County officials say they will reopen Wall Springs Park today as they continue to search for the remaining dogs.
By NICOLE JOHNSON
Published November 2, 2005
PALM HARBOR - Maybe it was a good drive or an errant slice.
Or maybe the mutt just wanted a taste of the finer things in life.
Whatever the reason, Pinellas County authorities Tuesday found one of North Pinellas' infamous wild dogs lounging around the ninth hole at a Westin Innisbrook Resort golf course.
After giving animal services officials the slip for months, the dog looked almost as if it had been knocked senseless by an errant golf ball.
"It was a shocker," said Ken Mitchell, the county's animal services director. "She was just lying there like she was stunned."
One down. Ten to go.
The pack, led by a Rottweiler, consists of two meaty German shepherds and about eight chows and has bedeviled county officials and law enforcement since June.
With the capture, county officials announced plans to reopen Wall Springs Park today as they continue to search for the remaining dogs in the pack. Officials had taken the unprecedented step Monday of closing the park after a ranger was chased this weekend and park maintenance workers used golf carts to flee from the dogs.
There have been more than 50 complaints from residents and law enforcement about the dogs, Mitchell said. The animals had been seen as far north as Klosterman Road and as far south as Bee Pond Road.
At first light Tuesday, animal services workers were at the park grounds setting out raw ground beef and traps. About eight people were patrolling the 200-acre park.
"We were prepared to find them," Mitchell said.
But about 1 p.m., their attention moved about a mile north and east to Innisbrook, an affluent gated community frequented by PGA golfers. A caller had seen a German shepherd-like dog on the course.
After a brief search, Pinellas County Animal Control Officer John Hobson found the brown and black pooch at the ninth hole.
The female shepherd mix, which weighs about 45 pounds, was lying on the grass when Hobson approached. The deputy placed a catchpole around its neck and took it to an animal control truck, where the dog growled a bit once put inside.
"I think a golf ball assisted us," Mitchell said. "I don't know if she got beaned or what, but we never complain about good timing and luck."
The dog was taken to Animal Services at 12450 Ulmerton Road, where it remained Tuesday night.
It wasn't the dogs' first golf course visit. They had been seen there just before this year's PGA tournament. But maintenance workers staved them off.
Mitchell said it's likely that the dogs have now returned to Innisbrook, making Wall Springs Park safe to open.
"The grass is shorter and its more open space," said Paul Cozzie, the county's director of parks and recreation.
Although Wall Springs Park will reopen today, the hunt for the rest of the dogs isn't over.
The next step may be to take up a sheriff's helicopter, Mitchell said. And Camp Wai Lani, a nearby Girl Scout camp, will remain closed through the weekend to give county staffers full range to deal with the dogs.
"Nobody's been harmed here, but we don't want to take the chance with that either," said Dick Zagrodnik, park ranger at Camp Wai Lani.
As for the canine in custody, its fate is pretty much sealed.
The dog has been deemed dangerous, and the county has the right to euthanize the dog without offering it up for adoption, according to local and state statutes, Mitchell said.
It will likely be five days before that takes place, he said.
As for its identification, Mitchell said he reviewed dozens of complaints that put a shepherd of that description with the pack.
