New Wave Of Sightings Marks Ongoing Effort To Capture Plano's Stray Dogs
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PLANO (CBSDFW.COM) - Nearly eight months after a pair of stray dogs attacked a Plano jogger, the dogs remain on the loose. Now as more attacks and sightings continue, the city is asking anyone who sees them to immediately call 911.
Catching the dogs is proving harder than anyone expected. Animal control says the dogs have learned to use the alleys to make quick escapes, and that's just one of the ways they're outsmarting residents.
Plano Animal Services is convinced the dogs' owner dumped them at some point. The genders aren't known for sure, but the family of one victim has decided on a couple of names.
"We're just going to call them Bonnie and Clyde or something like that 'cause they're just running away from the people," said Dray Pavey.
Pavey can laugh now that his son's leg is healing, but the scars from where one dog bit him aren't the only reminder of the painful attack.
"We got a bill today. It was about $3800 just for the shots, and that's after insurance, so between however many bitings that there's been, it's probably $40,000 worth of medical bills for lots of people," said Pavey.
Twelve-year-old Eli Pavey is among eight victims believed to have been attacked by the same pair of dogs. One is likely an Australian Cattle dog following its instinct to herd cattle and nipping at the back of heels of joggers and anyone who runs away from it.
"It can't be this hard to catch two dogs, but they're smart and stuff which makes it harder," said Eli Pavey.
Animal control officers insist no one is as eager to catch the dogs as they are.
Over the last eight months the pair seem to have learned to recognize the sound of city trucks. That's why officers have started using their personal vehicles to chase them.
The city is asking for the public's help calling in sightings, but they urge everyone not to get too close to the dogs.
"I saw this lady, and I rolled down the window, and I said, 'hey have you seen some stray dogs,' and she was like, 'yeah my husband is actually trying to feed them.' And I was like, 'you need to get ahold of your husband and tell him don't feed these dogs,'" said Dray Pavey.
Since August more than 50 sightings over 20 square miles haven't been enough to stop the attacks.
"It's just important to get as much information out as possible, so that the more people that know about these dogs, the better," said Dray Pavey.
The Pavey family says they feel like the city is doing everything it can considering the amount of ground they have to cover, so they hope the public will double efforts to report sightings.
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