By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CENTRALIA – Besides getting a $250 citation for dog at large, the owner of a dog that attacked a neighbor cat on Ham Hill Road late last month has been informed his pet is now designated a potentially dangerous dog.
Police were called when a resident awoke to dogs barking and found her young Siamese outside in the mouth of one of a pair of strange dogs behind her house.
[1]Bailey and Roscoe
Cheryl Oakley chased them away and when daylight came, found her older tabby cat dead across the road.
An officer who responded to the 3:15 a.m. call on July 30 found two dogs on the next block heading back through an open gate on their property. They matched the description Oakley gave, according to the Centralia police report.
Bailey, a 9-month-old Siamese kitty spent three days at the veterinary clinic being treated for wounds.
The felines were indoor cats, but apparently pushed out the screen of an open window.
The dog owner, Felipe Loa-Vargas, told police he does what he can to keep them on his Yakima Street property, but they sometimes jump out of their kennel, according to the report. Loa-Vargas said he usually keeps the gate in front closed, but his wife may have left it open when she left for work, the report noted.
Had anyone witnessed one of the dogs killing the tabby, that dog likely would have been impounded and deemed a dangerous dog, a designation that puts heavy restrictions on such an animal, according to officer Boe Wohld, the city’s special services officer.
Instead, a notice was sent to the dog owner his dog is now a potentially dangerous dog.
One of the dogs is described in the police report as a chocolate-colored lab-type dog. The other is described as a Pit Bull with white on its chest. Wohld said they look related to each other.
Wohld said he wasn’t sure which dog got in trouble for attacking the Siamese. A copy of the notice sent to Loa-Vargas wasn’t immediately available.
The label of potentially dangerous is appealable.
If the dog is caught roaming again, it may be impounded, according to city code. If it bites again, it can be declared dangerous.
Among the requirements for a dangerous dog, according to Centralia’s code, are being kept in an enclosure with a secure top, proof of $250,000 special liability insurance and in some cases having to wear a muzzle when taken for walks.
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For background, read “Dogs that kill” from Saturday Aug. 4, 2012, here [2]