Dog owner charged with assaulting council officer

By WAYNE THOMPSON

A council's conflict resolution officer was allegedly held in a headlock by a dog owner after a meeting to discuss a dog turned nasty.

The officer, John Verry, was freed from the hold by a colleague.

They held the angry dog owner for 10 minutes until the police arrived at the Rodney District Council offices in Orewa and took him away to be charged with assault.

Mr Verry said yesterday he was unharmed after the struggle, although at the time his windpipe was restricted.

The incident occurred at a meeting called on Thursday by Mr Verry after council officers seized a rottweiler dog which had bitten a child on the thigh and ripped the trousers off another at Orewa.

Mr Verry said the dog owner was "not pleased" when told the council was keeping the dog and taking him to court under the Dog Control Act.

"Then in fairness I had to tell him that if he was convicted under Section 57 of the act, the court, unless there were exceptional circumstances, would order the destruction of the dog.

"At that stage he got over-emotional, stood up and had a verbal fly at me ... I didn't think it would go too much further than that.

Mr Verry believed it was his moral duty to pass on his decisions in person.

This practice had already cost him - last year all four of his car tyres were slashed outside his home.

"But the last thing you can do is to cave in to intimidation."

The dog owner is defending assault charges in the North Shore District Court.

Dog control agencies say Mr Verry's experience highlights the worsening abuse and violence experienced by officers.

New laws in December put more onus on councils to prevent danger from dogs. Councils have stepped up enforcement and as a result more dogs are being seized or muzzled - raising the risk of meeting angry owners.

Officers are taking advice to be accompanied by police when they go to homes to take dogs.

Auckland City Council compliance manager Jeff Atherfold said officers had 25 unpleasant incidents in the past year.

Three officers were assaulted and one had a gun pointed at him.

Barry Gillingwater, of DSS Animal Management Services, said verbal abuse was a daily bugbear of its Manukau City contract.

In the past year, he said, an officer was knocked unconscious and suffered concussion, a cracked spine and dog bites.

Three death threats were made against staff.

"There's an element which does not feel laws apply to them, and we deal with them daily."