The local health committee of Eastern Iceland had ordered for a small breed dog to be put down after he had attacked and bitten four people. The decision was overturned by the Environmental- and Natural Resources complaints board (ENR)on the basis that the party requesting the dog to be put down was not affected by its attacks.
As ruv.is reports, the dog has bitten four persons or a person’s clothes between September 2011 and July 2013. None of the four people attacked laid down charges against the dog, but a woman who was bitten while the dog was tied to a lamppost outside of a convenience store, reported the incident to the police.
An animal inspector in the municipality of Fjarðarbyggð was notified of the other three incidents. Following a visit to the dog’s home by the inspector, he concluded the dog should be put down in July of last year. The owner pleaded for the dog to be neutered and re-evaluated six months later as suggested by a dog trainer. The health committee decided the dog should be put down, but the owner opposed its decision and got full support from the ENR complaints board.
According to law, an animal can only be put down if requested by a person affected by the dog’s aggression or an animal inspector. The inspector, in this case, did not request for the dog to be put down as his job was only to inspect the dog, not to make a decision on behalf of the committee. With the board and the committee in a disagreement, the life or death of an angry tiny dog in Neskaupsstaður is now in the hands of the municipality’s animal inspector.
A little monster spared by red tape or a recovering pet after a treatment by a dog trainer?
The local health committee of Eastern Iceland had ordered for a small breed dog to be put down after he had attacked and bitten four people. The decision was overturned by the Environmental- and Natural Resources complaints board (ENR)on the basis that the party requesting the dog to be put down was not affected by its attacks.
As ruv.is reports, the dog has bitten four persons or a person’s clothes between September 2011 and July 2013. None of the four people attacked laid down charges against the dog, but a woman who was bitten while the dog was tied to a lamppost outside of a convenience store, reported the incident to the police.
An animal inspector in the municipality of Fjarðarbyggð was notified of the other three incidents. Following a visit to the dog’s home by the inspector, he concluded the dog should be put down in July of last year. The owner pleaded for the dog to be neutered and re-evaluated six months later as suggested by a dog trainer. The health committee decided the dog should be put down, but the owner opposed its decision and got full support from the ENR complaints board.
According to law, an animal can only be put down if requested by a person affected by the dog’s aggression or an animal inspector. The inspector, in this case, did not request for the dog to be put down as his job was only to inspect the dog, not to make a decision on behalf of the committee. With the board and the committee in a disagreement, the life or death of an angry tiny dog in Neskaupsstaður is now in the hands of the municipality’s animal inspector.
