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Owners fight to save 'dangerous' pit bull
The dog has bitten a meter reader and a vet's assistant. His owners defend him.
By COLLEEN JENKINS, Times Staff Writer
Published August 15, 2007
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[Special to the Times]
Tyler Burbank with his pit bull terrier, Kane.
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TAMPA - Tiffany Eckart and Tyler Burbank want their dog back.
Hillsborough County Animal Services says Kane, a 7-year-old pit bullterrier, is dangerous and should be euthanized. Twice, the agency has taken custody of the dog because of its aggressive behavior and sought criminal charges against its owners.
The Valrico couple went to court Tuesday, armed with an administrative hearing officer's order that said Kane shouldn't be on doggie death row.
Their lawyer, Joe Episcopo, argued that an assistant county attorney should be held in contempt for refusing to release the dog.
County Judge Nick Nazaretian didn't send any humans to jail, but he didn't let Kane out either.
Eckart and Burbank vowed to continue their fight. "He's a member of my family," Burbank said. "I'm not going to give up on a member of my family."
After chasing another dog and biting its owner and a gas meter reader, Kane was classified in January 2006 as a "dangerous dog." To keep the dog, Eckart, 26, and Burbank, 36, had to muzzle it.
Someone complained in February that the dog was running loose. When a dogcatcher came, Kane nipped his leg and tore his pants. Burbank was charged with a misdemeanor for a dangerous dog bite. Animal Services wanted to destroy Kane, but Nazaretian determined that the dog had been provoked, Episcopo said.
Kane got out; Burbank pleaded no contest and got probation.
During a visit to the vet in April, Kane was accused of biting an assistant in the face. She needed 14 stitches on her nose and upper lip. Animal Services took the dog again. Kane's owners were accused of allowing a dangerous dog to cause severe injury, a felony.
On Aug. 8, more than two months after a hearing on the dog's fate, hearing officer John F. Rudy III issued an order saying that Kane had reacted in fear at the vet's office. Rudy said the dog should be released to its owners. But when the couple went to get the dog last week, Animal Services refused to comply, Episcopo said.
On Monday, Episcopo got an order from Nazaretian enforcing the hearing officer's ruling. After a two-hour wait at Animal Services, the couple was again denied their dog.
On Tuesday, just before a 1 p.m. hearing, the county filed its appeal of Rudy's order.
Nazaretian didn't know about the appeal when the hearing got under way. He demanded to know why the county had not complied with two orders.
He softened his stance when Jan McDonald, an assistant county attorney, explained that the government had 10 days after Rudy's ruling to file its appeal.
Dennis McCullough, executive manager of field operations for Animal Services, said the dog's history makes it a threat. "Our concern is for the safety of our citizens," he said.
Episcopo will try to get Kane released pending the appeal.
Burbank, a tattoo artist with pending drug charges, and Eckart, who graduated this spring with a graphic design degree, have two other pit bulls. They named one Dangaust, Burbank said, to mock the county's "dangerous dog" classification.
Colleen Jenkins can be reached at 813 226-3337 or cjenkins@sptimes.com.
[Last modified August 15, 2007, 00:33:46]
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Comments on this article
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by Justine
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08/18/07 12:32 AM
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I agree that there are unsafe dogs of all breeds. The owners are clearly negligent. They've failed 4 times. There are so many sweet heroic pits out there but you just don't see stories about them.
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by Laurel
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08/16/07 11:32 PM
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I feel sorry for Kane. He should be taken away from his owners & given to someone who will train him better.I have a chow who hates kids but I have gates in my house to make sure he cant get to them.I would bite too if someone dropped me.
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by Janet
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08/16/07 07:47 PM
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There are unsafe dogs of all breeds. This dog has bitten 4 or more times when unsupervised by careless owners. Human aggressive dogs need to be killed. People who let their aggressive dogs bite need to be fined or jailed. Can we put down the owners?
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by Lisa
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08/16/07 07:21 PM
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"intelligent, reasonable people wouldn't own this breed" "proven pitbulls are not of sound mind" what is wrong with you people?! I hope someone judges you as harshly and discriminately as you just something you obviously know nothing about!
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by Jocephus
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08/16/07 03:46 AM
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Shelly, the difference is that a pit bull can seriously injure or kill someone. It's absurdly difficult for a small dog to do so. When a big, dangerous dog is a biter, it should be put down. Period.
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by Jo
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08/15/07 08:27 PM
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My German Shepherd hated one of his vets, but he let her know by growling at her. No dog should ever be allowed to attack any person or animal without provocation. all of the excuses sound pretty lame & it's been proven pitbulls are not sound of mind
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by Lynn
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08/15/07 08:26 PM
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My son owns two pits so I am NOT against all pits! But with this dogs past, I think it time for the owners to really think about putting him to sleep. Heaven forbid a young kid visits and frightens Kane, they may not survive an attack.
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by Lew
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08/15/07 07:25 PM
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colleen; I see you still pick and choose the comments you print!Atta girl!
free press at its best!
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by T
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08/15/07 04:38 PM
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PITS GET SUCH A BAD RAP, THEY ARE VERY LOVING PETS, PEOPLE FREAK WHEN A PIT COMES NEAR THEM, THEY ALWAYS THINK THEY ARE GOING TO HURT THEM...GROW -UP DO SOME RESEARCH, THEY WERE BRED TO PROTECT CHILDREN
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by Laura
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08/15/07 04:02 PM
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I sort of agree with Zippy. After seeing the owners on TV, it is my opinion that they were both high on coke (or crack). Poor dog.
