Submitted to Carson Now
Struggling to breathe, Louie, a large breed golden retriever-mix, was ambushed by and bitten in the face by a dangerous dog with such force that it broke part of his lower jaw and left his nose hanging by only skin and one eye partially bulging out of its socket. The attack left Louie, who lives with his owner in a small North Carolina town, permanently disfigured and traumatized.
It is one of a growing number of incidents of dogs biting or attacking other dogs, injuring or killing them in attacks in communities throughout the nation every year.
The problem of dangerous dogs attacking or killing other dogs is also a threat to dog owners in Lyon County. With a growing population and a limited budget, animal control services currently have 3 officers to help catch at-large or stray dogs and to respond to complaints about dangerous dogs in the county.
Many calls to Lyon County Animal Services’ phone number are not answered, instead going to voice mail, due to staffing shortages. Hours of operation for dispatch are from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Monday through Saturday.
Based in Silver Springs, the 3 officers respond to calls in a territory of just over 2,000 square-miles. Due to limited staffing and the large geographical area, animal services personnel often must travel long distances to respond to calls for assistance in cases when a vicious dog is attacking another dog.
In the case of a dog mauling another dog, a slow response to an active situation can allow the offending dog to evade capture. As a remedy, Josh Foli, Lyon County Comptroller, recommends citizens call 911 instead of animal services in order to get the quickest response in such an emergency situation.
“The animal services officer will normally respond to the location as soon as possible to capture the dog, assist the citizen and injured animal, interview witnesses, complete a report and issue a citation,” he said.
Foli said the animal services officer uses their best judgement as to how and when to respond to an incident. “The sheriff’s office may also be called in to assist, as needed,” he added.
The county has an animal services advisory board, which is a board made up of citizens. The group is designed to allow residents to share their concerns about animal control related issues, and to act as an intermediary between citizens and county commissioners.
The various citizen advisory boards give recommendations and data to the Lyon County Commission and to other appointed county commissions and boards.
Part of an advisory board’s purpose, according to the county website, lyon-county.org, is to help citizens get information about issues related to the particular group.
A list of citizen’s advisory boards on the site, however, does not include any mention of the animal services advisory board.
Code eneforcement
Lyon County Animal Services, like animal control agencies throughout the state, enforces county codes and regulations pertaining to animals, and also adheres to Nevada Revised Statutes. Animal services officers in the county issue misdemeanor citations to individuals who violate codes pertaining to animals, and have the authority to have animals euthanized if they are deemed dangerous or vicious and present a threat to public safety, as determined by the agency.
A dog is labeled dangerous or vicious, according to Lyon County code Title 7, Chapter 1, if the animal has bitten, attempted to bite, injured or tried to injure a person or animal. Such aggression can either have been witnessed by the animal’s owner or if the owner has been alerted about his animal’s dangerous nature by others.
Once aware of the animal’s dangerous or vicious nature, the code states the owner has the responsibility to keep the animal under their control on their property unless the animal is muzzled, leashed and adequately controlled by an adult.
Some Lyon County residents ignore these requirements, even when fully aware that their dog is dangerous. Such dogs, even when leashed, can be observed being walked by an adult that is not capable of keeping the dog under control. Dangerous dogs can also sometimes be seen left in the care of a child who is unable to control the animal. Either scenario can result in a dangerous dog attacking or biting a mild-mannered dog, resulting in its injury or death.
Even well-intentioned dog owners can put other people’s dogs at risk after high winds destroy or damage fences. Dangerous or vicious dogs can run freely through both neighborhoods and open spaces when fences are left in disrepair.
It is common to see dilapidated fences while driving through many of the residential areas in the county.
Because of negligence by some dog owners, many Lyon County residents refuse to walk their dogs in residential neighborhoods to avoid an attack by a dangerous dog. Because of a lack of walking trails in some communities, residents sometimes walk their dogs in wilderness areas including near the Walker or Carson Rivers. There are inherent dangers to walking a dog in such areas as an attack by a coyote or mountain lion can prove fatal for a family dog.
A dangerous dog attack or bite on a small breed such as a beagle, which on average weighs 20-30 pounds, can severely injure or even kill the dog. Even more at risk than small-breed dogs are toy breeds such as the Maltese, Pomeranian and Chihuahua, which are increasingly popular.
The American Kennel Club states that a purebred Chihuahua weighs on average only 6 pounds. In addition, toy and small-breed dogs are also easier prey for avian predators than are large or medium-sized breeds.
Northern Nevada is home to golden eagles, and hawks such as the Cooper’s hawk and the common nighthawk.
