SALEM — A 4-year-old border collie named Nietzsche has been ordered put down after biting three people, including a child.
"Oh, my God," said Anjoli "Angie" West of Salem, Nietzsche's owner, who learned of the order yesterday afternoon. "I can't let that happen."
But city officials say they have no choice. The dog, they say, is just too dangerous.
Barring an appeal within the next 10 days, the dog will be put to sleep at a local animal hospital.
The black-and-white border collie bit her first victim, an 11-year-old girl, in 2006 and then a 27-year-old woman a few months after that. Those two incidents led the city to order that West muzzle the 33-pound dog while out in public.
There were no further problems until last June.
When she lost the muzzle last spring, West decided not to replace it immediately.
"I wasn't aware the muzzle order was forever," she said. "I figured they had to mail me something."
But on June 18, outside Walgreens on New Derby Street, Nietzsche bit a Newton woman on the leg. A photo included in the court file shows a large, deep bite.
West said she wasn't aware that her dog was close enough to someone to bite, though she acknowledged that the area near Walgreens is often crowded. An earlier biting took place there, as well.
And that appears to be part of the problem.
After a hearing before Salem police Capt. John Jodoin last month, the dog was ordered destroyed. The dog was sent to Danvers Animal Hospital.
West appealed to a Salem District Court clerk magistrate. But after a hearing Thursday, the magistrate said she agreed with Jodoin that the dog is dangerous. Assistant Clerk Magistrate Ann Cocci said it was a difficult decision, but said it was a question of public safety given the number of incidents.
West said she was surprised.
"The magistrate sounded sympathetic," she said.
West said yesterday that she will appeal to a judge. She's even got a new muzzle for Nietzsche, whom she hasn't seen for a month.
"I've wanted one of these dogs since I was 4 years old," said West, who picked out the dog at a pet store nearly four years ago and paid $950 for her, a huge sum for a woman who lives on disability income.
The dog, named for her favorite philosopher ("She was either going to be called Nietzsche or Fritz," West said) has seen her through some tough personal struggles. West suffers from anxiety and fears that the dog picked up on her jumpiness.
But she also has come to rely on the dog for comfort as she rebuilds her life.
"That dog's seen me through a lot," she said.
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