The Lewis County Dangerous Animal Designation Board declared a Jack Russell terrier named Flash to be dangerous during a hearing last month after it and another Jack Russell terrier named Roscoe allegedly killed a neighborhood cat in Pe Ell.
The board convened for an evening session on Monday, Sept. 14, to hear testimony from the owners of the two dogs and the owner of a deceased cat named Azula.
After a roughly 40-minute hearing and drawn out deliberation, a majority of the board ruled that Flash would be declared dangerous on account of both evidence and the admission of the dogs’ owners.
The second dog, Roscoe, was not declared dangerous.
According to public records acquired by The Chronicle, the owners of the two dogs, Cheryl and Bradley Rhodes, took the necessary steps after the hearing to register Flash as a dangerous animal in Lewis County and keep her in their possession. The dog will not be euthanized as the law calls for when such measures are not undertaken.
The ruling came after emotional testimony from once friendly neighbors as the owner of the now deceased cat and her mother both testified on the death of the cat after it succumbed to wounds they believe were inflicted by the two dogs. Neither party witnessed the actual attack, but testimony from both sides yielded no other likely sequence of events.
According to the owner of the cat, Venessa Briggs, and her mother, Teresa Briggs, Teresa found the cat injured and hiding under her car after hearing noise from her driveway and finding Cheryl and Bradley Rhodes searching for their runaway dogs. She reported finding the cat and picking her up before witnessing Azula die in her arms.
Cheryl and Bradley Rhodes openly apologized for the incident, admitting fault for the dog named Flash, but maintained they do not believe either of the small dogs to be dangerous while testifying to their good behavior.
“I believe that our dogs are not dangerous,” Cheryl said. “We’ve had them for five years and they have never bitten anybody. They’re great around children.”
Cheryl and Bradley Rhodes chalked up the incident to unfortunate timing. They testified that their dog, Flash, had recently received surgery. Because of that, they used a collar instead of the usual harness to walk the small dog. The dog escaped from the unfamiliar collar and took off with the second dog in tow.
The owners of the cat, Vanessa and Teresa Briggs, however, asserted it was not the first incident, even if it was the first to result in the death of a cat.
“This is not the first time they’ve gotten loose,” Teresa said. “This is not the first time they’ve been in my yard, not the first time they’ve attacked that cat, and the first time they attacked that cat, I witnessed it.”
Teresa explained that the dogs had previously injured Azula and broken one of her legs. She added that while they hadn’t reported that incident, Cheryl and Bradley Rhodes had offered to pay for the veterinary bills associated with the injury and apologized for their dogs’ behavior.
The eventual deliberation from the members of the dangerous animal board was drawn out and yielded a majority decision, which is rare. The board more often than not comes to unanimous decisions on dangerous animal declarations.
The president of the board and administrator of the hearing held on Monday, Sept. 14, said that, considering both evidence and admissions by the owners, that Flash did meet the criteria set in Lewis County code for a dangerous animal.
“Its not as cut and dry as you might hope or think, but by a majority rule, we have found that Flash, by virtue of admission and evidence provided, meets Lewis County code definition of a dangerous animal,” dangerous animal board member Jon Sargent said. “I'm sorry for the loss of your cat. We all are. I’m sorry that this happened between you guys, and I hope that you’re able to literally mend fences after this.”
