Shon
09-22-2004, 01:37 AM
If Norman gets sprung from city lockup, his family will have to keep him in the jail they built for him at home.
Composed of steel chain-link fencing and barbed wire, it is anchored by poles sunk deep into the ground and sealed with concrete to foil the digging paws of the future parolee.
"I had to build a fortress like you keep prisoners in," said Hammond resident Ted Stiltner, pointing at the $2,000 backyard dog cage he had built to contain his young pit bull.
Norman has yet to bite. That's why he hasn't received the death penalty. But there have been three incidents of Norman charging people, cornering one Hammond Water Department employee on top of her car.
Hammond Animal Control officials said Norman is a vicious animal who should never roam free. Stiltner said the dog is a lovable and loyal family pet.
Stiltner is set to argue before the Hammond Board of Public Works and Safety this week that Norman should be released. It will be the first such hearing under the strengthened dog law approved by City Council in June.
Hammond is among a handful of local communities that have passed or are considering laws to get tough on canines.
Officials in Lansing voted Tuesday on a law that declares pit bulls "dangerous" animals that must be confined, muzzled and implanted with an electronic device identifying the owner.
Lake Station City Council members faced vocal public opposition earlier this month when they attempted to outlaw pit bulls and require dog owners to buy $1,000 in liability insurance. Dog lovers protested, saying the insurance requirements would force families to get rid of their beloved pets.
After the public outcry, Lake Station Council members postponed a decision until October.
Schererville is considering changing its animal control ordinance to give the animal control director the ability to deem a dog vicious the first time it bites. Once deemed vicious, the dog could be put to sleep, removed from the community or ordered placed in a more secure enclosure.
Valparaiso doesn't have a vicious animal law, but council President Al Eisenmenger said that is something the council's new ordinance committee probably will study, particularly in light of recent dog attacks.
Calumet City officials are considering toughening their dog laws next month to include pit bulls and other vicious dogs.
"There are some animals who don't deserve to be pets around 2- and 3-year-olds," said 3rd Ward Alderman Thaddeus Jones
The wave of laws governing aggressive dogs coincides with what Hammond kennel master Mary Knoerzer describes as a general increase in the number of such dogs in the public.
"They used to use rottweilers for guard breeds, but pit bulls are faster, they bite a little harder," Knoerzer said. "The rottweilers are tapering off, and you see more pit bulls."
Control officers are specifically finding more pit bulls that are bred to be "human-aggressive," as opposed to breeds aggressive toward other animals that are commonly used in illicit dog fighting.
Pit bulls can be gentle or aggressive, depending on genetics and how they're raised, said Deanna Lugo, the Hammond animal control officer who helped Knoerzer capture Norman.
Sitting in his city pen Tuesday at the Animal Control Center, Norman appeared calm, with tail between his legs and a demure facial expression. But when Knoerzer approached the dog's metal cage, Norman became immediately agitated, with gnashing teeth and loud, aggressive barks.
"You don't have to do anything mean to this dog to get him going like that," Knoerzer said. "Usually he's laying. If he sees us, that's when he starts firing up and getting angry."
The problem isn't the dog, but the cage, Norman's owners said
"If you locked me up in a cage and took me away from my family, I'd be pissed off, too," Stiltner said.
Stiltner said he rescued Norman from a drug-addled owner in Chicago who mistreated the dog as a puppy.
"We had him for a family pet. We didn't have him for protection. We moved out of Chicago to get protection," Stiltner said. "I love him so much, we'll move out of Hammond to keep him."
Composed of steel chain-link fencing and barbed wire, it is anchored by poles sunk deep into the ground and sealed with concrete to foil the digging paws of the future parolee.
"I had to build a fortress like you keep prisoners in," said Hammond resident Ted Stiltner, pointing at the $2,000 backyard dog cage he had built to contain his young pit bull.
Norman has yet to bite. That's why he hasn't received the death penalty. But there have been three incidents of Norman charging people, cornering one Hammond Water Department employee on top of her car.
Hammond Animal Control officials said Norman is a vicious animal who should never roam free. Stiltner said the dog is a lovable and loyal family pet.
Stiltner is set to argue before the Hammond Board of Public Works and Safety this week that Norman should be released. It will be the first such hearing under the strengthened dog law approved by City Council in June.
Hammond is among a handful of local communities that have passed or are considering laws to get tough on canines.
Officials in Lansing voted Tuesday on a law that declares pit bulls "dangerous" animals that must be confined, muzzled and implanted with an electronic device identifying the owner.
Lake Station City Council members faced vocal public opposition earlier this month when they attempted to outlaw pit bulls and require dog owners to buy $1,000 in liability insurance. Dog lovers protested, saying the insurance requirements would force families to get rid of their beloved pets.
After the public outcry, Lake Station Council members postponed a decision until October.
Schererville is considering changing its animal control ordinance to give the animal control director the ability to deem a dog vicious the first time it bites. Once deemed vicious, the dog could be put to sleep, removed from the community or ordered placed in a more secure enclosure.
Valparaiso doesn't have a vicious animal law, but council President Al Eisenmenger said that is something the council's new ordinance committee probably will study, particularly in light of recent dog attacks.
Calumet City officials are considering toughening their dog laws next month to include pit bulls and other vicious dogs.
"There are some animals who don't deserve to be pets around 2- and 3-year-olds," said 3rd Ward Alderman Thaddeus Jones
The wave of laws governing aggressive dogs coincides with what Hammond kennel master Mary Knoerzer describes as a general increase in the number of such dogs in the public.
"They used to use rottweilers for guard breeds, but pit bulls are faster, they bite a little harder," Knoerzer said. "The rottweilers are tapering off, and you see more pit bulls."
Control officers are specifically finding more pit bulls that are bred to be "human-aggressive," as opposed to breeds aggressive toward other animals that are commonly used in illicit dog fighting.
Pit bulls can be gentle or aggressive, depending on genetics and how they're raised, said Deanna Lugo, the Hammond animal control officer who helped Knoerzer capture Norman.
Sitting in his city pen Tuesday at the Animal Control Center, Norman appeared calm, with tail between his legs and a demure facial expression. But when Knoerzer approached the dog's metal cage, Norman became immediately agitated, with gnashing teeth and loud, aggressive barks.
"You don't have to do anything mean to this dog to get him going like that," Knoerzer said. "Usually he's laying. If he sees us, that's when he starts firing up and getting angry."
The problem isn't the dog, but the cage, Norman's owners said
"If you locked me up in a cage and took me away from my family, I'd be pissed off, too," Stiltner said.
Stiltner said he rescued Norman from a drug-addled owner in Chicago who mistreated the dog as a puppy.
"We had him for a family pet. We didn't have him for protection. We moved out of Chicago to get protection," Stiltner said. "I love him so much, we'll move out of Hammond to keep him."