Wicomico County woman fights to keep her dog alive
A Wicomico County woman is now fighting to keep her dog alive because the county had planned to euthanize it.
Dawn O’Connell of Parsonsburg said her dog Bruiser broke out of his muzzle last week and attacked another one of her dogs, Shiloh.
Police were already at the house responding to a domestic dispute and called animal control after seeing what they identified as dog blood on the ground.
Shiloh was taken to animal E.R., but it wasn’t until this week the county came for Bruiser.
“The dogs are going off I come out and here’s animal control here, Allison Marine from the health department, Aaron the director for animal control was here telling me I had to turn him over they were deeming him dangerous,” O’Connell said.
The county took Bruiser away leaving O’Connell with this letter saying Bruiser was deemed a dangerous dog and would be quarantined pending euthanization.
That’s when O’Connell enlisted the help of Lenore Bennett, a local expert when it comes to violent canines.
Bennett has taken numerous classes on working with violent dogs and has worked extensively with the Worcester County Humane Society.
Bennett says according to county code the county had no right to even deem the dog dangerous, let alone sentence him to death.
Chapter 133 Section 7 reading no dog may be declared dangerous if the injury or damage sustained by another domestic animal occurred while on the premises occupied by the owner or keep of the animal.
“It’s sad that the county may have not done things properly in this case, okay, but to complicate it shes going to have to pay for it, the dogs going to have to possibly pay for with his life, she’s going to have to pay for the boarding fee,” Bennett said.
That boarding fee $20 a day.
O’Connell says she’ll pay it and that she has appealed the decision to the county.
The county says right now they won’t comment on the story until the appeal hearing is held.
The county says they won’t comment on the story until the appeal hearing is held.
Bruiser’s euthanization is being held off pending the outcome of the hearing.
