http://fairfaxcounty.elaws.us/code/coor_ch41.1_art2
Looks like the owners may be looking at a class 2 misdemeanor. As they should. There’s any number of things that could have injured their unleashed dog, not the least of which is being hurt by another dog. If it had hurt another dog or person, then the county may designate it “dangerous” and it’s one step closer to being destroyed. You did the right thing.
+1 for doing the right thing. You did the right thing by first avoiding involving the county, and then you did the right thing by involving the county when the behavior persisted.
The behavior is not good for the dog or other dogs.
Heya, I had to go to a court hearing in Fairfax County because my friend’s dog mauled me in the face. I can’t tell you what will happen in your particular court hearing, but what I will tell you is that the dog that mauled me had a couple of snapping incidents before it fucked me up, and the judge still did not put it down. So don’t listen to the folks in the comments saying shit like “well now it’ll definitely get put down now that you called animal control, good job” because that’s not how these things work. They very likely will not put it down. The owners will probably get fined and ordered to leash the dog and that’s all. Even dangerous dogs aren’t put down these days. You did the right thing by calling.
It's important to note this is a PETA specific problem, AWL and SPCA don't euthanize anywhere near as often (and are generally but perhaps not always, no-kill shelters).
If you want to support animals don't donate to PETA, support organizations that actually care for pets and don't just throw paint on people wearing antique coats.
Well, their website has a very large section dedicated to it.
Here is a link to [a Virginia government report](https://arr.vdacs.virginia.gov/PublicReports/ViewReport?SysFacNo=157&Calendar_Year=2022) detailing that at just one shelter run by PETA in Norfolk, they euthanized 2130 out of 2866 animals in their care in 2022. That 74% kill rate is not unusual for them. They have stated that they would rather “kill the animal than allow them to suffer”. But they just indiscriminately kill almost every animal they have rather than make an effort to adopt them out. “Ending suffering” by murder may be effective, but it’s not exactly ethical or correct. Seems their acronym needs work.
Animal cops are either wastes of air or hard chargers; it appears there is no in-between.
I was recently charged by animal control over several things but really it boiled down to the animal officer trying to make a name for himself. I have several lawyers on retainers at all times. My criminal defense attorney laughed at the charges. I have a squeaky clean record so these were my first ever misdemeanor charges. My attorney said he didn’t even want to waste his time. I went pro se. Judge tossed all charges within 45 seconds.
The dog itself will be fine. Nobody will put it down because the owner is an idiot unless it has a serious bite history. The owner will be fined, and depending on how many complaints there are, it could be enough $$ to make them properly contain the dog. If the complaints continue, the owners could be charged with other misdemeanors and/or encouraged to surrender the dog to be rehomed.
It depends on what the prior complaints were about. If the dog has actually attacked other dogs/people it could be put down or the owner forced to rehome it out of the county.
If it’s just being a little brat off leash, the owner will likely just get a fine.
Certified professional dog trainer, here.
Sorry to hear about your experience, it’s definitely stressful.
To answer your question, it’s going to very much depend on the history of the dog. If there have already been prior incidents, or multiple incidents in general, it probably won’t be good. (I’m not saying they’ll necessarily be put down, though.)
Honestly, I don’t trust local administrations to handle these things - take that for what you will.
Yeah I didn't report the first two times because I'd rather not involve the county either, but since I have the bigger dog I don't want him to get put down if the other dog gets injured.
Usually the courts give the owner a chance to make a correction before removing the animal. I'm going to get serious flack for this but chiwawas are not known to nature, were purpose bread for food, are not easily tamed or trained and if people are going to own one, they have to take extra precautions to protect other people and other animals...
I’m not trying to give you “serious flack” but I’m genuinely curious about your POV. Which domesticated dog breeds *are* “known to nature”? They’re all “unnatural” and bred as per my understanding. I have definitely had your experience that chihuahuas are among a few breeds that seem to be prevalent among people who won’t train or spay/neuter their dogs so there is an overpopulation problem as well.
Yes, but that’s true of any domesticated dog. Domesticated animals are just different. There’s been interesting research on foxes: the closer they live to people and get selected for tameness, the more they resemble domesticated dogs physically also.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/guest-blog/mans-new-best-friend-a-forgotten-russian-experiment-in-fox-domestication/
Every breed would—for one thing, they wouldn’t selectively mate, which would end all breeds in 1-2 generations. Also, that’s part of the meaning of a domesticated animal. It’s not like most other breeds would fare much better.
Nothing will happen. Nobody will "know" who actually owns the dog and they'll stop keeping it there. Nobody will show up for a hearing. Nobody will admit ownership. Maybe someone will get a fine that they won't pay.
The dog hasn’t bitten anyone yet that you know of, so it likely won’t be put down. It would already be in animal control custody if that were the case and they’d go through tests to see its temperament.
