Nationwide Insurance agent Lula Belle George has maintained an office in her home on South Jefferson Street for several years and says she’s always known that several neighbors have vicious dogs chained in their yards.
But twice in the past six weeks pit bulls have entered her yard and attacked George or her pets. During the latest attack, Thursday, her husband, Larry, had to pump seven bullets from a .22 rifle into the dog’s head to get him away from her.
One city councilman said Friday he will do all he can to either ban the dogs from the city limits or make it so expensive for owners when their vicious dogs get out that they will make sure they are securely penned or chained.
“We’re going to work until we can come up with an ordinance that makes it so tough on them that they can’t afford to let their dog out,” said Councilman Harold Wales. “This is the second or third time they’ve attacked Lula Belle. My greatest fear is that next time a child will be killed. I don’t want to sit back then and say I wish I would have done something.”
George wasn’t injured Thursday, but in the previous attack, which occurred when a pit bull approached her as she was stepping out of her pickup truck, her knuckles and ligaments were torn in her hand as she protected her face.
“This time, it didn’t get that close because my legs saved my body,” said George.
George said she had seen two pit bulls and “a long-legged beagle” enter her yard Thursday when she let her two Chihuahuas out for a walk.
“They began to chase the Chihuahuas and I screamed for them and ran in the house, and my husband got his gun,” she said. “They ran in the barn and killed five cats and three chickens. I’m sure then ate the five baby cats. All I found is a couple of their legs. And two grown cats are missing.”
George said one of the pit bulls and the long-legged beagle ran off, but the other pit bull climbed to the top of the barn in pursuit of more cats. She said the remaining pit bull was badly scarred as though it had been in numerous fights.
“My husband fired seven shots and he was still snarling and snapping at us,” said George.
She said a deputy came from the Sheriff’s Department and helped her husband haul the dog’s body out of the barn and took photos of the destruction. She said she asked a neighbor who owned the first dog that attacked her if the latest dog was his, but she said he denied that it was his dog.
“I’m strictly 100-percent in favor of banning pit bulls from this town,” said George.
She said she called Wales, rather than her own councilman, Jimmy Gill, because Wales is a friend and has been outspoken in the past about controlling vicious dogs.
“Harold worked diligently with me on the other attack,” said George. “A human doesn’t have a chance with one of these dogs.”
“I have notified the mayor and all the council, and our attorney Shane Black,” said Wales. “I want us to find what are the toughest laws in this state for vicious animals. One of the problems is you just don’t know how vicious they are until they attack.”
Wales said he hoped to have a tougher animal ordinance ready to introduce at the April 14 meeting.
Local News
Woman attacked twice by pit bull
Councilman pushes new vicious dog regs
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