MONTAGUE — The Selectboard has placed restrictions on a pit bull it deemed dangerous after the animal mortally wounded a chihuahua last month.
Tyson, who resides on K Street, must be neutered, microchipped and vaccinated on top of being under an adult’s control whenever he is outside. He also cannot be without a muzzle if he is off the property. These regulations were the result of a dog hearing during Monday’s meeting, when Selectboard members heard from law enforcement officials as well as the owners of the dogs at the center of November incident.
“That incident that happened is not him,” Tyson’s owner, Brianna Snyder, said through tears.
The Selectboard also voted to require Tyson’s owner to carry insurance up to $100,000 to cover any claims filed against the pit bull. Town Counsel Gregg Corbo explained state law mandates that the Selectboard’s regulations will follow Tyson anywhere he goes in Massachusetts.
Denise Bouchard addressed the Selectboard and identified herself as the owner of the chihuahua that was mortally wounded. She said she has owned dogs all of the 23 years she has lived in her home and was walking the chihuahua down K Street on the afternoon of Nov. 16.
“I never heard Tyson coming,” she said. “My girlfriend was walking, maybe, 8 feet in front of me, and she turned around and screamed, ‘Pick him up. Pick him up.’”
Bouchard cried as she detailed how Tyson knocked her over and continued to bite her dog, which had to be euthanized due to the extent of its injuries. She said she harbors no ill will toward her neighbors, who she mentioned have paid restitution for the incident and brought her beautiful flowers and a sympathy card.
“I simply would like the neighborhood to be safe. Tyson is a powerful, powerful animal and he’s still young and he needs a lot of work. He needs socialization. He needs training. And you need to have discipline with an animal of that strength. And I want my neighborhood to be safe,” she said. “There are a lot of small dogs in that area and a lot of small children and elderly people. I don’t want anybody else to be traumatized.”
Montague Police Sgt. John Dempsey and Judie Garceau, a regional animal control officer, detailed reports they filed on the incident and corroborated what Bouchard said. They explained Tyson escaped through a backyard gate and attacked the chihuahua.
Asked by Selectboard Clerk Matt Lord how the attack ended, Bonnie Sokoloski, who said she was roughly 10 feet in front of Bouchard during the attack, said a teenager tore Tyson off of Bouchard.
Snyder explained she has owned Tyson since Nov. 1 but the canine lives with her mother because Snyder cannot have dogs where she lives. She said she is in the process of having Tyson trained and plans to send him to a boarding camp in 2024.
“He’s a puppy, still,” she said. “After that incident, we have been way more cautious and disciplinary toward his bad behavior.”
Snyder noted the backyard gate and fence have been reinforced since the attack.
Reach Domenic Poli at: dpoli@recorder.com or 413-930-4120.