Investigation into alleged dog attack at Gyro Park has been closed

Lethbridge Animal Services says it has closed its investigation looking into a dog attack at Gyro Park earlier this month that resulted in the dog who was attacked being put down.

An animal control officer told Global News the investigation was closed because the evidence it gathered was inconclusive.

“We did have a couple of witnesses come forward who live in and around the area — some who had home surveillance systems,” Skylar Plourde, an animal control officer, said on Friday. “Unfortunately, no personal witness statements and no video really matched up to what we were looking for.”

Barb Balfour is the owner of Norman, the Jack Russell terrier that was put down. She told Global News her husband Tony was walking their two dogs, Timbit and Norman, when another dog who was off leash ran towards them. She said it happened at about 9:30 p.m. on Jan. 18 in Gyro Park.

Balfour said she told Lethbridge Animal Services that the dog who charged towards Norman was large and tan colour.

Although still heartbroken, Balfour said she and her husband are trying to move past blaming someone and want to focus on better education and care from other dog owners.

While Balfour did not get into details about the nature of Norman’s injuries, she said that when they took him to the vet, they were given the option of having him undergo surgery or putting Norman down. She said the fact that Norman was 15 years old played a factor in their decision to put him down.

“I believe that we would have tried a lot harder to save him if he had been younger.”

Plourde said although the case is now closed, by no means does that indicate Lethbridge Animal Services believes the report was false.

“We often compare it to a car accident,” Plourde said. “It all happened so quick that we don’t expect people to remember exact descriptions of people and exact descriptions of the dog, and obviously with it being dark, it’s going to be more difficult.”

As a result of the incident, both Balfour and Lethbridge Animal Services are reminding dog owners to be vigilant and to follow all posted signs when in a public space.