[nagdu] Blind woman ordered to give up guide dog after it bites 3strangers

larry d keeler lkeeler at comcast.net
Mon Nov 16 12:52:47 UTC 2015


Ouch! That story shows how evil people can be! To bad you couldn't have held
the people harassing your dog responsible! 

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of S L Johnson via
nagdu
Sent: Sunday, November 15, 2015 11:04 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Cc: S L Johnson
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Blind woman ordered to give up guide dog after it bites
3strangers

Hello:

This is a very serious situation.  Obviously the dog has some behavior and
aggression issues.  Three incidents in a year shows that the behavior cannot
be controlled.  I think the animal control officials have tried to
compromise by letting her keep the dog but to instruct the dog be muzzled
when in public.  It is the owner's responsibility to follow the instructions
of the officials so nobody else gets bitten.  If the dog is from a school,
then where are they?  If she is owner trained, then has she been evaluated
by an animal behavior expert?

I ask these questions because I faced this same situation 20 years ago.  My
little shepherd Heidi was attacked by another guide dog her first weekend
home from class.  I immediately reported the other owner to her guide dog
school in acts of revenge, she allowed and encouraged the attacks to
continue.  She and her friends also  began lashing out by hitting or kicking
at Heidi when we passed by them.  As a result, Heidi developed the tendency
to bark, growl and sometimes snap.  The school did everything they could and
I also consulted with two animal behavior experts.  After extensive
evaluation over many months, it was determined that Heidi was suffering from
stress and anxiety.  The vet prescribed a very mild anti-anxiety med and I
worked with the behaviorist to try and modify Heidi's reaction to other dogs
and strangers.  She wasn't by nature aggressive but stress brought out the
undesirable behavior.  Although it broke my heart to retire a 5 year old, I
did what I had to do.  As guide dog handlers, we must be responsible for our
dog's behavior when out in public.  A dog that bites is never suitable to be
a working guide.  Although it is difficult, we must think with our heads,
not our hearts.  As much as this woman loves this dog, she must realize that
her dog is a danger to others.  I feel very sorry for her and if I could I'd
try to talk it over with her.  As someone who has been through the same
thing, I might be able to help.

Sandra and Eva

-----Original Message-----
From: Steven Johnson via nagdu
Sent: Sunday, November 15, 2015 3:26 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Cc: Steven Johnson
Subject: [nagdu] Blind woman ordered to give up guide dog after it bites
3strangers

Blind woman ordered to give up guide dog after it bites 3 strangers


This photo shows a bite wound on the hand of Lynn Spuhler, a TriMet LIFT
operator who told investigators that a guide dog, Noni, attacked him when he
showed up at owner Connie Walker's door in Gresham in January 2015. Spuhler
was there to give a ride to Walker and her dog.

Aimee Green | The Oregonian/OregonLive


on November 13, 2015 at 3:10 PM, updated November 13, 2015 at 3:18 PM

Multnomah County Courts

Blind woman ordered to give up guide dog after it bites 3 strangers

A 65-year-old blind woman fighting to keep her beloved certified guide dog
has asked a Multnomah County Circuit judge to reverse an order severing her
ownership rights to the German shepherd mix named Noni.

In July, hearings officer Linda Beloof decided that the dog should be
removed from Connie K. Walker's Gresham home for good after the dog bit
three strangers -- a nurse, a patient at a Gresham medical clinic and a
TriMet bus driver -- over the course of a year from February 2014 to January
2015.

The ruling came after Multnomah County Animal Services reported that Walker
has repeatedly refused to follow previous directives to muzzle the dog while
out in public or confine the dog to a back room of her home when caregivers
visit.

The case has put Animal Services, the hearings officer and now a Multnomah
County Circuit judge in the unenviable position of deciding whether to strip
a disabled woman of her service animal.

"This is a very difficult and unfortunate situation," the hearings officer
wrote. "I am reluctant to take Noni away from Ms. Walker; I also understand
the County's concern that the public needs to be kept safe from Noni."

The case won't be argued before Multnomah County Circuit Judge Thomas Ryan
until December at the earliest.




In the meantime, Walker's attorney has won a temporary order stopping Animal
Services from taking Noni from her home.

Walker hadn't been muzzling Noni because she thought it sent the message
that the dog was vicious when it's not, said her lawyer, Robert Babcock of
Lake Oswego.

