'Awful thing that's happened': Naperville to review ordinances after recent dog-on-dog attacks
Elizabeth Carroll replayed the horrific event over and over in her mind, trying to figure out what she could have done to protect her tiny dog from a February attack by two much larger dogs.
Nothing, however, could save Lucy that afternoon in Naperville.
In the wake of Lucy's death, Carroll and others are pleading with city officials to review animal control ordinances. The goal is to improve the tracking of dangerous dogs and create stiffer penalties for their owners.
Carroll spoke at Tuesday's city council meeting about her experience. She was joined by Jill Lejsek, who told the story of her Chihuahua being attacked and killed by other dogs.
Carroll and Lejsek want to make sure something is done to help prevent attacks. According to Police Chief Jason Arres, 25 to 30 dog-on-dog attacks are reported each year in the city.
"I knew nothing about the ordinances before this happened," Carroll said. "What I learned is that there's no way to even enforce the laws they do have because nobody knows who the family is, and nobody knows who the dog is.
"We need to do better," she said. "One is with information, and the other is with more penalties on owners that choose to keep dogs deemed dangerous or vicious."
Carroll was walking her 5-year-old Maltese-poodle mix on Feb. 28 when another woman walking three dogs suddenly lost control of them. Two of the dogs charged at Carroll and Lucy.
Carroll held Lucy above her head to keep her safe, but one of the dogs repeatedly bit Carroll's legs and knocked her down. When Lucy fell to the ground, the second dog pounced on her.
A neighbor ran to the scene to pull the dogs off Carroll and Lucy, but the damage was done. Despite Carroll racing to a nearby veterinarian, Lucy didn't survive a crushed rib cage and punctured lung.
After learning one of the attacking dogs was involved in two other biting incidents, Carroll made it her mission to make sure Lucy didn't die in vain. In addition to speaking at Tuesday's city council meeting, Carroll presented a series of ideas to the city council.
She wants a directory and perhaps an online map of dangerous dogs that's accessible to the public. She wants better monitoring of dogs deemed dangerous as well as deterrents for owners of dangerous dogs that would include stiffer fines, higher insurance premiums, and fencing and enclosure requirements.
Council members sympathized with what happened to Carroll and Lejsek, and they asked staff members to investigate possible solutions.
"This is an awful thing that's happened," Mayor Steve Chirico said. "We'll see what we can come up with."
Carroll and Lejsek praised Naperville Animal Control employees for the work they've done on their cases, but both are frustrated that only so much can be accomplished based on current city laws.
In addition to ordinances about dog licensing, leashing and rabies shots, Naperville City Attorney Michael DiSanto said a single biting incident is enough to deem a dog dangerous and enact consequences such as muzzling in public.
"If council so desired ... staff can look at this, and look for best practices of other communities, and bring back recommendations or options for council consideration," DiSanto said.
"I think that's where we're going," Chirico responded.