News

Killer Lab mix's exile in limbo

By Ethan Forman
Staff writer
Published: June 22, 2009

DANVERS — Sharon's fate has yet to be determined.

Sharon is the black Labrador retriever mix who killed a miniature schnauzer named Jassie in April.

The dog's owner, Tom Halter of Pine Street, went before selectmen last week to update the board on the search to find an out-of-town farm to take in his family's dog, so she does not have to be euthanized. The board voted to exile Sharon from Danvers during a rare June 2 dog hearing.

Some friends and family have offered to take the dog in, Halter said, but the family had been pinning its hopes on a cousin of a family friend who lives in a rural setting in Maine. The cousin has been tough to reach.

"Any assistance is greatly appreciated," Halter told the board.

On June 2, the Halters were given two weeks to find a new home for the dog after Sharon broke from an outdoor run and mauled the smaller dog while owner Mark Nestor walked her on Lantern Lane on April 26.

During the attack, Nestor tried to save his dog, and Sharon bit him multiple times, for which he received treatment at Beverly Hospital's emergency room. Halter was able to call his dog off Jassie, but she had to be put down because of her injuries.

Public Health Director Peter Mirandi has been working with the Halter family to find the dog a new home. The Danvers animal control officer has temporarily taken control of the dog in the meantime, he said.

"The owners have released the dog to the animal control officer," Mirandi said, and she will keep it at her kennel for 10 days. "We will try to place it through our Strays in Need resources. Those people are the experts on placements. This is not a typical Strays in Need function. This is a most unusual issue. We don't have vicious dog issues that often."

The mission of Danvers-based Strays in Need Inc. is to place homeless cats and dogs, not to find homes for pets whose owners are unable to care for them.

After 10 days, if a suitable placement cannot be found for Sharon, then a "new disposition" would have to be found for the dog, Mirandi said.

There are a couple of places officials are investigating, Mirandi said, and people should not call Strays in Need or health officials with offers to take in the dog.

"We are looking for a suitable placement, and we are not interested in solicitation," Mirandi said.

Selectman Mike Powers said animal control officials in the community where the dog would go should be made aware of the dog's presence.

Staff writer Ethan Forman can be reached at 978-338-2673 or by e-mail at eforman@salemnews.com.