WATCH YOUR DOGS

Be responsible: Secure your dogs
By Kelvin Wade September 23, 2010

It's been nearly two weeks since two joggers were attacked by three dangerous roaming dogs on Pavilion Drive. Heroic neighbors Gary Paquet and John Bettencourt raced outside and shot the dogs, preventing a tragic situation from turning deadly. The animals have been destroyed. One of the women has been seriously injured. And now we wait to see if the Solano County District Attorney's Office will bring criminal charges against the owners of the dogs.

How many of those reading this have had the experience of encountering aggressive dogs? I suspect many. I once had a huge, angry, black Lab race up to me at Hillview Park near the then-Amy Blanc school. Its apologetic owner came running up to take control of it. My brother Tony had an encounter with an aggressive dog he had to fend off with a stick while out walking.

This isn't 10,000 B.C. when we have to be wary of saber-toothed tigers. We should be able to walk, jog and walk our own pets without fear of attack from roaming dogs.

This incident should serve as a wake-up call to owners of potentially dangerous dogs. This incident has touched off debates on online forums about pit bulls. But all large-breed dog owners should take note. While all dog owners should be responsible, large-breed dog owners incur an added responsibility. All dogs can bite, but I can't recall the last time a beagle or cocker spaniel attacked and almost killed someone. There's a difference between being bitten by a house cat and a mountain lion.

And I don't buy the idea that people don't know their dog can be dangerous. Growing up, my brothers and I got a German shepherd puppy we named Coco from our uncle in Hayward. Coco's mother was our uncle's dog, Ingrid, a dog we could never have contact with because she didn't like strangers. Coco's father was our uncle's neighbor's dog. This was a huge German shepherd named Cocaine who we were terrified of.

It's not surprising that Coco inherited his parents' temperament. He was fine with us but strangers had to steer clear. We had double gates leading to our backyard where he stayed. We put up 'Beware of Dog' signs. Once, our dad took Coco for a walk and stopped to chat with a neighbor. In an instant, Coco had the neighbor's shirttail in his mouth. Our mother eventually found Coco another home because she was fearful of what might happen if he got out.

In retrospect, we shouldn't have kept him that long.

Dogs do break out. Owners can be responsible and still have an animal that gets loose. Dogs can burrow out, break chains, leap fences and make other unexpected getaways. But you're still responsible for what that animal does.

While owners of vicious dogs can and certainly should be sued, unfortunately, unless there's gross negligence on the part of the owner, the penalties in these cases are not severe. California statute and local ordinance provides that the owner of a vicious dog can be barred from owning another dog for a period of three years. Three years? If your dog mauls someone, you shouldn't be allowed to own a dog again.

So until people decide not to own dangerous animals, and/or do a better job of securing them, residents will have to continue to be vigilant, carry sticks and pepper spray. And hope there are good men like Paquet and Bettencourt nearby.

Funds are being raised for Janelle Dalson, the jogger who was seriously injured in the attack. Please make checks payable to Janelle Dalson, c/o Susan Erich, 657 Renaissance Ave., Fairfield, CA 94534. Peace.

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ADDITIONAL NOTES: Just a nightmarish case. The way Gary Paquet describes the scene is just horrible. No one should have to go through this. It's not the wild. Someone jogging in a neighborhood shouldn't find herself in the hospital due to someone's roving dangerous animals. We'll see what the District Attorney's office is going to do with the owners of these dogs.

Before we got our Beagles, we looked at a lot of breeds. I'm fond of big dogs. I had a Rottweiler mix and I just loved that dog. My former neighbors had a Great Dane named Goliath that I loved. That dog would gallop up to me, put its front paws on my shoulders and stare me in the face. If I had my way, I'd have a Presa Canario. Gorgeous breed of dog. (Of course, they have a reputation tainted by the awful incident in San Francisco years ago when a woman was killed by two Presa Canarios.) So when we were looking at dogs, we found a beautiful pitbull named Roxy at the SPCA. But we were renting back then and knew that many people are wary of renting to people with pitbulls. So we settled on the Beagle brothers and the rest is history. But my point is, if you're going to take on the responsibility of a large breed dog, maybe have the dog professionally trained and make sure you can secure that animal.

As I said in the column, the German Shepherd me and my brothers had growing up, would've, no doubt, attacked someone if he'd gotten out. If you weren't family, you weren't welcome in Coco's world. If you have a dangerous dog, think twice about whether its a good idea to keep that animal.

Unfortunately, irresponsible owners seem drawn to the biggest, most game breeds. Makes me want to slip my .380 in my pocket when I'm out walking. Getting dinged for the concealed weapon beats ending up in the hospital. If these attacks keep happening, more people are going to make that calculation.