What should you do if there’s a dangerous dog in your neighbourhood?

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – The City of Richmond is asking the Rottweiler-cross that been held in isolation since two sisters were attacked in a park two weeks ago be destroyed.

But the owner of “Yogi” is behind a petition and social media campaign to save the dog’s life.

No matter what the outcome, you shouldn’t wait until it’s too late if there’s a dangerous dog in your neighbourhood. You can’t force an owner to put a muzzle on, so reporting aggressive behaviour before it goes too far is the best way to go.

Steve Simmonds is the manager of animal services for the City of Vancouver.

“We would ask anybody that has concerns about a potentially aggressive dog to contact the city by dialing 311. We’re able to respond to those types of complaints seven days a week, from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m.,” says Simmonds.

If it happens outside of those hours, you can call the police, if the situation is urgent.

“Animal control officers would investigate at that point and once they’d interviewed witnesses and gathered facts and evidence, then they would make a decision whether or not the owner would need to muzzle and leash the dog at all times when it’s in a public space,” says Simmonds.

But, he cautions, don’t call for just any reason.

“Barking dogs aren’t always aggressive. We’re talking about animals that are exhibiting dangerous behaviour. They’re growling, they’re lunging, they’re barking and lunging, they’re chasing people and chomping their teeth,” says Simmonds.

Vancouver investigated 130 dog-on-dog cases in 2014 and 143 dog-on-human attacks in the same year.

There were also just over 70 cases of people reporting aggressive dogs running free without an owner.