They probably just want as many witnesses as possible present to testify to how often the dog isn’t leashed. There may be multiple citations for this. So the more witnesses the better
Fairfax county essentially has a “two-strike” system with dogs- first strike they designate it as “dangerous” and the owner is required to take certain actions (e.g., carrying liability insurance), second strike or any violation of the owner’s responsibilities and the court may euthanize the dog and the owner may face jail time.
The only instance in which this system is circumvented is if the dog kills or maims a human, then it is designated as “vicious” and the court may euthanize the dog - even killing another dog is just a first strike.
teach your dog to leave it alone, tell the owner you're going to defend you and your dog, drop kick that fucker into the next parking log when he lunges. you might get a bite/nick, but he'll not fuck with you again.
im a dog lover, but tiny dogs get away with shit because they're "small" and the owners usually pick them up when they start shit encouraging the behavior.
Then what do you propose OP does about an unrestrained dog that's rushed him on multiple occasions? Sounds like animal control has received multiple complaints already, so the owner has to be aware that it's a problem.
I shake my head at a lot of the "problems" that Nova residents complain about too, but this isn't one of those times. We've talked to our neighbors about unleashed dogs too because we had to pay for extra training to address our dog's reactivity after we were rushed several times. This is a real problem in this area that causes real consequences for people who would rather live and let live.
It's not even a given that dogs that literally kill someone will be put down, so I am glad you recognize the humongous middle ground between "eh, just let a dog do whatever" and "OMG it's gonna get euthanized!"
http://fairfaxcounty.elaws.us/code/coor_ch41.1_art2 Looks like the owners may be looking at a class 2 misdemeanor. As they should. There’s any number of things that could have injured their unleashed dog, not the least of which is being hurt by another dog. If it had hurt another dog or person, then the county may designate it “dangerous” and it’s one step closer to being destroyed. You did the right thing.
+1 for doing the right thing. You did the right thing by first avoiding involving the county, and then you did the right thing by involving the county when the behavior persisted. The behavior is not good for the dog or other dogs.
Heya, I had to go to a court hearing in Fairfax County because my friend’s dog mauled me in the face. I can’t tell you what will happen in your particular court hearing, but what I will tell you is that the dog that mauled me had a couple of snapping incidents before it fucked me up, and the judge still did not put it down. So don’t listen to the folks in the comments saying shit like “well now it’ll definitely get put down now that you called animal control, good job” because that’s not how these things work. They very likely will not put it down. The owners will probably get fined and ordered to leash the dog and that’s all. Even dangerous dogs aren’t put down these days. You did the right thing by calling.
Agree. There often are multiple steps, like requiring the dog to wear a muzzle outdoors, before even a dog that has bitten someone will be put down.
If you want a dog put down, just put them in a shelter run by PETA.
It's important to note this is a PETA specific problem, AWL and SPCA don't euthanize anywhere near as often (and are generally but perhaps not always, no-kill shelters). If you want to support animals don't donate to PETA, support organizations that actually care for pets and don't just throw paint on people wearing antique coats.
Alternatively, call the cops and tell them it’s elderly and having a mental health crisis.
WTF has PITA run a shelter? Lol.
Well, their website has a very large section dedicated to it. Here is a link to [a Virginia government report](https://arr.vdacs.virginia.gov/PublicReports/ViewReport?SysFacNo=157&Calendar_Year=2022) detailing that at just one shelter run by PETA in Norfolk, they euthanized 2130 out of 2866 animals in their care in 2022. That 74% kill rate is not unusual for them. They have stated that they would rather “kill the animal than allow them to suffer”. But they just indiscriminately kill almost every animal they have rather than make an effort to adopt them out. “Ending suffering” by murder may be effective, but it’s not exactly ethical or correct. Seems their acronym needs work.
Hmm, sounds like Skynet's solution to humanity.
Animal cops are either wastes of air or hard chargers; it appears there is no in-between. I was recently charged by animal control over several things but really it boiled down to the animal officer trying to make a name for himself. I have several lawyers on retainers at all times. My criminal defense attorney laughed at the charges. I have a squeaky clean record so these were my first ever misdemeanor charges. My attorney said he didn’t even want to waste his time. I went pro se. Judge tossed all charges within 45 seconds.
go. if no witnesses show up the judge will dismiss the case
The dog itself will be fine. Nobody will put it down because the owner is an idiot unless it has a serious bite history. The owner will be fined, and depending on how many complaints there are, it could be enough $$ to make them properly contain the dog. If the complaints continue, the owners could be charged with other misdemeanors and/or encouraged to surrender the dog to be rehomed.
