A Christmas Tale
Christmas was going swimmingly until we decided to head out with the cousins and mother-in-law to Fort Greene Park around midday to get some air. We were at the top of the hill near the monument with three of the kids when we heard some barking and screaming. We ran down the hill towards the…
Christmas was going swimmingly until we decided to head out with the cousins and mother-in-law to Fort Greene Park around midday to get some air. We were at the top of the hill near the monument with three of the kids when we heard some barking and screaming. We ran down the hill towards the commotion, picking up a stick along the way. Turns out a man we’d seen earlier sitting on one of the tennis nets using the courts as his personal dog run for his two 100-pound pit bulls had decided to keep one of them off the leash as he walked through the park. Passing our four-year-old niece, mother-in-law and her Brittany Spaniel who were sitting on the bench near the big rock, one of the pits, the female off-the-leash one, went straight for the spaniel’s neck. After we all jumped into the fray and managed to pry the pitbull off the spaniel’s neck, the unapologetic owner took off towards the Willoughby exit. We followed while calling 911. The owner eventually got the both dogs on a leash. When we caught up and told him to wait there while the police came, he proceeded to take both dogs off the leash again and took off over the hill towards Myrtle Avenue. One dog—the one that had attacked—followed him; the other seemed lost and confused and lingered near the Willoughby entrance until the cops came a good 10-12 minutes later. The one moment of comic relief came when the cops were whistling through their PA system to try to keep the dog around the car until the van could show up to take the dog to the pound. We showed the cops these photos of the owner and they said it was not their job to go after him; instead, they said, Animal Control has their own cops that had to do it. When we got back to the house later and called 311, however, they said Animal Control would only arrest an owner whose dog had bitten a person. So now there’s an irresponsible owner who lets his pit bull roam free and no branch of law enforcement will track him down. That makes a lot of sense. Ideas?
More photos on the jump…
The other dog is up for adoption at NYCCACC:
http://nycacc.org/adoptionsearch.htm
She’s at the Brooklyn location and they call her Kim.
I feel so bad for her, since none of this is her fault. I hope someone that can care for her adopts her before she is euthanized.
I’m a little late to the party too, however as the owner of a large dog who doesn’t always take kindly to other dogs on the street I have to say, if this dog was out to actually *hurt* the other dog, the whole scenario would have been over in the blink of an eye and it wouldn’t have ended well.
That being said, dog-directed aggression and people-directed aggression are COMPLETELY different. My dog is the image of family dog. She has never even gives a cross *look* to a person. *Any* person. But I am very careful with her on the street with other dogs. She has actually grabbed a smaller dog and pinned it to the ground. If she was vicious and wanted to hurt the dog, shes 160lbs, the dog would be hurt. She has some bad manners and i have been working patiently for years to soften her brattiness. I call it “brattiness” because shes never actually hurt another dog. But the owners freak out so I am super diligent.
And btw, she HAS gotten better. I still would never trust her off leash or in a dog run but shes much much better than when I rescued her.
So this mess about “all (insert bad dog of the year) should be put down” is absolute nonsense.
Mr. B sorry about the Brittany. I hope its ok.
We may never know this fellow’s true back story, or whether the dog that went for the spaniel was typically vicious. But one part of this story speaks volumes — in order to escape potential responsibility (which turned out to be negligible anyway) the guy actually abandoned one of the dogs. Whether it was because of mental illness or just callousness, this person should NOT BE A DOG OWNER. (Leading one to not unreasonably speculate that the dogs were not well cared for and therefore more likely to be dangerous.)
Regarding off-leash allowances, this troubling story has no relevance. This guy was clearly breaking the rules (off-leash is NEVER allowed on footpaths). He would have been doing this even if there was no off-leash policy. BTW, there’s a guy in my neighborhood who actually walks around on the sidewalk with a couple of pit pulls off leash. He seems to have them under control (when he’s paying attention) but I feel pretty uncomfortable walking my Napoleonic-complex 30-pounder anywhere near them.
The ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement has this in their FAQs:
“Q: My neighbor does not keep his dog restrained. His dog attacked my dog while we were out for a walk. Can he be arrested for animal cruelty or assault?
A: Under New York State law, the neighbor cannot be arrested for animal cruelty, animal fighting, or assault unless he or she instigated, ordered, or provoked the attack. In cases where this occurs, contact the NYPD to make a report.
Nevertheless, it is a violation of the New York City Health Code for an owner to allow his or her dog to be off-leash in a public place. When an unrestrained dog attacks another animal, the owner of the injured animal should contact the New York City Health Department. The Health Department is responsible for enforcing the provisions of the Health Code, which include “leash laws” and the regulation and/or management of “dangerous dogs.” In addition, all animal bites must be reported to the Health Department at 311.”
