A dog belonging to a woman living at a Chehalis address was declared dangerous last week after reports that it had killed more than 10 domestic birds, including chickens and ducks.
The Lewis County Dangerous Animal Designation (DAD) Board handled the case of a large white husky named Luna on Monday Dec. 1.
Neighbors of the dog's owner claim the dog killed at least six chickens, a duck and a goose. They added at the time of the hearing that more birds were still missing.
After hearing testimony from both the owners of the dead birds and the owners of the accused dog, the DAD board designated the husky as a dangerous animal.
The owner of the accused dog claimed that her dog could not have killed the birds, while the owners of the birds remained certain Luna was the dog they had seen in their back yard.
According to an official report from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, Community Service Officer RJ Wheeler responded to a report of a vicious animal at around 4:30 p.m. at the beginning of last month, Nov. 6.
Wheeler reported first contacting the victim of the incident, Debbie McKay, over the phone. At the time, McKay reported seeing a white husky with a red collar in the chicken coop on her property.
She added that she believed it had killed some of her chickens and a goose. McKay’s boyfriend, Louis Osther, reported having scared the dog off by shooting at it, but he was unsure if he had hit it. He did not specify what kind of weapon he used or if it was a lethal shot.
Wheeler arrived at McKay’s home just after 5 p.m. accompanied by Community Service Officer David Sims. After arrival, the two officers were shown the dead birds and took photos of three dead chickens and a dead goose. During the visit, McKay told the officers that she believed the dog that killed her birds lived at the house next door.
Shortly after, the officers reported visiting the neighbors home to speak with the dog's owner, Malia Lewis. The officers spoke directly with Lewis to inform her that her dog had been seen in the neighbor’s yard killing livestock. She, however, denied that it could have been her dog, stating that she knew her dog had been tied up in the back yard at the time of the attack.
Despite her denial of the accusations, Wheeler informed Lewis that her dog Luna matched the description of the dog seen killing the birds and added that she would receive an animal-at-large infraction.
Roughly a week later, after the owners of the birds filed official reports of the attack, Wheeler issued the infraction to Lewis and informed her that the case would be referred to the Lewis County Prosecutor's Office and the county DAD board.
During the official hearing, Lewis again testified that her dog could not have been involved in the killing of her neighbor's birds. She testified that she knew the location of the dog at the time of the incident and that her dog had no signs of the incident, such as blood on her fur. She added that she believed her dog could have been mistaken for another.
She testified to believing that the dog that was seen killing the birds was likely one of two great pyrenees dogs that live on another property nearby. Lewis stated that she also had informed Wheeler of the neighboring dogs hoping that he would look into the possibility.
Wheeler, however, stated that he did not follow up and look for the dogs because the statements from the victims of the attack were clear about the breed of the dog being a husky.
Osther also testified that he did some investigating of his own, driving to the property with the great pyrenees dogs to see if he could have mistaken them for the one that attacked the birds. He said during the hearing that he was certain, despite similar coloring and a similar collar coloring, that the dogs were not the one he and McKay had seen attacking the birds.
After a quick deliberation, the three members of the DAD board ruled unanimously that the white husky named Luna would be officially declared dangerous after killing a domestic animal while at-large or off her owner’s property. That is one of three qualifications for declaring a dog dangerous in Lewis County.
The DAD Board is a five-person citizen panel established in 2018 to enhance public participation and provide an impartial review of cases involving dangerous or potentially dangerous animals.
The board holds hearings to determine whether an animal meets the criteria for a dangerous designation. If an animal is declared dangerous, the owner must comply with strict requirements on enclosures, signage and other safety measures, or they must pursue euthanasia of the animal. Hearings are held as needed based on the number of cases received. The board typically meets once a month or so.