"That has been her view -- that basically people should know better than to
pat or reach down or approach suddenly working dogs," Babcock said. "She
didn't want to use the muzzle."


But ever since the order to remove the dog, Walker has followed the
restrictions "whether she likes it or not," Babcock said.

If Walker loses Noni, it's unclear if she could get another accredited guide
dog. It's also unclear what would happen to the dog. Beloof, the hearings
officer, has increased its classification from a "Level 3 potentially
dangerous dog" to the county's highest caution category, "Level 4
potentially dangerous dog."

A Level 4 dog seized by officials isn't automatically euthanized, said
Jackie Rose, Animal Services director. The dog could go to a new home if an
evaluation shows adoption would work, but it would have to wear a muzzle in
public, among other restrictions, she said.

"It's not a life sentence or a death sentence, by any means," Rose said of
Level 4 dogs. "Our goal is to not euthanize. Our goal is to place as many
animals as we possibly can."

Rose declined to comment further about Walker's case because it's pending.

Babcock declined a request to interview his client.

But records show that Animal Services has struggled with what to do about
Walker and her dog as reports mounted of Noni's concerning behavior.

According to the case file, a deputy public guardian with Multnomah County
Aging and Disability Services said caregivers who dispense medications to
Walker at her home or visit to check on her well-being have repeatedly been
confronted by the dog barking, lunging and growling at them -- and that
Walker has refused to confine the animal.

"Ms. Walker will not give 'Noni' up voluntarily, even threatening suicide,"
states a summary of the guardian's statements.

The guardian also reported that Walker said the dog has bitten her in the
face.

Two medical providers have refused to treat Walker if she brings her dog
along to appointments. Neighbors also have complained about Noni's barking.

Walker's troubles with Animal Services ramped up in February 2014, when a
nurse at Adventist Medical Center reported that Walker and her dog had been
brought to the Southeast Portland hospital by ambulance. The two had been
placed in a room and at first, "Noni was very sweet to me, jumping onto my
shoulders and licking my face, tail wagging," wrote nurse Mary French.

But the nurse wrote that Noni later aggressively barked and lunged at three
other staff members, then scratched the back of her hand and lunged toward
her face. The wound didn't break the nurse's skin, but it was sore for a few
days.

Walker's side of the story wasn't included in records submitted to the
court. She received a "notice of infraction" from Animal Services and
ordered to muzzle the dog in public and keep it in another room when
caregivers visited her home. She also was warned that new violations could
result in loss of ownership, according to the case file.

In August 2014, a man at a Providence medical clinic in Gresham reported
that he had walked up to a reception-area counter to sign in when Noni --
who he had seen sleeping seconds earlier at Walker's feet -- suddenly bit
his arm. The man, Merle Schnackenberg, said he did nothing to agitate the
dog.

Walker told Animal Services that the man must have done something to provoke
her dog, but she couldn't be sure what that was because she couldn't see.

Then in January, Noni bit a TriMet LIFT operator in the hand after he
arrived at Walker's doorstep to give her a ride. The operator, Lynn Spuhler,
wrote that the dog was barking when Walker opened the door. Walker asked the
operator to take her bag, and when he touched the bag, the dog started
barking even more.

"The dog started to settle down and I said let me have him sniff my hand,
when I held my hand out he sniffed it then lunged and before I could pull it
back he bit me," Spuhler wrote.

Walker added to the dog's agitation, he wrote. "Instead of being calm with
the dog she was yelling at it, jerking on his lead violently, hitting him,"
he wrote. The bite broke his skin and was bleeding.

In her dog's defense, Walker said the TriMet driver stepped into her home
before the dog bit her.

"They're not supposed to step in," said Babock, Walker's attorney.

Animal Services cited Walker in each of the three cases. That led to a June
hearing and Beloof's July order revoking Walker's ownership.

Walker is getting free legal assistance from Babcock. Babcock's wife, Gail
O'Connell-Babcock, learned of Walker's situation through her nonprofit
called Watchdog and offered her husband's legal services.

For years, Watchdog has vocally criticized euthanasia by Animal Services.
The organization states its mission as "Protecting pets and people from
Oregon's animal control agencies."

-- Aimee Green

agreen at oregonian.com


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