Daniel L. Bamberg
reporter
Animal ownership is a responsibility to the pet and more importantly to the community one lives in. That’s certainly no matter of opinion, when you consider the incident, which occurred on
Monday, August 17 off of Primitive Ridge in West Blocton. Resident Larry Belcher was out walking his dog a Chow and Dotson mix around 4:30 p.m. The route he took was the one he treaded three times, everyday. It was normal for Belcher and his dog to come across a neighborhood stray pit-bull and a Labrador. It was not unusual for those two animals to growl as they passed by. On this afternoon, for whatever reason, the pit-bull decided to attack Belcher’s dog, without so much as a warning. The lab also joined in.
In an attempt to rescue the family pet Belcher himself was attacked incurring a broken wrist, a strained leg, and a bite on his neck. Belcher’s dog spent the night at the local veterinarian being treated for trauma and a deep gash over the eye. Animal control was notified and currently has both of the attacking dogs in custody. Mr. Belcher’s wife, Sharon expressed concern about there not being a stricter policy against vicious animals outside of the city limits within the county.
One area resident, which notified the press about the issue, is concerned about dog abandonment in the area of Primitive Ridge. She stated that many dogs seemed to be getting dropped off in the area. While Primitive Ridge is indeed a rural and wooded area, people who are abandoning their animals may not realize how many children and families live in the area. Vicious animals like pit bulls are unpredictable by nature, and could attack seemingly without warning. Citizens of the area plan to address the county commission in the near future about the issue in hopes of getting some sort of countywide ordinance passed pertaining to vicious animals and pet abandonment.
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