Tag: New Jersey

Dogfighting Survivor Becomes New Jersey’s First Pit Bull Arson Officer

Unlike his namesake, Hansel’s early life was no fairy tale. In 2015, when he was only 7 weeks old, the Pit Bull was rescued from a dogfighting operation in Canada.

Thanks to the wonderful folks at Throw Away Dogs Project, a Pennsylvania-based nonprofit that trains rescued dogs to become K9 officers and service dogs, young Hansel is about to become the first-ever Pit Bull arson-detection officer in the state of New Jersey.

“He exhibited all the qualities that a regular working dog, police K9 dog has,” Carol Skaziak, the founder of Throw Away Dogs, told News 12.

Hansel will start his new job at the Millville Fire Department on Jan. 19 alongside his partner, firefighter Tyler Van Leer. The two spent 15 weeks in training at the  New Jersey Police K9 Association’s academy. They did about 12 practice searches every day.

Arson dogs, also known as accelerant detection canines (ADCs), are trained to sniff out tiny traces of gasoline, lighter fluid, and other accelerants that may have been used to intentionally start a fire. “Canine teams have proven to be the most effective tool that fire investigators can use to locate accelerants,” according to the U.S. Fire Administration.

“In the instance where the scene is safe, I’ll determine where the point of origin is and then I’ll dig out that area, and then Hansel will come in and sniff out the area that I’ve dug out,” Van Leer told News 12. “If he sits, then I’ll take evidence. If he doesn’t sit, then it most likely was not an intentionally set fire.”

Van Leer said Hansel is super excited about his new job. “When I put on his harness and I tell him, ‘Do you want to go to work?’ he literally does laps in his crate,” he told News 12.

“Hansel has been through hell and back, and absolutely needed to find his niche, his person — and Fireman Van Leer is that person and his job,” Skaziak told News 12. “Now he’s going to have a purpose.”

Not only that, but Hansel will also be an ambassador for his often misunderstood breed. His work will “really help change the minds of a lot of people” regarding Pit Bulls, New Jersey Police K9 Association President Kenneth Sacavitch told News 12.

To make a donation to help other rescued dogs “have a purpose,” visit the Throw Away Dogs Project website.

Photo: CBS Philly/YouTube

How to Help the 276 Dogs Rescued from New Jersey Hoarders

JUNE 8, 2016 UPDATE: The first of the rescued dogs was adopted today, NJ.com reports, even as more dogs were still being removed from the house. Two adult dogs and two puppies were rescued today, bringing the total to 280 dogs. As the dogs are cleared medically, they are becoming available for new forever homes.

“We’re so happy today we’re able to get this first dog out the door,” Ross Licitra, chief of law enforcement for the Monmouth County SPCA (MCSPCA), told NJ.com. “And it’s a new beginning.”

The dogs are being adopted out on a first-come, first-serve basis; there are no waiting lists. For information about adopting them, visit the websites of the MCSPCA, Associated Humane Societies and St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center. 

In perhaps the worst case of dog hoarding in the state’s history, 276 dogs were rescued Friday from what authorities called “deplorable conditions” in a New Jersey house.

As investigators wearing hazmat gear walked through the house in Howell, N.J., a dog gave birth to four puppies on a countertop. There were holes in the walls, in which some of the dogs were living — and officials from the fire department had to use thermal-imaging cameras to find them.

“We at Associated Humane Societies have been involved with rescuing animals from hoarding situations many, many times in the past, but this many dogs in one home is astounding, even for us,” wrote the shelter, based in Forked River, N.J., which took in 60 of the dogs.

The unidentified middle-aged couple living at the house are facing “an enormous amount of charges,” Ross Licitra, chief of law enforcement for the Monmouth County SPCA, which also took in many of the dogs, told NJ.com.

All the dogs are in fair condition, but most of them are infested with fleas. Licitra called it a “crime of omission.” He believes the couple let the situation get out of hand.

The dogs are mostly small breeds, including Pugs, Yorkies and Chihuahuas, and they will soon need new forever homes. They are currently being cared for by St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center as well as the Associated Humane Societies and Monmouth County SPCA.

Heather Cammissa, president and CEO of St. Hubert’s, told NJ.com some of the dogs may be ready for adoption early this week.

“They’ve been around other animals, obviously, just not a lot of people,” she said.

The Associated Humane Societies wrote on its Facebook page yesterday that the “adorable and sweet little dogs have led a lifetime of isolation and have lived in filth and squalor. Once everything settles down for them, we will begin to assess their personalities and work on getting them to overcome their fears.”

In the meantime, its phones have been “ringing off the hook” since Friday, Sgt. Kevin Rooney told NJ.com.

The shelters caring for the 276 dogs can really use our help. Every dog needs “vaccinations, medical clearance, spay or neuter, food, water and shelter,” according to the Monmouth County SPCA. “The average cost for an animal at the shelter is $20 per day.”

Here are links to the shelters’ donation pages:

Photo via Facebook

Rescued Pit Bulls Save 3-Year-Old Girl from Bear

As a 3-year-old girl played in her Long Valley, N.J., backyard yesterday morning with Chief, one of her family’s four rescued Pit Bulls, a 400-pound bear that was well known in the neighborhood climbed over a fence.

“Usually the dogs will chase him off and he’ll climb over the fence and wait (for the dogs) to come inside,” the girl’s mom, Emily Wagner, told the Long Valley Patch. “He’s very smart.”

However, the bear wasn’t so smart yesterday.

“I looked up and the bear was about 15 feet from her and walking right toward her,” Wagner said. “The bear was between us. Chief heard her scream and immediately grabbed the bear’s back leg, at which point the bear turned and bit Chief’s face and leg.”

Wagner ran and grabbed her daughter, while the other three Pit Bulls helped Chief chase the bear away.