And, no, those dogs in the photos are not Pit Bulls.
My pitbull is a loving and playful goofball. I got a pit because a friend of mine has one and she is the most mellow and loving dog I have ever met. I also wanted to “rescue” a dog that truly needed rescuing; what has happened to pit bulls, and the number of them put to sleep every single day, breaks my heart. In total contravention of pit bull lore, when my pit did get in a fight with another dog (which was obviously my fault, not hers), she had the dog by the neck for a good few (terrifying) minutes. When we separated them, there was not a single mark on the other dog. Pit bulls can learn about bite threshold too. She has never ever displayed any agression to our cats. Squirrels are another matter. As a responsible owner, I do not let her off leash around dogs she doesn’t know, and I constantly monitor her behaviour. Traditionalalmond, this is responsible behaviour for ALL dog owners, whether they own a “yippy” terrier, or a larger, more powerful dog. Small dog owners need to prevent their dogs from issuing threats and challenges as well as we large dog owners.
totally late to the party. just read this:
owning a pit bull should be illegal. they are dangerous animals. they appeal to the most violent and anti-social fringe elements of our society. these people could buy a Lab and train it to be vicious, but it would be more work. pit bulls are born vicious.
oh really, you dont say. well hide your wallet cuz i love my pitbull and he is fer SURE not mine to be violent and i far from an anti social fringe element of society (well hmm i dont know ha).
sorry mr. b about the incident. that does suck.
i am a firm firm believer that dogs should be on leashes in cities and all public space at all times, unless it’s a partitioned dog run.
i’ve posted on this site before the few run ins ive had with stupid dog owners who do not keep their dogs on their leash. i dont care how nice and friendly your dog is, if it runs up to a dog and it’s not on a leash there is potential for damage to either and both dogs.
if i had to do it over, i do not think i would pick a pitbull as a pet again because of the bad rep they get. but i have the dog i have now and he’s my best friend. you crazies who think he should be put down and me in jail because of your ‘ghetto fantasized’ notions of what pitbulls and their owners are like need to just step off and go coddle muffy and jizzabell.
*rob*
As usual this is getting ridiculous. This thread went in directions it never should have. First of all I am sorry to hear your dog was attacked. The responsibility is of the owner who knows his dog is capable of attacking. The dog is doing what it’s been trained to do or instinctively knows to do.
That said: my dog was attacked by a pit who wa prompted by hi owner to “get her”. we were just walking through the park, during off leash hours. I also called the police. hen they came I was told that because my dog is considered property there was nothing they could do. Had the dog bitten me or gone after me then I could file a harrassment charge against the owner. The police tried to get me to change my story to say that the dog went after me but I had a hard time lying. Eventually I said the dag ran toward me and I wa afraid. It was only then did they write something about harrassment but not to the owner of the other dog because he was long gone…
It is scarey and infuriating to see your dog in the mouth of another dog and the owner acting like it’s your dogs fault. You would hope those owners who have dogs that they know are capable of attacking other dogs would be more responsible in their hadnling of their dogs.
Again I’m sorry your dog was attacked.
Amen, folledontjesuis. Really well said.
Frankly, the notion that the black guy with the two dogs story becomes, immediately, a story about various “identities” is really fascinating–First, the man with the dog–is he homeless or a homeowner? Or, to go back to the typical Brownstoner dichotomy: owner/renter? Then, his mental status: sane/crazy? And let’s not forget the dogs: Pit Bulls/other breeds?
Of course, race is relevant, because in a story about a “gentrifying” neighborhood full of anxious, class-climbing people with rapidly declining in value Brownstones that they bought hoping that most of the blacks in the neighborhood would leave sooner rather than later, or, at the very least, magically and instantly transform into people who share their values to a “T,”–well-nearly every story takes on elements of this race/class/property struggle.
The insistent denial of this, and the desire to say some “people” are just “bad” often fuels discussions on this board, which is why it is such a parody of itself.
Heather’s simple initial comment put it best–and the point is that this kind of instant, hateful judgment is what the “Brownstoner” zeitgeist is all too often about. Please, people, try to see the humor and absurdity in your contradictory desires for upward mobility in neighborhoods full of–yes–projects–and gasp–homeless people.
And if you can’t see the humor, or the humanity–or realize that these “Brownstone” neighborhoods were not empty when you came–
Then please–move to Scarsdale. Sooner rather than later.