Dog Bites

Upon advice of the RCMP, Christopher was seen by a doctor in Bengough where he was treated with antibiotics and released with a prescription for antibiotics. Antibiotics are given in case the dog has any infection. Christopher reported bruising, scratches and a break in the skin on his arm and shoulder.
Shanon said the dog is a Pit Bull/Rottweiler cross. Wikipedia says, "Pit Bull is a term commonly used to describe several breeds of dog in the Molosser family that were historically used for dog fighting. The breeds most often placed in this category are the American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier and Staffordshire Bull Terrier.
The Bidas own two of these dogs, a sister and brother, and the dogs have created concern among the citizens of Coronach but until the recent incident there have been no injuries reported.
Shanon says that she is not concerned for the safety of the residents of Coronach. "I can't really consider it a bite, because the skin was not broken. He did have a scratch on his arm.'
Although Shanon was not at the scene and was away following the incident, she believes that the dog must have been provoked. "I think that something happened to provoke her . . . Our dogs are very friendly, lots of people come in and out of (our) yard and have no problems with them."
Shanon's children told her that Christopher was running away and that they yelled at him to stop running. The child holding the leash was on roller blades and was unable to stop the dog from running after Christopher. Shanon feels that the dog jumped on Christopher as it jumps on her children when they run and play with them.
Christopher denies running away from the dogs and says he heard the dog running towards him from behind, looked behind him and did not have a chance to run.
Pit bulls have been the centre of a debate on the safety of the breed and are banned from the province of Ontario, the city of Winnipeg and many places across the United States. The Town of Coronach passed a dangerous dog bylaw in 2007 and they are currently involved in litigation with the dog owners over the removal of the dogs from the community.
Murray Setrum, Town administrator said, "The Town of Coronach is dealing with the matter pursuant to the regulations of The Municipalities Act and the Dangerous Animals subsection.
A court date has been set for September 11, 2008 where the judge will make a decision."
A report released by the National Centre for Disease Control in the United States in 2000 reported more than 300 human dog bite-related fatalities (DBRF) in the United States between 1979 and 1996. Most victims were children and pit bulls were responsible for approximately one third of the DBRFs in the twelve year period from 1981 to 1992. Rottweilers were responsible for about half of human DBRF from 1993 to 1996.
Although the dog in question has been indentified to be of a Pit Bull and Rottweiler background Corporal Tipper says they treat all dog breeds the same. "Any form of dog bite we have to investigate the same." Tipper said that each situation is different depending on many factors, including whether the animal's vaccinations are current. Shanon reported that the dog's vaccinations are up to date.
Tereena Bartlett, Christopher's mom admitted that her son's injuries were very minor but that he was very frightened and her concern is for smaller children in the community. "I just don't want any little kid to get their face ripped off and that's what is going to happen." Chris is the second oldest of the Bartlett's four children and Tereena expressed her concern over the safety of her younger children and how the results could have been much worse it it had involved one of them.
"We just want people to be aware (of the incident) and to be careful because there is a potential for someone to get hurt." concluded Tereena.
Shanon said, "Any dog breed can be dangerous. It depends on how they are raised. Dogs become dangerous when they are abused, neglected or trained to do so; none of which my dogs are. I see no reason to pick on Pit Bulls, they are no more prone (to bite), the media just focuses on them more. A lot of dog bites don't even get reported."