The East Bethel City Council on April 13 unanimously declared a dog potentially dangerous after hearing testimony about a February incident in which the dog was reported to have fatally injured a neighbor’s cat.
City Administrator Matt Look said the hearing request stemmed from a Feb. 23 dog attack report from the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office. According to that report, a pit bull-mastiff named Tucker approached and lethally injured a domestic cat belonging to resident Brenda Burke.
Look said law enforcement investigates such cases before the complaining party decides whether to pursue a dangerous dog hearing.
If the council determines that a potentially dangerous dog later meets the qualifications of a dangerous dog, several options are available, Look said, including euthanasia. If the owner is allowed to keep the dog, restrictions can be imposed, including liability insurance, proper enclosures and updated rabies vaccination.
Burke addressed the council and became emotional as she described the loss of her cat, Mickey. She said no one saw Tucker attack the cat, but one witness saw the dog either near the cat or with the cat in its mouth.
“When I picked Mickey up off the ground, Tucker charged at me to get to my cat with the blood on his face,” Burke said.
Burke said her neighbor had told her Tucker had killed rabbits in the yard, but that she had never believed the dog would kill a cat.
“I lost my best friend,” Burke said. “I lost my world that day.”
Council Member Brian Mundle, referring to a neighbor’s allegation that multiple dogs owned by Perry had been left outside, asked whether she had previously called the sheriff’s office. She said she had called police the last time the dogs were out, but that it had been a while.
Council Member Suzanne Erkel asked Burke whether she wanted compensation for the veterinary bill. Burke said she had already been reimbursed for the cremation. As Erkel offered condolences, both residents said Mickey had been a therapy animal.
Erkel said the dog should be declared potentially dangerous because it was the first time the animal had come before the council. She added that if the dog came before the council again, it would be classified as dangerous.
The council then approved Erkel’s motion to impose restrictions on the dog. According to the meeting packet, those include requiring the owner to provide a proper enclosure, post clearly visible warning signs and pay the related fee, keep the dog muzzled and leashed by a person 18 or older when outside the enclosure, register the dog with the city within two weeks, maintain a lifetime license and current rabies vaccination, and allow a compliance inspection of the property within two weeks.
Miller said he supported the restrictions as long as they were fully enforced.
Mundle said he hoped the action would offer some measure of help after the loss of Mickey.
“No one likes to lose a pet, especially in these circumstances,” Mundle said.