Police training for dog encounters is inadequate, say experts — but owners also bear responsibility
CBC
Police need more training on how to deal with dogs, according to those who have studied the issue — and are reacting to the recent fatal shooting of a pet pit bull by Windsor police.
"(The training) is actually pretty poor," said Jim Crosby, a former police officer and professional dog trainer who founded the U.S.-based agency Canine Aggression Consulting LTD.
"It needs to be mandated. All of the provinces in Canada and all of the states in the U.S. should be requiring dog encounter training for their police officers. Specifically, how to avoid using needless force, and especially unnecessary deadly force, in those encounters."
Michele Croft, the west end resident in whose apartment the dog was shot, is still shocked by how Windsor police dealt with Zeus — an adult pit bull mix belonging to her nephew.
"It's an absolute disgrace," Croft told CBC Windsor.
Croft's account of what happened on the afternoon of June 19 differs from what Windsor police have disclosed about it.
According to police, officers responded to a report of an adult male having a mental health crisis. When they arrived at the apartment, the man resisted them, fought with them and threatened them.
Police said that during the incident, the man directed his dog to bite the officers. Police described the dog as "aggressive," and said it attacked officers.
An officer fatally shot the dog after non-lethal efforts were ineffective, police said.
Croft said the man in crisis was her nephew, who moved in with her six months ago due to his lack of housing. The dog came with him. "(My nephew) has had him since he was a baby," Croft said.
According to Croft, it's an "absolute lie" that her nephew instructed Zeus to attack police, and she is adamant that no attack occurred.
While Croft acknowledges that Zeus was "jumping up and down" and barking, she feels that wasn't unusual.
"He jumps on me when I come through the door because he's so excited to see me," Croft said. "He was just jumping on them. He was not nipping at them."
"He was just scared, as any dog would have been... I had toys in my hand, trying to coax him into the other room."
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