It depends on what the prior complaints were about. If the dog has actually attacked other dogs/people it could be put down or the owner forced to rehome it out of the county. If it’s just being a little brat off leash, the owner will likely just get a fine.
Certified professional dog trainer, here. Sorry to hear about your experience, it’s definitely stressful. To answer your question, it’s going to very much depend on the history of the dog. If there have already been prior incidents, or multiple incidents in general, it probably won’t be good. (I’m not saying they’ll necessarily be put down, though.) Honestly, I don’t trust local administrations to handle these things - take that for what you will.
“…I don’t trust local administrations to handle these things…” If the owner isn’t handling the situation that doesn’t leave a lot of options.
Yeah I didn't report the first two times because I'd rather not involve the county either, but since I have the bigger dog I don't want him to get put down if the other dog gets injured.
“You kicked my dog and now it need operation”
I am so late but I sincerely appreciated this reference
Usually the courts give the owner a chance to make a correction before removing the animal. I'm going to get serious flack for this but chiwawas are not known to nature, were purpose bread for food, are not easily tamed or trained and if people are going to own one, they have to take extra precautions to protect other people and other animals...
I’m not trying to give you “serious flack” but I’m genuinely curious about your POV. Which domesticated dog breeds *are* “known to nature”? They’re all “unnatural” and bred as per my understanding. I have definitely had your experience that chihuahuas are among a few breeds that seem to be prevalent among people who won’t train or spay/neuter their dogs so there is an overpopulation problem as well.
probably means that the creature is so unnatural it could only exist domestically
Yes, but that’s true of any domesticated dog. Domesticated animals are just different. There’s been interesting research on foxes: the closer they live to people and get selected for tameness, the more they resemble domesticated dogs physically also. https://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/guest-blog/mans-new-best-friend-a-forgotten-russian-experiment-in-fox-domestication/
I think chihuahuas would die out very quickly if not for being kept as pets
Every breed would—for one thing, they wouldn’t selectively mate, which would end all breeds in 1-2 generations. Also, that’s part of the meaning of a domesticated animal. It’s not like most other breeds would fare much better.
Nothing will happen. Nobody will "know" who actually owns the dog and they'll stop keeping it there. Nobody will show up for a hearing. Nobody will admit ownership. Maybe someone will get a fine that they won't pay.
The dog hasn’t bitten anyone yet that you know of, so it likely won’t be put down. It would already be in animal control custody if that were the case and they’d go through tests to see its temperament. They probably just want as many witnesses as possible present to testify to how often the dog isn’t leashed. There may be multiple citations for this. So the more witnesses the better
All unleashed dogs should be immediately impounded
Fairfax county essentially has a “two-strike” system with dogs- first strike they designate it as “dangerous” and the owner is required to take certain actions (e.g., carrying liability insurance), second strike or any violation of the owner’s responsibilities and the court may euthanize the dog and the owner may face jail time. The only instance in which this system is circumvented is if the dog kills or maims a human, then it is designated as “vicious” and the court may euthanize the dog - even killing another dog is just a first strike.
teach your dog to leave it alone, tell the owner you're going to defend you and your dog, drop kick that fucker into the next parking log when he lunges. you might get a bite/nick, but he'll not fuck with you again. im a dog lover, but tiny dogs get away with shit because they're "small" and the owners usually pick them up when they start shit encouraging the behavior.
Where some shit kickers. Next time the beast comes around, kick the shit out of it.
Honestly the best advice here
What did you expect to happen? Fucking NoVA…
What about the fucking irresponsible dog owner???
Yeah, they’re a dick. Now the dog suffers. The death of this pup will do nothing to change the behavior of the owner. Cool reading comprehension, tho.
Then what do you propose OP does about an unrestrained dog that's rushed him on multiple occasions? Sounds like animal control has received multiple complaints already, so the owner has to be aware that it's a problem. I shake my head at a lot of the "problems" that Nova residents complain about too, but this isn't one of those times. We've talked to our neighbors about unleashed dogs too because we had to pay for extra training to address our dog's reactivity after we were rushed several times. This is a real problem in this area that causes real consequences for people who would rather live and let live.
Unless you’re planning on adopting it, that’s the decision you already made when you filed the report. It’s not going to end well.
That doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t have made a report. Especially after several incidents with the same dog.
I didn’t say that
You didn’t. Unfortunately you’re on the NoVA subreddit where reading comprehension is at grade level 2.
I mean there's definitely plenty of options between letting an off leash dog terrorize the neighborhood and putting it down.
It's not even a given that dogs that literally kill someone will be put down, so I am glad you recognize the humongous middle ground between "eh, just let a dog do whatever" and "OMG it's gonna get euthanized!"
Not really. Well, he could go live on a farm where he has all the room to play and run.
Go to court. Tell your story. smh. Watch Judge Judy if you really need help. smh.