The Other Side of the Coin

In an effort to deliver balanced Dachshund news, meet the other players in the troubling story of 'Spork,' the Colorado red smooth who bit a vet tech, and is now facing an uncertain future at the hands of the city of Lafayette.  The veterinary technician, Allyson Stone, as seen from a video capture above,was bitten by Spork and has suffered greatly.   Spork bit off one inch of her upper lip, and one inch of her lower lip.  In regards to pressing charges, according to the police report, the vet tech states that:  she is fearful that Spork will bite someone, possibly his owner, in the future, and that she does not want anyone else to suffer and wanted to try to prevent another attack.  Watch the video at CBS4.

Jasper Animal Hospital has received threatening calls, including a death threat, as a result of this incident.  According to The Daily Camera, Jasper chief veterinarian and founder Donald Dodge, in a written statement, said the hospital routinely notifies animal control in dog bite cases.
Dodge said that he supported Stone pressing charges because a record is needed when an animal causes serious injury to a person in case of future incidents.
"Jasper Animal Hospital has not advocated for, or participated in any way, in subsequent decisions by the city of Lafayette to prosecute Spark's guardians," he said in a statement. "We remain very worried about everyone concerned -- the dog, his guardians and the injured technician. We consider this incident a tragedy, and we sincerely wish the best for everyone concerned, Spork in particular."

In May of 2006, the city of Lafayette, Colorado, enacted a vicious dog law which trumps state law, that describes a vicious animal as one that attacks or bites without being provoked, approaches someone in a terrorizing way or has been trained as a fighting animal.  An animal's fate is up to a municipal judge who decides whether the animal must be removed from the city or destroyed, or if it can stay with certain provisions.   Source.

The Animal Law Center, based out of Wheat Ridge, Colorado, has released a statement on behalf of their clients, Spork's humans, Tim and Kelly Walker, in response to the statement made by Dr. Donald Dodge, on behalf of himself and Jasper Animal Hospital yesterday.  Here's an excerpt:

At no time have the Walkers ever sought to undermine Jasper Animal Hospital or the hospital’s devotion to the welfare of animals and their guardians.  In fact, it was the outstanding reputation of the clinic that drew them to it in the first place.

While the Walkers are perplexed by the City of Lafayette’s aggressive pursuit of the charges against them, they are also distressed by the veterinary technician’s desire to further this case. While they have been very upset and concerned about the injuries suffered by the tech, the Walkers are surprised that a trained veterinary professional would put an animal in her care in this position.

Read the entire statement at The Animal Law Center.

Spork's case is scheduled to go to court in April.