The meeting will be held on Thursday, Jan. 28 at 6 p.m. in the Health and Nutrition Center classroom. The committee will determine if the animals are dangerous enough to be put down.
Thomas Williams, information and communications specialist and prepairedness coordinator for the health center, said the case involved two dogs attacking a neighbor’s dog that was chained up. He said it seemed like a calculated attack.
“If there is such a thing as a premeditated dog attack,” he said.
The incident took place at a Mount Airy residence in mid-December. When the two pitbulls began attacking the chained-up dog, the dog’s owner came out to try to stop them. He was attacked as well and bitten on the left wrist and right thumb. His dog did not survive the attack.
The Surry County Animal Control Committee does not meet on a regular basis. It meets to address cases that come up such as the one scheduled for the hearing on Thursday night.
The committee last met on Oct. 1, to discuss the incident where five Rottweilers attacked a 5-year-old boy in the county. The committee voted to euthanize the dogs, so after losing his appeal, the dog owner and grandfather of the attacked boy signed papers agreeing to put down the dogs.
After the ruling, Jim Hazel, chairman of the committee, said, “We didn’t want anyone else to get hurt ... I think it’s a situation where you want to err on the side of caution.”
Bobby Gallimore, animal control director, said at the time that any dog determined to be dangerous has to be put down. Dogs deemed potentially dangerous have to be kept in a secure enclosure as described in the county’s animal control ordinance.
Animal control meetings are open to the public. Any person with a disability needing an accommodation at the meeting should contact the county manager’s office at 401-8201. Elkin residents call 366-8201.
Contact Meghann Evans at mevans@mtairynews.com or 719-1952.
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