined and the majority of them come here after we picked them up running loose, fortunately in time” before someone was injured, she said.