For more than a year,听Amy Wesselink’s sons felt like they had to look over their shoulder while playing outside.
There’s a reason why they’re on edge: In June 2024, one of her sons was viciously attacked by a neighbour’s dog. Now, she’s calling for changes to 色色啦’s dangerous dog bylaws and enforcement, saying the ongoing fallout from the gruesome attack 鈥 and the continued presence of the animal in her apartment building听over that time 鈥 has left her feeling helpless and exhausted.
Last summer, Wesselink said she was in the kitchen prepping dinner when she asked her two young sons, then seven and nine, to take the garbage down the hall to the chute in their west-end apartment.
Then she heard the screams.
Darting to her door, she said she was met with a neighbour and their dog confronting both her sons in a situation听she called sheer chaos.
With all the commotion it wasn’t immediately clear her older son, Beau, had been injured until he drew attention to a bloody spot over his groin on his听sweatpants.
“I looked down and could actually see where it had ripped 鈥 and I could see what was underneath the skin,” she told the Star, adding she rushed her son to St. Joseph’s Hospital, where he received eight stitches. “There were little puncture wounds 鈥 because when the dog latched on, the owner pulled it off.”
Despite charges against the owner and a dangerous dog order issued by the city, Wesselink said she听is frustrated over the response and the ongoing听legal process. There’s also been a financial cost; she’s moved her family to a different floor in hopes of avoiding further encounters with the animal and its owner.听
And while she said she does not believe any dog is “born bad” 鈥 her family has a dog, too 鈥 Wesselink听can’t understand how an animal that has already bitten someone, especially a child, is听legally allowed to stay with the same owner in the same building where the attack occurred for this long.
Wesselink said she’s been told by police the owner of the dog has since agreed听to move out by the end of the month 鈥 nearly 15 months after the attack.听
Wesselink’s ordeal is one of multiple dog attacks making headlines in the city in recent months. Earlier this month, a dog allegedly bit a 9-year old girl near an off-leash park, requiring stitches on her face and side of her body, and in March 2024, a child was mauled in a park by a dog that had already been deemed dangerous by the city.
The city’s Animal Services听confirmed to the Star a dangerous dog order has been issued for the dog that bit Wesselink’s son. A warning has been placed on the city’s Dangerous Dogs Order map for the dog 鈥 named “Zelos” 鈥 which describes it as an American bulldog of the mastiff type, labelling its bite severity as “severe.”
According to court documents obtained by the Star, the dog owner, a 60-year-old woman, is facing criminal charges stemming from two separate incidents involving the same dog.
The dog owner is being accused of allowing a dangerous dog to exit the threshold of their apartment unit and causing bodily harm to Wesselink’s son on June 24, 2024. The dog owner is also facing charges of uttering threats of violence using the dog, allegedly toward Wesselink’s听other son, in an incident the following day.
The accused did not respond to requests for comment by the Star.听
Wesselink wants to see improvements to the city鈥檚 . Currently, the map does not pull up individual searches based on addresses 鈥 only postal codes 鈥 making it challenging for residents to get the full picture of how many dangerous dogs might be living in an apartment building or area of the city.
The information displayed is also not helpful, she argues. The map includes the first name of the dog, a general location of where the bite occurred, but no photo.
“How many people are attacked by dogs and know what the first name of the animal is?” Wesselink asked.
In an email statement to the Star, Elise von Scheel,听the city’s听senior communications adviser, said, 鈥淭he City of 色色啦 takes all reports of dog bites very seriously and diligently investigates allegations, issuing Dangerous Dog Orders where required.鈥
“When the dangerous act is not found to be severe and is the first on record with the City, education will be provided to the dog owner,鈥 continued von Scheel. 鈥淎nd depending on the circumstances of the act, a written warning may be issued or no further action may be needed.鈥
鈥淚n cases where a dog is responsible for an extremely serious attack or has repeat incidents, Animal Services may recommend the dog be euthanized,鈥 said von Scheel, adding charges are laid and brought before the courts to determine the outcome for the dog.
In severe cases, the dog owner will be issued a sign听that they must place on the entrance of their unit or home, an order to neuter the animal and a directive to keep the dog muzzled at all times when it’s outside its home.
Wesselink said she has witnessed听the dog owner not abiding by the order for the dog to wear a muzzle.听The responsibility, according to Wesselink, falls to her to contact building management and report what she saw,听then notify Animal Services to request an investigation, which she feels is time consuming and not effective in enforcing muzzle orders.
Five months after听Wesselink’s son was attacked, the dog owner was also charged and convicted for failing to muzzle the dog听in an elevator,听said Jasmine Herzog-Evans, manager enforcement and mobile response unit of 色色啦 Animal Services.
Wesselink said 色色啦 police has advised her to call 911 if she or her sons encounter the dog after Sept. 30.
The office of Davenport Coun. Alejandro Bravo, where Wesselink lives, told the Star in an emailed statement that while they empathize with the family, there was little they could do to get involved while the case is before the courts. “City councillors do not have the authority to direct or pursue specific enforcement activities.”
- Calvi Leon, Raju Mudhar
In the meantime, Bravo’s office sat down with Wesselink to discuss issues with the current dog bylaws in the city and hear her suggestions for changes.听
In the 2024 city budget, Bravo moved a motion to increase the operating budget by $750,000, “to hire more bylaw officers and Animal Care and Control Officers for dangerous dog response.” The motion was approved and adopted into the 2024 budget.
Wesselink worries people are less likely to file complaints about dangerous dogs, as the process is “so challenging every step of the way.
“Something’s got to be done about this because the system is flawed, it is broken, it does not work,” she said.
As for her sons, the uneasiness she feels when letting them play outside lingers 鈥 at least,听for the time being.听
“The concern is as . . . more people are out with their dogs, this is going to just keep happening.”
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