Friday, February 3, 2012

Heidi the Doberman ~ some more info in the news and from Royal Oak

My post the other day Doberman in Trouble: Help Heidi! has brought a lot of people here, and sent them on to the petition web site. There have been a couple of more articles in the news, and response from Royal Oak that I wanted to talk about here.

In both the Philadelphia Examiner and the Daily Tribune (which is, I assume, a local paper to Heidi's part of Michigan), there have been articles stating that the individual who reported this incident to the police was in fact bleeding from a bite, on the nose and chin. The Royal Oak's city attorney David Gillam is in fact saying that Heidi's life is not in immediate danger, which is a relief. His statement is, to me, rather noncommittal and open ended however:


He said the city did present two options: euthanize the dog or move her outside of Royal Oak. However, the issue could be resolved by sending the dog to obedience school, muzzling her whenever she is outside the owner’s McLean Avenue home, or some other action. (quoted from the Daily Tribune)
These aren't unreasonable options. "Sending" a dog to obedience school isn't what I would recommend (if he's actually discussing a board and train), but obedience classes that Heidi's owners attend with her is certainly preferable to returning their dog to rescue or euthanasia. Muzzling her, I feel, would prevent accidental bites, but not the other kinds of hard-head contact that would break a nose. Granted, I'm not a doctor, but I know that the Doberman snout and head packs a wallop, having been casually bludgeoned in the face by Elka's pointy skull.

Which brings me to an interesting point. Dog bites are a concern, certainly. A Doberman is a dog of threatening size, and power, and a Doberman bite to the face can be decimating. Again, from the Daily Tribune: "Bleeding from the injuries, Seagraves went into the store for a paper towel then to Beaumont Hospital, where he told police he learned his nose was broken." If asked, I'd say the contact, all of it, was accidental. A Doberman who wants to bite you in the face, and you're not prepared for it? I don't think you'll be wandering around to get your business taken care of.  I'll admit, this is a strange way for me to defend an incident, by highlighting the potential damage and bite strength of a Doberman that intends one harm, but there it is. In human criminal cases, one must prove intent. I don't think Heidi had the intent.

Indeed, the police report says ""the dogs jumped up at him and hit him in the nose and also caused a small laceration" and the responding animal control officer's notes say  "He had two scratches that were bleeding a little. One on bridge of nose and one below lower lip." (from this article on the Philadelphia Examiner:  Royal Oak Responds to Outpouring of Support for Heidi the Doberman, and the City of Royal Oak Attorney's Office Press Release)


It is also of note that this incident actually happened in October. According to the City of Royal Oak website, there were two prior court meetings on this matter, with the next one scheduled on February 9 (People vs. Spalding). I'm not sure what it is about the prior meetings, and upcoming one, that prompted Heidi's people to create their website and petition out of the fear that Heidi would be euthanized, since officials have hastened to say that isn't their intent, but obviously, I only have the news to go on.

I don't regret having signed the petition for Heidi, because I don't feel that she's necessarily a dangerous dog who will bite again. Do I feel something like mandated obedience training would be a fair way to satisfy both sides of this case? Yes.

Has this made me rethink how to handle passers-by, whether they want to greet Elka or not? Yes. Jumping is something that we've discouraged for a long time (though, as I've noted, Elka will jump next to somebody, and not put her paws on them, though many of our friends have been "dolphin nosed"). On leash, I'm going to continue to encourage her to sit if I'm speaking with somebody, and I daresay I'll tack on the behavioral expectation of focusing on me, rather than strangers. I like that Elka is friendly, and that I don't feel I have to worry about her behavior with people. But if she were to be excited, and jump up with a happy, open mouth? We could have another Heidi situation, and I do not want that heartache and that court case.

(another Heidi picture, used frequently in news articles, from the Save Heidi site)

12 comments:

  1. Wow, good post. This brings up a point I had never considered and I probably should: the accidental "bite". Koly has an underbite. Sometimes when enthusiastically giving kisses and licking up your cheek, he gets one of those errant teeth caught in your nose. It's an accident and he doesn't apply any biting pressure, but it stings and once drew blood. I can see how an accident could spiral out of control and end up like this. I agree with you: mandatory training for both dog and all members of her family will likely address the issue, but will it address the issue, but will it be enough for the city & the "victim"?

