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Bartholomew County Sheriff deputies captured and quarantined two German shepherds reported as aggressive in Bethel Village after one bit the animal control director when he got out of his vehicle to investigate on Tuesday.
The dogs, wandering loose in the Wayne Township community, had been the subject of complaints by nearby residents who told authorities the dogs frequently escaped their owners’ fenced-in yard.
When newly-appointed Bartholomew County Animal Control Director Dean Satterfield arrived to investigate the latest complaints, one dog bit him without provocation as Satterfield was stepping out of his van, said Bartholomew County Commissioner Larry Kleinhenz.
Some Bethel Village residents told investigators they believe their pets were killed by the German shepherds while running loose.
But when animal control officers arrived to investigate, the dogs were usually back behind the fence, Kleinhenz said.
The dogs did not make it back to their yard Tuesday afternoon.
Sheriff’s deputies were summoned by Satterfield, who arrived and captured them. The dogs will be held in quarantine for 10 days to ensure they were carrying no diseases, Kleinhenz said.
But after the quarantine is over, a decision will be made on whether the unprovoked attack constitutes a legal reason to euthanize the dogs, the commissioner said.
The dog owner will face additional fines on top of what has been assessed for earlier incidents, as well as face potential legal consequences for Satterfield’s injury, Kleinhenz said.
One of the most serious dog attacks took place after a 22-month-old toddler put his hand through a fence into the yard where the dogs were kept. That’s according to the child’s father, Jacob Vautaw.
The Denois Street resident said that after one of the dogs viciously bit his son’s tiny hand, the child was rushed to Columbus Regional Hospital. Reconstructive surgery was immediately arranged, which saved the mobility in the toddler’s hand, Vautaw said.
The investigation resulted in no charges because the dogs were on their owner’s property, so the canines continued to occasionally escape and frighten the neighborhood, Vautaw said.
“These dogs get loose, jump fences and it’s fearful to be around them,” Vautaw said. “Everybody gathers up their babies and goes in their houses.”
After Bethel Village set up a private Facebook page, they had received 40 responses or stories through social media regarding the dogs by the end of June.
