Flossmoor - A pit bull puppy that had been at the center of an effort to regulate dangerous dogs in Flossmoor has been moved out of the village, according to its former owners.
``We got rid of it, but not because of (the neighbors who complained),``
said William Banks, whose family had adopted the puppy earlier this year. ``We just weren`t ready for a dog right now.`` (Which means the pit bull puppy was becoming a handful).
A discussion on banning such dogs from the village, or at least regulating how they may be kept, still is scheduled for the Flossmoor Village Board meeting at 7 p.m. Monday.
Neighbors of the Banks family and other residents concerned about pit bulls, formally known as American Staffordshire terriers, asked for the meeting late last month.
They expressed concerns that the dogs, which have a fearsome reputation for vicious attacks, could escape and injure children or other dogs in the village.
More than 100 Flossmoor residents have signed a petition asking for village action against the dogs.
Village Manager Peggy Glassford said at least two other pit bull terriers are kept in Flossmoor, according to dog license records, and there may be more.
The Village Board is expected to consider a variety of options for regulating pit bulls, the most likely of which are: banning them entirely from the village, requiring owners to buy liability insurance on the dogs, keeping them muzzled when outside on walks, and keeping them at other times inside or in cages with floors and ceilings.
Though most villages, including Flossmoor, have general laws regulating vicious dogs, Francis Pullam, a next door neighbor of the Banks family, has argued that they are not sufficient in the case of pit bulls.
``The drawback to those laws is it requires a tragedy to happen before the dog can be declared dangerous,`` he said.
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Chicago Tribune
Dec 12, 1990 Flossmoor To Consider Pit Bull Law
Flossmoor - Patricia Fullam of Flossmoor doesn`t care much for Rottweiler dogs.
``But if one moved next door at this point, I`d kiss it,`` she said.
That`s because the prospect of coming face to muzzle with what`s living next door right now is worse-it`s a pit bull.
The dog, though still a 5-month-old puppy, is creating howls of concern among Flossmoor residents, who fear the breed`s fearsome reputation for attacking people and other dogs.
More than 100 residents of the placid, upscale village, which last year attempted to ban pickup trucks, have signed a petition against pit bulls. They plan to push at Monday`s Village Board meeting for a law that either bans them entirely or regulates how they must be restrained.
Such a move in another community has failed. On Tuesday, the Carol Stream Village Board voted 4-3 to defeat a measure that would have banned the breed. The board instead is considering strengthening regulation of all vicious animals.
Controls being considered include leashing (Carol Steam has no leash law for dogs); heavier fines for violation of animal control regulations; and a requirement for owners of vicious animals to carry increased liability insurance.
An ordinance still under consideration defines a vicious animal as ``one with a known propensity, tendency or disposition to attack unprovoked, to cause injury to or otherwise threaten the safety of human beings or other animals.`` Pit bulls are not specified.
The defeated pit-bull measure had been under consideration for several months. There are five known pit bulls in Carol Stream whose owners opposed it.
Flossmoor`s village manager Peggy Glassford said, ``Neighbors are very concerned about whether these animals are safe.`` She said has received several calls and letters from residents concerned about pit bulls.
She said that while the puppy has been the main focus of concern, at least two other families in the village own pit bull terriers, according to dog license records, and there may be more of the animals.
There have been no reports of pit bulls attacking anyone in the village. But residents say they don`t want to wait for that to happen before taking action against them.
``Most communities have laws on the books about vicious dogs,`` said Francis Pullam, Patricia`s husband. ``The drawback to those laws is it requires a tragedy to happen before the dog can be declared vicious.``
According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, pit bulls accounted for 62 percent of the dog-bite fatalities in 1987 and 1988 and 42 percent of such fatalities between 1979 and 1988.
``We do not believe that pit bulls represent anywhere near 42 percent of dogs in the United States. Therefore we believe that the pit bull excess in deaths is real and increasing,`` authors of the 1989 article wrote.
A flier being passed around the Flossmoor neighborhood where the pit bull puppy lives warns neighbors that the dogs ``do not just bite, they attack until the victim is motionless or dead. They can leap over a six-foot fence. They will attack other animals including dogs on leashes or even in your arms.``
Such attacks by the dogs, including several fatalities in the Chicago area in recent years, already have led to laws against them being enacted in a number of cities, including Ullin, Ill., Overland Park, Kan., and Cincinnati. The Fullams and their neighbors hope the Flossmoor board follows those examples and have provided copies of those ordinances to the trustees.
The ordinances generally require a pit bull owner to purchase liability insurance on the dog, keep it muzzled when it is on a leash and keep it in a caged area with a floor and ceiling.
``General vicious dog laws are just not sufficient to protect
(people),`` said Francis Fullam, who has two young sons. ``These dogs are quite a bit more unpredictable, I understand. It`s not how you raise them. They have this genetic streak in them.``
His next-door neighbor, Linda Banks, whose daughter-in-law adopted the pit bull puppy, said her neighbors have no cause for complaint.
