The Lewis County Dangerous Animal Designation Board declared a 4-year-old German shepherd mix named Theo to be dangerous last month after it escaped its owner’s back yard near Winlock and killed a neighbor's cat named Lily.
The board convened on Monday, Sept. 14, to hear testimony from the owners of the animals. After a short hearing and less than five minutes of deliberation, the board decided unanimously that Theo meets the criteria set aside in Lewis County code to be declared a dangerous animal.
The allegations of the killing were confirmed by testimony and supported with security camera footage submitted by the owner of the deceased cat, Zachary Shrigley, and his fiancee, Jamie Shere, to a community service officer with the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.
According to testimony from Shere, which was confirmed by Community Service Officer David Sims, who viewed the video, the footage shows Theo lunging at the cat without provocation before returning to the frame with the cat in his mouth, shaking it back and forth for roughly 20 seconds.
“You could see Theo coming back into frame shaking the cat vigorously until he finally lets her go,” Shere said.
Shere added that after the cat was released, it attempted to retaliate against Theo twice before the dog was scared off and the cat crawled out of frame.
According to testimony from all parties and a law enforcement report submitted with the case, a Lewis County Sheriff’s Office deputy responded to the Shrigley residence on July 18 after Shere called the police in response to the incident.
In the report, the deputy recounted arriving on the property as Shrigley was speaking with the owners of the dog, Christina and Philip Nelson. At the time, the deputy separated Shrigley and Philip Nelson as they were arguing over the cat's death. The deputy described Shrigley as "distraught."
During testimony, Shrigley described first discovering Theo on his property, which he added was an unwelcome yet common occurrence, and taking the dog by the collar to return him to his owner’s property before discovering his cat was dead.
According to the deputy’s report, Shrigley had reportedly shut the dog in a nearby shed and Christina Nelson reported that he had put his deceased cat on the hood of the Nelsons’ car as they arrived, informing them that their dog had killed his pet.
During the hearing, Christina admitted that Theo had escaped from her yard despite her attempts to patch the fence and keep the animal contained, but maintained that the dog was not capable of killing the cat and asked the board to consider the dog's well-behaved history.
“He’s never been aggressive at any point,” Christina Nelson said. “He’d been a very wonderful family dog. He’s good with children. He’s good with other dogs. He’s been around other cats.”
Despite Christina Nelson’s statement, the board ruled unanimously to declare Theo as dangerous, but reminded the owners that the declaration is “not a death sentence” and that Theo can be maintained at her residence if properly cared for and secured.
“You have the option to protect the dog and enclose him properly,” said Jon Sargent, a member of the board and the hearing administrator. “In doing so, you can still keep your dog … It does sound like there’s a history here. I hope that can be resolved and you guys can work together. Good fences make good neighbors.”
Established in 2018, the Lewis County Dangerous Animal Designation Board was founded to “enhance public participation in the dangerous animal designation process,” according to a county announcement. The board meets on the first Monday of each month, except for when the schedule conflicts with a holiday.
“County residents who receive a dangerous animal notification from Lewis County are required to attend a hearing during which — based on evidence presented — the hearings officer(s) will determine whether an animal is to be declared dangerous,” the county said in a statement.
Per county code, animals deemed dangerous must either be euthanized or required to follow a strict set of rules.
