Dr. LUANNE JENSEN
As the President of the New Albany-Floyd County Animal Control Authority, I feel I need to make a statement about the events that occurred over the last two weeks concerning the seizure of Katherine Fraze’s dogs and their stay at the animal shelter.
There is a lot of emotion around this issue, because everyonae involved wants the best outcome for the dogs that were impounded. That includes the shelter staff, the Board members, the couple who sought medical attention for their bites, as well as Fraze supporters.
It is clear to me that everyone that showed up at our Thursday night meeting has the best interests of the impounded dogs in their hearts, but just didn’t seem to be able to get on the same page.
I am particularly annoyed by the inadequate presentation of the facts, especially concerning the safety issue that prompted the seizure of the dogs. Everyone needs to look at the facts with a cooler frame of mind. Ms. Fraze runs a rescue and adoption sanctuary for dogs. She invites people out to her sanctuary to view dogs for adoption. These dogs run freely as a “pack” on her property, but are not restricted by fencing from leaving her property. That living arrangement causes them to behave differently than they would as individuals. They must compete for personal space, food, water and attention. They also will be very defensive of their territory, which can make them behave in a defensive manner that can result in fighting among themselves and biting newcomers to the territory — dog or human. That is just being “canine.”
Ms. Fraze is obviously aware of this, because she asks human visitors (and I quote her) to “keep their arms folded across their chest and not speak to the dogs until they settle down.” She also states, “that you should keep your hands in your pockets, because some of her dogs are mitten-snatchers.”
In my professional opinion as a veterinarian, that suggests to me that they will bite your hands if they are exposed. Now, it is time to look at the facts that caused this chain of events.
Two people, who had good intentions to adopt a dog, were invited out to view the dogs for adoption. (And for the record, I know them personally as their veterinarian, and they take exceptional care of their pets.) They were both bitten multiple times by dog(s) in the pack. (I have seen their injuries and they are serious and could have resulted in life-threatening infections if not attended to by a doctor.) They needed to have those wounds tended to by a medical doctor. By law, doctors are required to report dog bites to the local Health Department. The Health Department is then required, by law, to visit the site and assess the health of the dog and establish a ten-day period of quarantine. The dog(s) can remain on the premises as long as it is completely confined. Ms. Fraze could not comply with this requirement. She was also unable to identify the dog(s) that had been involved in the attack.
Additionally, the Health Department found her personal living conditions unfit for habitation until/unless certain repairs are made.
Because Ms. Fraze could not keep her dogs contained safely for the 10-day period of the quarantine, the Board of Health requested Animal Control to remove all the dogs from the property for quarantine. That is their job.
Furthermore, not all of her dogs had current rabies vaccinations. Since they are free to roam on 130 acres, her dogs are exposed to the wildlife population, where the reservoir for rabies exists at all times in the state of Indiana. (FYI: The Indiana Board of Animal Health monitors rabies in the bat population on a yearly basis. The percentage of bats carrying rabies is ten percent.) There is no cure for rabies. It can infect any mammal, and it is always around. That is why we vaccinate our domestic pets and some livestock for the prevention of the disease. If the dog(s) that bit the couple came down with rabies, and we allowed the other dogs to stay roaming her property, we would have a huge potential rabies epidemic. That is a serious public safety issue. That is what the New Albany-Floyd County Animal Control Authority has to be concerned about. It is our job.
It was never the Authority’s intention to allow all the animals to be euthanized. Everyone on our Board is a loving pet owner. It is not our intention to put Ms. Fraze out of business, but she needs to keep her dogs and the people she invites out to her sanctuary, safe. Fencing and keeping up rabies vaccinations would solve that problem. I feel certain her supporters could help her with that.
Let’s reiterate: People were injured by some of the Fraze dogs. The doctor and the Board of Health and the NAFC Animal Control Authority reacted in the manner they are required by law.
And if anyone is interested, the humans are recovering from their physical injuries, but I suggest all the negative blog posts about them cease, because they are hurtful and unwarranted. They were equally concerned about the outcome of all the dogs, when they found out they had all been impounded. But only a few of us were concerned about the humans who actually suffered the injuries.
President, New Albany-Flody County Anmial County Control Authority