``My dog very seldom goes out, and when it does it is on a leash,`` she said, complaining in turn that poodles belonging to some other neighbors frequent her yard without her consent.
Besides, she said, ``I have grandchildren in the house, and I wouldn`t jeopardize my grandchildren.``
``I`m sick of my neighbors,`` she added angrily. ``They need to keep their noses out of my business. It`s my dog, and I`ll do whatever I want with my dog.``
She said she had refused an offer by the neighbors to buy her family any other dog they wanted in return for getting rid of the pit bull. And she said she would not attend Monday`s meeting.
Her neighbors still hope to change her mind.
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Chicago Tribune
Oct 27, 1990 Pit Bull Mauls Illinois Boy, 4
Ullin - A pit bull mauled a 4 year old boy after the child's parents agreed to keep the dog at their rural home for a man who hadn't bought the insurance required to keep ti in the village.
Joseph Lee Haddock was released from a hospital Friday after surgery for facial lacerations, a spokeswoman said.
Officials in this southern Illinois village of about 550 passed an ordinance in September requiring owners of pit bulls to keep the dogs caged or muzzled and to carry a $50,000 liability insurance policy.
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The Telegraph
Joseph Lee Haddock was released from a hospital Friday after surgery for facial lacerations, a spokeswoman said.
Officials in this southern Illinois village of about 550 passed an ordinance in September requiring owners of pit bulls to keep the dogs caged or muzzled and to carry a $50,000 liability insurance policy.
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The Telegraph
Jul 29, 1990 Lawsuit: Guest Sues Landlord For Pit Bull Bite
Chicago - Marci was invited to a beer party at the home of Terry and Mike. She brought her 2-year-old son, Anthony, and her boyfriend, David. As Marci and David were preparing to leave the party, David carried Anthony into the area where Popeye was chained. As he did so, a pit bull puppy escaped from the house and Popeye lunged at the puppy. The two dogs scuffled, David put Anthony down, and Popeye lunged for the baby, biting his face and causing serious permanent injuries.
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Chicago Tribune
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Chicago Tribune
Jul 19, 1990 Chicago Pit Bull Killed 6 Month Old Tionna Kenny
Chicago - "Yolanda Applewhite was outraged and defiant upon learning that no charges would be filed against the owner of a 55-pound pit bull that had mauled her 6- month-old daughter to death.
``I will press charges against him,`` she vowed.
The attack on Applewhite`s daughter, Tionna Kenny, occurred as she slept Wednesday night in the dog owner`s apartment. It, and another fatal attack by a mixed-breed pit bull last month in south suburban Dolton, have renewed the debate locally over the powerful dogs and how best to deal with them."
"That pit bull, which was owned by Tyrone Harding of 1339 W. 112th St., had bitten a resident of his street this year and had allegedly killed another animal. The dog was given a lethal injection Thursday.
``The animal killed another animal, had been impounded and was known in the neighborhood as a dangerous dog,`` said Randy Lockwood, vice president of the Humane Society of the United States, based in Washington, D.C. ``It should have been locked up in a cage or destroyed long ago.``
After living within earshot of Harding`s vicious dog, some of his neighbors said they believe that all pit bulls should be kept away from human beings.
``I love animals,`` said one neighbor who asked that her name not be printed. ``I have three cats and I had four dogs. But I feel pit bulls should not be allowed in a city.``"
"According to national statistics kept by the Humane Society, half of the 14 fatal attacks on humans, primarily children, so far this year have involved dogs that were at least part pit bull."
Back in the 1990's the Humane Society kept statistics of fatal attacks. They have ceased attempting to be humane to children and monitor data that could improve safety to children, pets and adults.
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Gainesville Sun
Chicago Tribune
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Illinois fatal pit bull attacks
``I will press charges against him,`` she vowed.
The attack on Applewhite`s daughter, Tionna Kenny, occurred as she slept Wednesday night in the dog owner`s apartment. It, and another fatal attack by a mixed-breed pit bull last month in south suburban Dolton, have renewed the debate locally over the powerful dogs and how best to deal with them."
"That pit bull, which was owned by Tyrone Harding of 1339 W. 112th St., had bitten a resident of his street this year and had allegedly killed another animal. The dog was given a lethal injection Thursday.
``The animal killed another animal, had been impounded and was known in the neighborhood as a dangerous dog,`` said Randy Lockwood, vice president of the Humane Society of the United States, based in Washington, D.C. ``It should have been locked up in a cage or destroyed long ago.``
 |
| Map of Illinois Fatal Pit Bull Attacks by dogsbite.org |
``I love animals,`` said one neighbor who asked that her name not be printed. ``I have three cats and I had four dogs. But I feel pit bulls should not be allowed in a city.``"
"According to national statistics kept by the Humane Society, half of the 14 fatal attacks on humans, primarily children, so far this year have involved dogs that were at least part pit bull."
