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Loading...Pit Bull Service Dog Reunited With Disabled Vet
Snickers, a pit bull mix, will be ringing in the new year at home, thanks to U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett, who granted a temporary injunction on Wednesday, allowing Snickers to be immediately returned to his owner Jim Sak, a retired Chicago police officer.
Sak, a disabled Vietnam War veteran, was partially paralyzed after suffering a stroke in 2008, which was followed by brain surgery. Snickers is a certified therapy dog who aids him with a number of tasks from helping him stand and walk to getting help in an emergency. That was Snickers’ job until Sak and his wife Peggy Leifer moved to Aurelia, IA, last month to be near her elderly mother.
Days after moving, someone reported the Sak to city officials due to the breed ban the city has in place.
“I didn’t know there was a Pit Bull ban (here),” said Sak.
In defiance of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which guarantees people to the right to have service dogs regardless of their breed, a petition was circulated and the City Council voted 3-2 to have Snickers removed, even though he had done nothing wrong and had no history of aggression.
“The ADA (American for Disabilities Act) Guidelines are very clear on this issue,” said Rebecca Huss, a law professor at Valparaiso University and an expert on service dog-related issues. “The breed or mix is irrelevant when it comes to service dogs. The ADA isn’t about dogs; it’s about giving people with disabilities access and enhancing independence.”
Sak and his wife filed a lawsuit against the city citing the violation of the ADA with the help of the Animal Farm Foundation.
In granting the injunction, the ban wasn’t overturned, but Judge Bennet said lawyers hadn’t proved that the city would be harmed by Snickers’ presence, but that there was enough evidence to show that removing him would cause harm to both Sak and Snickers.
Sak had fallen multiple times since Snickers was removed and needed increased supervision, and despite being reportedly well cared for at a boarding facility, Snickers didn’t take the stress of being away from home very well and broke out in hives and began losing hair.
“That dog’s my life, you don’t just take him away from me,” said Sak, who welcomed Snickers home on Wednesday after paying a $1 bond to get him back.
The city may appeal the motion, but if it does, Sak will continue to fight it and the final decision will be handed down by a federal court.
Unfortunately, breed bans affecting innocent dogs like Snickers have been passed in a number of cities across the country and continue to be fought by pit bull advocates, animal lovers and animal protection groups. Even the Justice Department’s opinion on breed specific legislation (BSL) is that “such laws sweep too broadly; and that it is inappropriate to outlaw an entire breed of dogs because a small number cause problems. Such problems are the result of owners not restraining their dogs properly or inadequately training them, rather than the result of a particular breed’s disposition, and can be addressed by more narrowly-crafted legislation.”
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Read more: breed bans, breed specific legislation, bsl, pit bulls, service dogs, success story
Photo credit: sparktography via flickr
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Recent Comments from Causes
Elaine, proofread your posts; your basic illiteracy is showing.
cool
Okay, so police aren't extensively trained to handle situations involving potentially dangerous wildlife,…
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133 comments
+ add your ownThank goodness the judge had the common sense to reunite a perfectly harmless dog with his owner. What vile neighbours they have; hopefully they can eventually move again to a nicer area populated by more pleasant people!
Wonderful happy ending for this Pit Bull.
Breed specific legislation is nothing but canine racism. Eacj dog should be assessed individally on its nature, NOT its breed.
Good dog, Snickers!
People in the USA seem to need something Fear and Control these days!
Fear the Dog Control the Women.
Maybe we Women should reverse that :)
Mandate birth control issues on Dogs, Fear trying to control Women!
Pit Bulls used to be known as "Nanny" Dogs because of the way they took care of and protected children.
to the 3% - Ignorance is no excuse...it's how you raise your baby...No Breed should be banned... Bad Owners should be banned...no innocent animal should be allowed to be subjected to the cruelty of uninformed and ignorant owners.
Having raised 8 abandoned puppies and finding good homes for all but 3 (My Babies) I can tell you from the heart... they are the most loving, loyal and most misunderstood breed.
Keep them out of the hands of ignorant idiots and see their beautiful nature come through.
To the 3% of you who think breed bans should be allowed I would like to suggest we have "idiot bans" as well. We'll start with you.
thank god this was a happy ending, I don't understand why people need to judge a breed so badly, banning breeds won't do anything. It's like locking your doors. Locked doors only keep the honest people out. Banning breeds only stops the good people from owning them. Ban bad owners and see what happens
Overlooked in the comments is the fact that at least part of this court action was precipitated by a "petition," circulated presumably by neighbors. With "neighbors" like that, who needs enemies...?!
Thanks.
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