By Robert Williams

Editor

Jane Young was outside her Frazee home weeding her flowers around 8 p.m., when a neighboring pitbull got loose, charged, and attacked her.

“There’s no question he’s dangerous,” Young said.

Minnesota statute define aggressive dogs in two terms:

Potentially dangerous dog: A dog that bites or chases a person or animal without provocation, or has a history of unprovoked attacks. 

Dangerous dog: A dog that has inflicted substantial bodily harm on a person without provocation, or is a potentially dangerous dog that aggressively bites or attacks people or animals.

The dog in question has been determined to be the latter.

The Youngs had never seen the dog loose prior to this incident. Jane did have a previous run-in with the dog while it was chained up in its yard about a month prior. 

During the most recent incident, Jane said she looked up from her weeding and the dog was immediately on her.

“It got me and thank goodness for my glasses,” Young said. 

She suffered scratches and a black eye, a puncture, and injuries to her arm that required seven stitches and six in one hand. Jane was spared further injury by wearing gloves while she was weeding that protected her.

A neighbor heard her screaming and distracted the dog to stop the attack, while a passing driver stopped to check on Jane’s condition.

“I was scared to go back to the house; I thought he’d get me again, so I jumped in her car,” Young said. 

They went around the corner to speak to the dog’s owner and he was unaware the dog was loose and was apologetic.

“He was looking around and said it was tied up and that it had slipped its collar,” said Young. “He went inside and asked the other guy, ‘Where is the dog?’ They had no idea where the dog was.”

Jane was taken to the hospital and aside from treatment, faced other questions about the incident regarding who to bill the cost of the stitches and examination to, as normally, that would be billed to the homeowner’s insurance.

Being that the dog came from a rental property, the Youngs had no recourse, but to accept the bill themselves.

The first visit that involved stitching cost $2,000 and she has made two more hospital visits since.

“And then you’re scarred for life,” she said. “Now there is that fear. It’s hard for me to go outside now.”

While loose dogs are a relatively common occurrence in Frazee, dangerous dog situations are rather rare. This is the second dangerous dog incident since Trieglaff has been Chief of Police (2016).

Young spoke with a police officer the night of the incident and to Chief Trieglaff prior to and during the last meeting of the city council on Wednesday Aug. 14.

“I think we have to look at something more serious for these people bringing in pitbulls; sure, a lab could have done it but I don’t think it would attack the way this one did,” said Young.

The pitbull was not registered with the city. It was, however, current on its rabies shot.

Young and Trieglaff discussed a properly leashed dog and how it applies to city enforcement.

“If they’re in their yard it can be considered leashed on their own private property with an electric fence,” Trieglaff said. “If they’re on the street, that’s different. They’re not on their private property, so then, they are not leashed.”

Trieflaff noted his department deals with a couple to several loose dog incidents every month and it is imperative that residents report the dogs to police.

“If we don’t know about it, we can’t do anything about it,” he said. “We can’t police every situation; if it’s the same dog, over and over, absolutely, we will deal with it.” 

Interim Mayor Mike Sharp stated he looked into changing enforcement based on dog breeds five to six years ago.

“I think it’s time to revisit and maybe there is something we can do,” Sharp said. 

Sharp also related a similar experience from years ago when he was afraid to let his kids out of the house due to an aggressive dog.

“I had to have a shotgun…just kind of ready to go just in case they bolt out and attack my kids,” he said. “I’m sorry you have to go through this.”

Young also related her concerns about the frequency of visits to her home from her 2-year-old granddaughter.

“I’m pretty sure she would have been killed,” she said.

Young wants to see effective changes made to the city ordinance with more responsibility put on the dog owner, even more so in a rental situation.

“I would like to see change with the city ordinance,” she said. “Right now even after a dog bite they will not take the dog for safety and for the concern of rabies. I think that is not right. They said it’s because it had a vaccine tag on its collar. I’m not sure if someone should be trusted who does not keep his dog confined, nor has it registered with the city. They had to trust that he would not get rid of the dog until they checked with the vet’s office the next day.”

There is nothing in the Frazee city ordinance that allows for an immediate seizure of a dog, Trieglaff said.

“We will be following up on this,” Mayor Sharp said. “There are some things maybe we need to look at in the city to address this. We can’t have this.”

Young also encouraged residents to report loose dogs before another attack occurs.

“I think there is a difference between a dog attack and a dog bite,” Young said. “We’ve always had dogs and I had a daycare for 40 years. I always had dogs with them. I do agree with what Tyler said last week; we do have to have phone calls. I think that is something that should change also. People have to start calling.”

The dog has been returned to its owner with restrictions.