By Justine Kelsie

Two local dogs declared “vicious” after officer bitten

May 29, 2018 | 4:37 PM

A Grande Prairie resident is going to have to choose which one of his two dogs he keeps after an incident involving a police officer.

Joshua Gougeon’s dogs Marley and Dexter are both bully breeds, a Presa Canario and Pit bull/Labrador, respectively. In Early May, the two dogs, that were being watched by someone else, escaped Gougeon’s residence and Bylaw Enforcement was called. Upon locating the canines, Marley bit an officer twice; once on the hand and again on the leg. They were found to be level four bite wounds on the Ian Dunbar Scale which officers are trained to gage.

The dogs were then taken into the Grande Prairie Regional Animal Care Facility (GPRACF). Marley was kept for a 10-day quarantine while Dexter was released with fines for being at large and lack of animal tags.

Upon investigation, Enforcement Services located other areas that Gougeon’s dogs had been allegedly involved in incidents including Edmonton, Evansburg, Yellowhead County, and Drayton Valley. One scenario brought forward included Dexter and Marley escaping across the street to “attack” a Rottweiler-cross that a woman was walking. Officers relayed that the woman allegedly suffered bruises, scrapes, and a dislocated shoulder from the incident.

Based on this new information, the day before Marley was set to get released from the Regional Animal Care Facility, officers provided a Notice of Declaration that both dogs were considered “vicious” under Bylaw C-1226 section 6.2. The biggest problem for Gougeon is, in the City of Grande Prairie, the Bylaw says only one animal declared as “vicious” may be allowed to live in a home.

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“We have an instance now of a couple of dogs that have been involved in several serious incidents of attacking other dogs and, in this case, an officer resulting in injuries. From an administrative perspective, we are frankly looking to mitigate the risk it may have on public safety,” said Chris Manuel, Superintendent for Public Safety.

The dog he does decide to keep will be under strict conditions including being indoors at all times unless it is locked in a pen outdoors, leashed and muzzled when travelling outside of the set property on the license, it must be neutered or spayed, the owner has to keep a valid vicious dog license, and must keep signs warning of the animal’s presence on all access to property.

Gougeon tried to appeal the Declaration put on Dexter Tuesday, but the committee made up of Councillor Clyde Blackburn, Councillor Eunice Friesen, Councillor Jackie Clayton, and Mayor Bill Given turned it down. He questioned why Dexter was being stamped with a “vicious” title based on past instances and not the one that happened earlier in May. He also asked for a “non-biased assessment” of the animals to decide if they were “vicious”.

“The committee is going to rule on whether they have accepted that appeal or not. If it not accepted, the owner has to work with Enforcement Services to rehome one of those animals. It isn’t that the dog has to be euthanized, it is that they can only have one on the property,” said Manuel.

After being informed of their decision, Gougeon said it was going to be hard to find someone to take one of his dogs as he is from Ontario and doesn’t know many people in the area.

“I have had Marley since she was a pup and I got Dexter when he was a year-and-a-half. They are kind of like rescue dogs to me. They were going through a hard time and I got them. They aren’t the perfect dogs, but they are my dogs,” said Gougeon following the decision made by the city.

He is also keeping other options open like Bandaged Paws Animal Rescue Association but hasn’t decided if it will be Dexter or Marley that he gives up. 

Bans on certain breeds, including pit bulls, were thrown out the window in the city a few years ago. Manuel says each dog is now treated on a case-by-case basis. Under the provincial Dangerous Dogs Act, authorities are able to order a dog be put down, but Manuel says they try to steer clear of that.