HOLLAND, MI (WHTC-AM/FM) — Holland resident Rick Van Slooten is a man on a mission — a mission to find the woman whose dog violently attacked his dog Thursday evening.
Van Slooten’s 9-year-old huskey, Shack, needed $2,000 in medical care, so far, he said.
But it’s not about the money, Van Slooten said. He already told a woman on social media who asked for donations for Shack’s care to take that page down.
He’s made a police report and is looking for the dog’s owner, he said, because she needs to step up and take responsibility for her dog’s actions.
The attack happened at 9:30 p.m. Thursday, when Van Slooten and his mom were walking their dogs near the corner of Ninth Street and Columbia Avenue. They saw a couple of loose dogs, including a boxer-type dog weighing between 80 and 100 pounds, near a young man and woman sitting in the parking lot behind Skiles Tavern, 154 E. Eighth St.
The boxer-type dog rushed toward Shack and began biting it. Van Slooten said. He punched the larger dog about the head, trying to get it to let go. At this point, he said, they were on the grass in front of the ParkView Apartments, 161 Ninth St.
Van Slooten described the attacking dog’s owner as a “tall, lanky blonde Caucasian woman, about 6-feet tall, who appeared to be in her early 20s.” Her companion was a dark-haired, dark-eyed white male, he said. who also appeared to be in his early 20s. Despite a promise to secure their dog in their nearby white conversion van, the duo left the scene.
The City of Holland has an ordinance requiring pet owners to keep their dogs on a leash or in an enclosed yard. Van Slooten say he’s already contacted his city councilman, Jay Peters, and plans to speak up at a city council meeting to ask why leash laws aren’t being enforced.
Anyone with information can report what they know to the Holland police, (616) 355-1100, where Van Slooten has filed a police report.