Back in the 1990's the Humane Society kept statistics of fatal attacks. They have ceased attempting to be humane to children and monitor data that could improve safety to children, pets and adults.
Read more:
Gainesville Sun
Chicago Tribune
Related posts:
Illinois fatal pit bull attacks
Jul 04, 1990 Westmont Considers `Vicious` Dog Law Targeting Pit Bull Terriers
Westmont - Westmont`s Village Board is considering passing a law aimed at the strict control of pit bull terriers and any other ``vicious`` dog.
Trustee Anthony Puccillo Jr. said that the proposed ordinance was prompted by a petition presented to the village by 13 residents who are concerned about a neighbor`s plans to adopt two pit bull terriers.
Last week, a mixed breed dog that was mostly pit bull attacked and killed a two-month-old Lansing girl asleep in the home of her grandmother in Dolton. Also last week, the owner of two pit bulls in Algonquin destroyed them shortly before a court order was issued declaring them vicious and ordering them to be taken into custody.
In November 1988, a Northern Illinois University graduate student was killed by two pit bull terriers when he entered the yard of a home he was visiting in Geneva Township in Kane County.
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Chicago Tribune
Trustee Anthony Puccillo Jr. said that the proposed ordinance was prompted by a petition presented to the village by 13 residents who are concerned about a neighbor`s plans to adopt two pit bull terriers.
Last week, a mixed breed dog that was mostly pit bull attacked and killed a two-month-old Lansing girl asleep in the home of her grandmother in Dolton. Also last week, the owner of two pit bulls in Algonquin destroyed them shortly before a court order was issued declaring them vicious and ordering them to be taken into custody.
In November 1988, a Northern Illinois University graduate student was killed by two pit bull terriers when he entered the yard of a home he was visiting in Geneva Township in Kane County.
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Chicago Tribune
Jun 29, 1990 Dolton Pit Bull Kills Baby
Dolton - A 2-month-old girl who was left with her grandmother while her parents celebrated their third wedding anniversary died Thursday after being mauled by a mixed-breed dog that police said was mostly pit bull.
In Dolton, Pfotenhauer said Lyla Provo was sitting next to the child watching televison about 8 p.m. when the dog attacked the infant for no apparent reason.
``My investigators were told that the grandmother had to pry the dog`s mouth open to pull him away from the child,`` Pfotenhauer said.
The baby was taken by ambulance to South Suburban Hospital`s trauma center in Hazel Crest with bites on the face, head and upper back.
``Doctors thought she was going to make it, and she was being transferred by helicopter to the University of Chicago Hospital when she died,`` Pfotenhauer said.
An autopsy by the Cook County medical examiner`s office also found a skull fracture and injuries to the brain.
In November, Kevin B. Cull, a Northern Illinois University graduate student, was fatally mauled by two pit bull terriers in unincorporatd Geneva Township. The killing touched off a drive by Dr. Joseph M. Busch,
administrator of the Kane County Public Health Committee, to seek amendments to the state`s Animal Control Act.
A result was that the General Assembly last week passed amendments that would define certain dogs as vicious and place restrictions on them. Dog owners who violate the restrictions could be fined.
``The bottom line is that the county will now be able to target vicious and dangerous (dogs) and force (owners) to comply without having to take them to court,`` said Busch. ``We will be able to control these animals and make the community safer for everyone.``
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Chicago Tribune
Related posts:
People killed by pit bulls in Illinois
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| Map of Illinois Fatal Pit Bull Attacks by Dogsbite.org |
``My investigators were told that the grandmother had to pry the dog`s mouth open to pull him away from the child,`` Pfotenhauer said.
The baby was taken by ambulance to South Suburban Hospital`s trauma center in Hazel Crest with bites on the face, head and upper back.
``Doctors thought she was going to make it, and she was being transferred by helicopter to the University of Chicago Hospital when she died,`` Pfotenhauer said.
An autopsy by the Cook County medical examiner`s office also found a skull fracture and injuries to the brain.
In November, Kevin B. Cull, a Northern Illinois University graduate student, was fatally mauled by two pit bull terriers in unincorporatd Geneva Township. The killing touched off a drive by Dr. Joseph M. Busch,
administrator of the Kane County Public Health Committee, to seek amendments to the state`s Animal Control Act.
A result was that the General Assembly last week passed amendments that would define certain dogs as vicious and place restrictions on them. Dog owners who violate the restrictions could be fined.
``The bottom line is that the county will now be able to target vicious and dangerous (dogs) and force (owners) to comply without having to take them to court,`` said Busch. ``We will be able to control these animals and make the community safer for everyone.``
Read more:
Chicago Tribune
Related posts:
People killed by pit bulls in Illinois
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