Everly council boots dog from city

Deeming it a potential threat to local children, the Everly City Council voted to uphold a removal order issued to owners of a pit bull that injured two people last month.

The council voted unanimously to remove the dog May 28 during a special hearing. The canine’s owners, Bruce Kilts and Melinda Cooke, were allowed to plead their case, but ultimately council members leaned on the side of caution.

“If a serious injury occurs in the future, I don’t know if I could live with myself,” said Council Member Shaun Iske.

Mayor Brad Behrens issued the removal order on May 21 after Cooke and Kilts’ pit bull broke loose from its chain and pounced on Ramona Owen, who was walking past the couple’s residence. The dog did not bite the elderly woman, but it knocked her to the ground before one of Cooke’s children retrieved the animal.

An ambulance was called to the scene, but Owen did not seek further medical attention. She said she experienced bruising and soreness after the incident took place.

“It hurt,” Owen told the council, noting she almost passed out. “It scared the s--- out of me.”

The incident with Owen was the second time in less than a month the dog attacked someone. According to council documents, Larry Lindeman was driving by Cooke and Kilts’ residence on May 15 and stopped to say hello. He knocked on the door and went inside the house, where the dog bit his face. He was taken to the emergency room and received nine stitches.

Lindemann did not press charges since Kilts agreed to pay for all medical costs associated with the attack. According to Lindemann, he had played with the dog before the incident took place and never had any issues. Kilts said Lindemann was wearing a bandana when he stopped, which may have confused the dog and sparked the attack.

“Larry got bit and the dog knew him,” Iske said. “So, the dog might not have an issue with somebody one day, and then it could flip.”

Kilts said a screw-in ground stake that malfunctioned and broke when the dog jumped at the end of his leash caused the incident with Owen.

“I’m not the one who manufactures it, I just buy it from the store,” he said. “I can’t stop something from breaking.”

Council Member Tara Patrick questioned whether the dog’s owners had completed any formal obedience training. Patrick said that since it was a rescue dog, it requires intense social conditioning lessons. She took issue with the fact Kilts and Cooke kept the dog locked in the house as much as possible and was also upset they use shock collars to force it to obey.

“A rescue dog is a lot of work. What they’re doing is making the situation worse,” Patrick said. “If you acted up and somebody shocked you every time, would that make you stop acting up or would it piss you off? Continually restricting the dog is only going to make it worse.”

Kilts and Cooke presented two letters from friends in support of the dog and pleaded with the council to let it stay. Ultimately, members voted to affirm Behrens’ decision to banish the pit bull from city limits.

“To me, it sounds like you refuse to take responsibility,” Council Member Josh Muckey told Kilts.

Iske said the council couldn’t leave anything to chance. Several citizens in attendance said there are more children living in Cooke and Kilts’ neighborhood than there have been for decades.

“What’s going to happen when a child is walking down the street?” asked Iske. “You can’t determine when somebody is going to be walking outside the house, and you can’t determine when somebody is going to be walking on the sidewalk.”

Kilts and Cooke were given three days to remove the dog from city limits following the council’s decision.