The problem of dogs biting and attacking other dogs is seen in communities throughout the Silver State and nationwide.
Washoe County has more animal control officers because of its population
In Washoe County, there are 14 to 16 animal control officers on staff with a day and night shift for animal services, according to Quinn Sweet, outreach program coordinator for Washoe County Animal Services.
The agency has a minimum of 3 officers on duty, 24 hours a day to respond to calls. Year-round, including holidays, Washoe County has animal services officers available, Sweet said. The county has an area exceeding 6,300 square miles.
In contrast to Lyon County, Washoe has more than three times the number of animal control officers employed. Lyon County’s population as of the 2020 census was nearly 60,000, while Washoe’s population exceeded 486,000.
Despite the much larger population, animal control officers in Washoe County are, more often than not, able to arrive at a veterinary clinic in response to a call to animal services dispatch reporting that a dog was bitten by another dog and is being rushed to a vet for treatment of injuries, Sweet said.
“We don’t want to risk the dog passing away,” she said.
In Lyon County, animal services officers at times have not arrived at local veterinary clinics after a dog has been attacked and injured by a dangerous dog and is transported to a veterinarian for treatment. Sometimes, the agency is alerted to the incident by phone call to dispatch with the call going to voicemail.
Calls made to 911 in Washoe County about a dog biting or ambushing another dog are forwarded to animal services. If legally necessary, a police officer is dispatched to the scene, Sweet said.
The county has an animal services dispatch phone number staffed seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. that a resident can use to report a dangerous dog attacking another dog.
Washoe County residents are encouraged by dispatch to dial 911 outside of these hours in an emergency situation.
State law regarding dangerous dogs
State law has a clear definition of what is considered a “dangerous dog,” and makes a distinction between what is considered a dangerous dog and a “vicious dog.”
Nevada Revised Statute 202.500 defines, in part, a dangerous dog as one that behaves menacingly to a degree that would cause a reasonable person to defend himself against substantial bodily harm at the time when the dog is off the premises of its owner or keeper or is not confined to a cage or a vehicle. In order to be deemed dangerous, the statute requires that the dog must have acted in such a manner, without having been provoked, on two separate occasions in an 18-month period.
The statute states that “provoked” means the dog was tormented or subjected to pain.
It is stated further in NRS 202.500 that a dangerous dog can be labeled a vicious dog if it has killed or caused substantial bodily harm to a human with having been provoked, or if, after the owner is made aware by law enforcement that the dog is dangerous, it continues to behave in a menacing manner.
Nevada law criminalizes conduct (the owners’ conduct and/or negligence in cases pertaining to animals) because of the risk to public safety.
In criminal law, negligence is, in essence, neglect which is below standards of behavior set by law to protect others from harm.
Nevada Revised Statute 202.500 also has clearly defined possible consequences for offenders that ignore the law and knowingly allow or enable a known vicious dog to attack a human. The statute allows that the owner or keeper of a dog deemed vicious can be charged with a felony if the dog attacks and causes substantial bodily harm to a human.
In addition the dog may be ordered euthanized with or without felony charges being placed after such an attack as provided by NRS subsection 193.130.
Dog deterrents available
The effectiveness of commonly used deterrents to dog attacks varies. Pepper spray, mostly sold for personal defense, is legal to have in your possession in both Nevada and in Lyon County. The spray causes burning of the mucous membranes and eyes when sprayed on an animal.
The spray is not a foolproof method of halting a dog ambush, according to uslawshield.com, because of the difficulty of targeting the spray at the attacking dog while it is moving around.
Dog pepper spray can also be used to try to prevent a dog attack. The author of the website K-9 of Mine.com, described using dog pepper spray against stray dogs threatening her while she was in Mexico, and noted that spray from the cannister also affected her adversely. She said the overspray caused her eyes and nose to burn and that the spray only reached 5 feet – making it ineffective while trying to keep a safe distance from the menacing dogs.
Other suggestions to ward off an attack from a dangerous or vicious dog include the use of air horns, stun batons, baseball bats and even walking sticks.
A Lyon County resident who takes their dog for a walk and encounters a dangerous or vicious dog that attacks their pet or their person is exempt from prosecution if they kill the attacking animal and their defensive measure fits in the criteria set in county code. (Title 7, Chapter 1).
Title 7, Chapter 1, states, in part, that it is legal to kill any animal that is known to possess dangerous or vicious tendencies found running at large when it is reasonably necessary to protect the individual’s safety or the safety of other people or animals in the vicinity.