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    1. Tooth in the nose?! I writhed just thinking about that. I'll be he's surprised when his lovin' turns into "Oh God, get off of me!"

      I'm not sure how it'll turn out. I wonder if the city is surprised at the response that they're getting? Considering the victim wasn't totally mauled and disfigured, I'd like to assume he'd be okay with an obedience style solution.

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    2. After a while, it's become endearing and ridiculous. I love his crazy little snaggle teeth.

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    3. It's a tooth hug!

      (joke from, years ago, in the webcomic Butternut Squash. I think it applies ^^)

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  2. Dolphin nosing is a concern of mine as well! Elli does it on rare occasions, though never on walks because I never stop to talk to anyone lol. Mostly when she greets houseguests. Still! I found this last week and oogled over it for quite some time, thinking that it'll be the next thing I implement with her bounciness.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ealapRYpMQ

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    1. I rarely stop to talk to anybody...and Elka will frequently put herself in a Down if there's somebody she really wants to see (kids, etc.) The only problem is once they're close enough she'll RUN AT THEM and then stop inches away. While somewhat funny, not really behavior to encourage.

      Thanks for the link! I can see that as a good stepping stone to the kind of self control that we'd all like our leashed dogs to have! (i.e., I don't want to have to stand on a leash forever...and I use a 4 foot leather leash on walks unless she's on the long line, so I can't stand on it then anyway)

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  3. When my son was younger he would sometimes come in the house after playing with Bongo and complain that Bongo had bit him, when in reality he had just accidentally come in contact with one of Bongo's sharp teeth during play. I can see this happening to a stranger and having the dog be accused of biting. Glad you take precautions with Elka.

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    1. "Accidents" are subjective in the court of law. I do hope that your son had no bad feelings for Bongo!

      I do try to take precautions with Elka. Some never even occur to me until I read a big story like this.

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  4. "Stranger appeared suddenly wanting to pet the dog." First, Heidi was startled. Second, did this person wait and ask permission to pet Heidi? and if so, the owners should have prepared her but we are all on learning curves, "strangers" and owners alike.

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    1. The stories also seem to lack overlap in some cases, as well. One article will say that all he asked was "are they friendly?", from which one might infer either 1. he wants to pet a dog or 2. is concerned with passing by. Other articles only mention Heidi, not the other dog. Other articles are all TWO DOBERMANS. Others say "approached wanting to pet the dogs" and so on. It's hard to winnow out what you think the truth might be.

      But, clearly and honestly approaching somebody with Dobermans is the way to go. I'm always amazed at how, say, joggers will brush very closely past me from behind when I'm walking Elka. I won't let Elka lunge at somebody (and sometimes she will [closed mouth] lunge to sniff), but if even I'm startled, it's hard to anticipate what the situation is.

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  5. I agree that obediance training with the owners should be mandatory. It is in the city of Minneapolis. If your dog bites someone they are taken in for quarantine, but the owner can get their dog back. If they bite again, the dog is labeled a "dangerous dog", must be muzzled when outside and the owners must attend obediance training with them for a full year. The third time the owner has to take out a huge insurance policy that is such an impact to their income that they usually don't take their dog back.
    I wish people and cities would require obediance training. Maybe then we would see less of these stories.

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    1. I think requiring obedience training would really improve the lives of many dogs.

      However, considering there isn't really any kind of regulatory thing saying who can call themselves "trainers", and no requirements of training for such people, it's hard to then mandate it. That, and not all "trainers" have a philosophy that I feel warrants legislative support. So that's another can of worms, though having a goal of getting a CGC on most pet dogs would be a really cool thing.

      Also, in some areas (like mine), trainers are not really readily accessible, either because they just plain aren't there, or because their training philosophies, methodologies, and style don't mesh with what one believes and wants for one's dog.

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