By the time police arrived, the bear had disappeared into the nearby woods.

Chief is okay, Wagner wrote on the Long Valley Patch Facebook page this morning.

“Fish and Game informed me that it’s mating season for bears, and they’re more active during the day,” she wrote. “Just a heads up to be vigilant with children and pets outside.”

According to the Patch, local police advised residents to call their non-emergency line to report bears coming too closely to their properties, and to call 911 in case of emergencies.

Photo via Facebook (from left: Chief, Chloe, Mack and Idget)

Idiot Who Did Donuts on Frozen River Indicted for Drowning of Dog

 

In the early hours of March 1, Andrew Mayer of Toms River, N.J., somehow thought it was a good idea to drive his truck out to the middle of the frozen Toms River and do donuts (drive around in tight circles). He brought along Rolo, his 2-year-old Boxer/Lab mix.

When his truck crashed through the ice, Mayer managed to crawl out of it, but he could not pull Rolo from the cab.

The U.S. Coast Guard, New Jersey State Police, local police and other responders spent 10 hours — and hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayers’ money — searching for the truck. They finally found it the next morning, with Rolo’s body inside.

In addition to criminal mischief, careless driving and pollution charges, the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NJ SPCA) charged Mayer with one count of third-degree failure to provide proper care by recklessly endangering an animal’s life.

Today, four months after Rolo’s death, Mayer was indicted for third-degree animal cruelty in the death of his dog and third-degree criminal mischief for causing a substantial interruption in public emergency services, according to a news release from the Ocean County prosecutor’s office.

His acts “purposely, knowingly or recklessly failed to provide necessary care for and protection of his dog, Rolo, from harm by driving his pickup truck onto the frozen Toms River, and as a result, the vehicle cracked through the ice and his dog died,” the news release states.

“Mayer then failed to notify authorities of this incident when he got safely to shore, resulting in a huge rescue operation that took place for hours involving the United States Coast Guard’s aviation unit, the New Jersey State Police aviation unit, NJ State Police/local marine units, multiple local police departments, fire companies and first aid squads from Toms River, Beachwood, Pine Beach and Island Heights.”

The most Mayer faces is up to five years in state prison for each charge.

Mayer’s supporters insisted he did his best to get Rolo out of the truck.

“He did almost kill himself trying to save his dog,” his cousin’s fiancée, Helecia Morris, told NJ.com March 3. “He’s completely devastated. His truck, his dog — everything is in this bay.”

One week later, the Asbury Park Press reported that Mayer appeared in a Toms River municipal courtroom, where Judge Damian G. Murray read the charges against him.

At that time the judge offered Mayer a public defender, but just as Mayer had made the brilliant decision to do donuts on a frozen river, he decided he will instead represent himself in court.

“Just so you understand, you have third-degree charges against you, which could carry substantial penalties in these matters, as well as a criminal history that could follow you for a considerable period of time,” Murray warned him, according to the Asbury Park Press.

Along with that criminal history, Mayer has had 14 traffic violations and 12 suspensions of his driver’s license.

No, Mayer insisted, he would “absolutely” represent himself. The prosecuting attorney will be Ocean County Assistant Prosecutor Heidi Tannenbaum-Newman.

Mayer was released today on his own recognizance to appear in court on a future date, according to the Ocean County prosecutor’s office.

Photos via Twitter; Twitter

NJ Cop at Wrong Address Kills German Shepherd

Just like most dogs, Igor Vukobratovic’s 5-year-old German Shepherd, Otto, would bark like mad whenever someone knocked on the door of their Wyckoff, N.J., home.

Strangely, Otto apparently didn’t make a peep yesterday afternoon when police officer Kyle Ferreira said he knocked on the door. Ferreira was responding to a report about a break-in — but he was at the wrong house, across the street from the address reported to police.

When no one answered the door, Ferreira said he entered the backyard through an unlocked gate. He saw a window on the ground floor of the house was open, so he drew his revolver.

“A large, growling German Shepherd lunged out of the open window, bit the officer on his right foot and latched onto his boot,” Wyckoff Police Chief Benjamin Fox told NJ.com.

Ferreira fired four shots at Otto, two of which fatally struck him.

When Vukobratovic returned from the mall a short time later, he wondered why there were patrol cars parked outside his house.

He ran to the backyard, where Otto was lying dead in a pool of blood. “What did you do? What did you do?” he screamed at the police officers.

Vukobratovic’s father, Goran Vukobratovic, later told NJ.com there was no way Otto didn’t make his presence known when Ferreira arrived at the house.

“If he knocked or rang the bell, the dog would bark like crazy,” Goran said. “That’s the threshold.” He thinks Otto jumped out the window, which his son leaves open for him, when he heard the gate open.

Igor Vukobratovic told NJ.com he was considering suing the police department. “I’m just looking at lawyers right now but I don’t know,” he said.

Ferreira was not injured, but was distraught, Fox told CBS New York. “The whole situation is very sad and very unfortunate,” he said.

Training Cops to Humanely Deal with Pet Dogs

Sadly, cases of police officers shooting pet dogs are not unusual. To prevent these incidents, law enforcement officers can be educated about dog behavior and learn how to deal with pet dogs without firing their weapons.

In 2013, Colorado became the first state to pass a “Dog Protection Act,” which requires this training. Texas could be next, if House Bill 593 is passed.

In California, where in March a popular therapy dog named Burberry was shot and killed by an officer who was also at the wrong address, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles (spcaLA) offers the class “Dog Behavior for Law Enforcement” to all police officers in the state.

“When an officer shoots a pet dog, it is traumatic for the officer, the animal and the community — something we want to mitigate as much as is possible,” said spcaLA President Madeline Bernstein in a press release earlier this year.

Photo via Twitter

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