Neutering help to calm dogs
In many cases, measures can be taken to prevent dogs from becoming aggressive or dangerous in the first place. Most veterinarians recommend that dogs get spayed and neutered at an appropriate age according to their breed. In male dogs, neutering helps to calm them down and improve their disposition.
Dogs that are unneutered are nearly 3 times more likely to bite than a neutered dog, according to U.S. dog bite statistics compiled by the Centers for Disease Control.
There are many reasons dogs attack other dogs or people. Dogs that are poorly socialized are much more likely to bite than dogs that are kept as family pets and interact with members of the household, according to most studies on dog behavior.
Contributing factors to dogs being aggressive:
— Dogs which live on their owner’s property tethered or spend their lives chained up are more likely to bite, according to uslawshield.com. Either practice contributes to aggressive behavior by activating the animals’ fight or flight impulse, reports the website.
— The website uslawshield.com also states that a dog or person is more likely to be bit by an at-large random dog, than one that is kept in a residence as a family pet.
— In a 2020 report, the Centers for Disease Control concluded that chained and tethered dogs are 2.8 times more likely to bite or attack.
While social media cannot prevent dog attacks on other dogs or against people, it often helps reunite lost pets with their owners. Websites such as Facebook-based Dayton Peeps, and Lost and Found Pets Dayton NV, can help pet owners find their lost dogs and cats. Other useful sites are Lost/Found Pets in the Carson City and Dayton area, and Silver Springs NV Lost and Found Pets.
The sites can also help animal control officers locate at-large dogs when citizens post where the canine was spotted.
Attacks on humans rising nationwide
The problem with aggressive dogs is not limited to that of dog-bites-dog. Humans can also be victims of attacks. Nationally, the issue of at-large, vicious dogs biting people is escalating. Between 1993–2008, dog-related hospital stays increased by 86 percent, according to dogsbite.org.
A Houston man was killed Feb. 1, after he tried to protect his dog from an attack by his neighbor’s dogs that had escaped their yard and attacked his dog. When police arrived, the attacking dogs tried to attack an officer and continued to tear into the deceased man’s body.
The victim’s dog had to be euthanized after the attack, according to the story, published Feb.3 on katv.com.
The following statistics provide details about dog attacks on humans:
There are about 4.5 million dog bites on humans each year, according to a study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Out of those, approximately 800,000 of the resulting injuries require medical treatment of some type, according to the website topdogtips.com, quoting data from the CDC study.
A total of 473 Americans died from dog bites between 2005 and 2017, the study indicated.
There were 36 dog bite-related fatalities in the U.S. in 2018, according to injuryclaimcoach.com.
In Nevada, if the perpetrating dog causes substantial bodily harm in an attack on a human after it is known to be vicious, the pet’s owner can be charged with a felony. A judge can also order the vicious dog to be humanely destroyed.
Despite this, it was reported in 2018 by dogsbite.org, that only 6 percent of fatal attacks on humans by dogs in the nation resulted in criminal charges described as meaningful, which represented a downward trend of prosecution from years prior.
Only 2 of the dog attacks that resulted in a fatality brought significant criminal charges, down from the 13-year average of 21.
The 2 fatal attacks in 2018 took place in Missouri and Kentucky, according to dogsbite.org.
The hand is the most vulnerable spot for a human to be bitten by a dog, according to helpinginjured.com. Other vulnerable places are the face, lower extremities and upper extremities, the site explains.
About 70 percent of dog bites are to a victim’s extremities, the site reports.
Described by those who knew him as generous and loving, Jamie Burnam, 49, was delivering packages for Amazon, when he was killed by a dog in the front yard of a home where he was trying to leave a package in Excelsior, Missouri. The attack happened last October.
The attack set a record for the year as the 58th U.S. and Canadian dog attack fatality surpassing the previous U.S. high of 56 dog attack deaths in a year.
Being a postal carrier also poses a risk of death or injury from untethered dogs. Dog attacks on mail carriers have nearly doubled since 2004, according to U.S. Postal Service data. The number rose from 3,268 to more than 5,400 in 2021.
During that year, Cleveland, Ohio was the city with the most dog attacks on postal carriers, followed by Houston, Texas, and Kansas City, Missouri.
Children are frequently targeted by dangerous or vicious dogs, and are more likely to be bitten in the face, according to helpinginjured.com.
In October 2021, a 7-year-old in Oklahoma wandered from his home near the town of Kiefer, and was killed by his family’s pet dog that was running loose. The grandmother owned the pet and had reportedly adopted the dog from an animal shelter 3 weeks prior to the attack. It was stated the dog showed no aggression before the attack, according to dogsbite.org.