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by jr
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08/15/07 03:56 PM
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say what you want, if the dog bites one of my children, i will put him down and his owners to for that matter
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by Kelly
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08/15/07 03:55 PM
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All animals have the potential to bite out of fear, unsocialization, discomfort, etc. I'm sick to death of this particular breed being sensationalized by the media as being a vicious threat to society.The media needs to find something else to report
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by S.
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08/15/07 03:51 PM
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Bad owners. I think the next few times my grandma's poodle bites me for taking her toy, crossing her path, moving her food dish I'll report it so I can see if it makes the front page too. Probably not.
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by lori
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08/15/07 03:34 PM
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I'm very upset at the fact that people are this ignorant. If my APBT was to attack on more than one occasion i would have him put down. Some of the breeds just have something go off in their brains.
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by Cori
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08/15/07 03:34 PM
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With at least 7 different bully breeds that are similar will the pros at least try to get the breed right? Thats only fair. How many non bully so called dangerous dogs has animal control killed lately?. Lets stop breed discrimination.
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by Carol
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08/15/07 03:29 PM
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I hope these bad dog owners have tons of homeowner's insurance, because one day they're going to get a big fat civil suit from a bite victim.
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by kate
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08/15/07 03:24 PM
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Sad for Kane. He was born a pit, and his owners failed to train and manage him properly. They have two more!. Kane deserved a chance with safe and responsible ownership. His owner let him down. Now he's blaming everybody else. Bully pup lovers beware
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by Eric
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08/15/07 02:37 PM
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10 to 1 Tiffany and Tyler never graduated from high school. Intelligent, reasonable people wouldn't own this breed.
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by Sandra
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08/15/07 02:26 PM
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Yet another Pit story. Second negative story in less than a week about a Pit attack.
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by R. Fix
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08/15/07 02:21 PM
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Dogs, like children tend to be a reflection of their owners and parents. The dog is dangerous because his owners are. Unfortunenatly by law its the dog that has to pay with its life. 4 bites and yer out! Burbank is the real bad dog here.
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by Courtney
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08/15/07 02:11 PM
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I hope u get your dog back. Just be more responsible if you have a dog with bad tendancies. Just because they've bitten someone doesn't mean the owners are bad people or they've taught their dog to be aggressive. The vet tech should know better!
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by Courtney
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08/15/07 02:07 PM
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I have a Golden Retreiver and he's my best friend. He's very sweet, but protective. He dug a hole under the fence and bit a jogger. He spent 10 days in confinement and it was the worst 10 days I've had in a long time. Their animals & unpredictable.
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by Martie
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08/15/07 01:22 PM
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Dennis is the sole voice of reason in these responses. The dog should be released with a warning to use a muzzle when it is around other people.
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by Patty
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08/15/07 01:08 PM
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You have no right to keep this dog from its family. They should have better control over him which they will in the future.
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by Jo
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08/15/07 12:27 PM
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Great. Another druggie with an attack dog. Yee Haw!
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by me
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08/15/07 12:18 PM
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i own a pit, and to be honest i'm way more frightened of my cat. he's the evil one.
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by zippy
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08/15/07 12:17 PM
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It is the owners who should be euthanized . They should NOT be allowed to own pets of any kind. Poor dog corrupted by his surroundings.
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by John
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08/15/07 12:16 PM
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The dog is a menace and his owners are clearly stupid. If they had a brain between then they would have taken simple steps to protect us from their "baby". After many chances the time has come to put the dog down and the owners are to blame.
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by Rick
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08/15/07 12:05 PM
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It's always Pit Bulls in the news for mauling children and adults to death. That is not picking on them. The Pit Bull is a dog that is owned by little men to make them feel like big men. Its got to be a tough guy dog, can't look like a weenie!
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by Kelly
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08/15/07 10:42 AM
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Are you people insane. This dog is DANGEROUS!!! HELLO...does someone need to die to prove this? Get a grip, he is a bad dog. End of story!
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by paul
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08/15/07 10:41 AM
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It is apparent that the ones who should be "put down" are the owners. They are the ones that have failed to protect the community. A Dog who bites is trained to do so. Because t is a Pit-bull it's bite is powerful, but it is fault of the owners.
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by Shelly
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08/15/07 09:59 AM
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Many other dogs bite & are considered "dangerous" but not euthanized. WHY PICK ON THIS BREED????
I hope you get your baby back with your family soon. Guess no one would admit that they were bitten by a little dog - wouldn't make good news.
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by AL
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08/15/07 09:50 AM
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This dog has bitten four people now, in a variety of situations, from the accounts given here. My dog gets scared too - but in 11 years, she's never bitten anyone. How many more people does this dog have to chomp on and possibly maim?
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by Linda
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08/15/07 09:48 AM
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As a VetTech, it is my responsibility to protect myself ~ by using some type of restraint on the animal. All Vet's have "Animal Behavior" marked in BIG RED letters on the animal's file.
Oh, Brian, I would love to buy you a cup of coffee!
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by Able
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08/15/07 09:42 AM
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Kill Kane before he kills someone.
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