Death of a dog leads to calls for more leash laws on the North Shore

There are signs on the trail next to Lynn Creek in North Vancouver that say all dogs must be on a leash, so Doreen Manuel thought it was safe to walk her two small Yorkshire Terriers named Sugar and Tyson last month, when a large, loose dog suddenly lunged at her.

“It just grabbed Tyson by the stomach and shook him like a toy, and he was screaming and screaming, it sounded like a child screaming,” Manuel said. “And I was screaming at them, ‘Get your dog, get your dog!’ And I was trying to shield Sugar. Finally, they managed to get the dog to drop Tyson.”

Manuel says the owners of the big dog were shocked and apologized profusely.

“She said, ‘What can I do, what can I do?’ And I said, ‘First of all, you should have kept your dog on a leash.’ And she said he would never walk without a leash again. I immediately felt that these are responsible people. And then I saw the man loosen his grip, as if he was going to let go, and the dog lunged at us again,” Manuel said.

After exchanging all the information, she picked up her injured Yorkie and took him to an emergency vet. The little dog was immediately operated on but could not be saved.

“At one in the morning they called and said I could come back and say goodbye if I wanted, or I could wait until morning. And I was awake, my adrenaline was so high that I wanted to go see him. So I said goodbye,” Manuel said.

The owners of the loose dog that attacked Tyson offered to cover Manuel’s vet bills, but she said so far they’ve only paid $3,000 of $5,600. She would like the rest back and is calling on the City of North Vancouver to enforce its own leash laws.

“I want people to start getting tickets because if a lot of them get tickets they’ll start following the rules. It’s just that right now there are no consequences so they think it’s OK,” Manuel said.

In an email, the City of North Vancouver said: “We are deeply sorry for the loss of Ms. Manuel’s dog. Dog attacks are traumatic events and the loss of a pet can have severe emotional consequences for victims.”

The statement said the city was investigating the attack on Tyson.

“Once the investigation is complete and depending on the results, staff will take a variety of actions ranging from issuing a written warning, a ticket and/or classifying the offending dog as vicious under the Dog Tax and Regulation Ordinance.”

The city said law enforcement officers will patrol the parks and educate dog owners about the leash laws, but Manuel says she has never seen that happen on Lynn Creek Trail.

“I don’t know if I can come back here,” she said. “I don’t think it’s fair to us. Because we live in this area too and we should be able to come here and feel safe, but I don’t feel safe.”

Manuel is an indigenous man and a boarding school survivor.

“I belong to this country, I should be able to move around safely. I shouldn’t have to worry about things like this, and now I’m scared,” she said.

Since the attack on Tyson, Manuel takes Sugar outside in a carrier instead of walking her on a leash.

“I’m afraid of big dogs,” she said. “Even the friendly dogs, I get nervous every time one comes near me. We haven’t gone for a walk since.”