Update 1/16/09 – Brindi is Going Home!!

If you’re not familiar with the story of Brindi and Francesca Rogier, please take a moment to read, “Travesty of Justice in Halifax! Let Brindi Go Home!” It’s a truly heart-wrenching story with no end in sight.

More than two months have passed since Brindi was seized from her home and incarcerated, and in all that time Francesca has not even been allowed to visit her beloved dog! Brindi languishes on ‘death row’, little to no human contact and little chance for exercise or time outside of concrete and bars.

Support for Brindi and Francesca continue to grow and the petitions gain signatures but now word is that Francesca “received a reply from the city clerk: the online petitions will not be presented to the Council next week, because they lack street addresses for all the signees. This is some 1800 names we are talking about.” Nor will she be allowed to address the council to plead her case. It had been hoped that the council might be able to move things along faster and get Brindi back home where she belongs but no…. it’s BS politics at work… again. No one except for Francesca and her friends and supporters seem to give a damn about what’s really important here, the welfare of Brindi.

Even the mayor who told a supporter the he would ‘love to help’ and to contact his office, has went back on his word.

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Well, it passed 6-1, Omaha’s Dangerous Ordinance. It’s aim is a tough crack down on irresponsible dog owners, which I have no problem with at all. What I do have a problem with is that even though it does not ban pitbulls, it does very specifically target them and as I’ve said before, BSL is still BSL is still BS!

You can see a breakdown of the ordinance HERE… the good, the bad and the BS… L.

As least they did modify the pitbull muzzling requirement to a degree. If the dog passes the Good Canine Citizen test, rather than having to be muzzled, they will only have to wear a vest in public. Kinda makes me think of a time in history when certain people had to be ‘marked’ to identify to everyone what ‘breed’ they were…. but I’m not going to go there…

As with any breed specific legislation, the problem is almost never responsible dog owners. They care for their dogs, they train them, they socialize them. It’s the irresponsible dog owners who are the problem and they just are not going to do the right thing no matter how many laws, legalities and ordinances are passed.

Omaha Dangerous Dog Ordinance

Ya gotta love it! A shark was looking for a munch but this was one dog owner that was not going to let his dog turn into a shark appetizer!! Way to go! Greg Lenoir dove into the water after a 5-foot shark attacked his dog “Jake.” Lenoir puched the shark in the back of the head to save Jake.

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Well Freddie Mock, the ‘Dog Killer for Hire,’ and Connie Vanderheiden, the woman who hired Mock to kill her dog, have both pleaded guilty to their crimes. Mock to aggravated animal cruelty, a Class 4 felony, and Vanderheiden to attempted animal cruelty, a misdemeanor. They were both offered and accepted plea deals and now the sentences have been handed down.

As usual there is disappointment in the sentences, Mock agreed in a plea deal to spend 90 days in jail, pay a $500 fine and never own a companion pet again and Vanderheiden agreed in a plea deal to one day in jail and a $500 fine and never own a companion pet again. Both will split the vet bill of $113 for the dog’s treatment and euthanization.

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