What kind of crappy reporting is this? The Voice hits a new low. Sounds like a dog lynching is in the works.

I have met this dog. It was on a leash, with his owner. From far away Sylas seems imposing - he is a big dog -, and his mix doesn't help either. I think he's horribly misunderstood. I walked up to him, said hello, and received a wave of rubs and gentle nudges. It must be hard for pet owners to not have a grudge against anyone who causes their pets harm, I get that. But I think that there is a lot of ignorance here, and ignorance often raises the fear factor.

I have to agree with Ned. What kind of reporting IS this?

Praise to Ms Rowles also, for attempting to stay above this "noise".

It is not a dog lynching and we are not acting out of irrational fear. The people on our block who have small pets and small children, who live withing a few hundred feet of this house, have 6 years of very bad experience with this dog. The dog has a bad owner who lets the dog run wild day and night. We do not hold a grudge against this dog - we wish it no harm. But more importantly we wish no harm to the darling children who live on our block. I don't know how we are "misunderstanding" how the dog attacks our pets, not only mine but many of my neighbor's pets, or how it repeatedly threatens to attack us and the small children. We can't sit on our front porch with our small dogs without keeping an eye out for the threatening dog, we can't let our dogs enjoy the sunshine on our fenced in front lawn. The only responsible thing to do as a member of the community is to take action to ensure this dog is relocated.
When I read you are praising the dog owner, you can't possibly know to which house we refer. To put this in a very nice way, the dog lives in a house where the owners appear to have a combination of mental illness and drug abuse. They are on a first name basis with every Mountain View police officer, and the 911 dispatch can send a squad car out based on the address "the crazy people on Hope Street". When my husband and I walked around the few blocks near our house to talk to neighbors about this dog, EVERY person we spoke with knew the dog, had seen it off leash numerous times, had been threatened by the dog, or had their pets attacked by this dog. So, bad dogs do exist, and bad dog owners do exist. I would caution others to try to defend this dog without really knowing the whole story because if we are not successful as a community in solving this problem then we are all guilty of the future consequenses.

A dog lynching in the works? Praise to Ms Rowles for staying above the noise? There is a lot of ignorance here? What rude, ridiculous, and uniformed things to say. We have dealt with this dog and this family for over 6 years. You met the dog once? Who is the ignorant one? I am stunned that you can flippantly dismiss our plight, the MV Voice article, and my dog's 14 stitches. Who are you to trivialize our situation as noise? You should be ashamed.

GreenBeen, I believe you are an idiot sir. Good Day

I've had several encounters with this dog. He's big and looks menacing. So are a lot of people. But in this case, and in the case of many big people, he's a very friendly dog if you just give him a chance. I'm generally suspicious of people who take this sort of invective to the press, and equally of the press that prints it.

It is as simple as a dog with some history (I blame the owner) that was loose and injured another dog in her own yard. There is no need for people to comment on whether they think it is newsworthy or not. There has got to be better things you can do with your time. Go make your own "more worthy" news for the Voice to print.

While I definitely agree that there is a problem with this dog, the Voice needs to start writing like a real paper and less like some cheap tabloid.

Try making friends with the dog. It sounds like it would be a good neighborhood protector.

Animals just react, they don't really think much. Fear is something they WILL react to.

Why judge others, "Why Judge?"?

People can say whatever they like. Welcome to america!

P.S. About the story - we don't live in a lawless land. Call the police if there is a problem. Let the laws in place deal with this. If you don't report it to the police, its your problem.

"Sally"...

- Really? Make friends with the dog that ripped up your terrier, killed a cat, and threatens children? Good call...you don't live on that block so don't throw out ideas that make absolutely no sense.

"The Judge"...

- Did you even read the article? Honestly? If you actually took the time to read the whole thing you would know that they called the police and they failed to take a report. There aren't laws in place to deal with "this", which in turn prompted this whole thing.

People need to put themselves in this family's position. If this was YOUR dog , YOUR family, and took place in YOUR neighborhood you wouldn't be making senseless comments.

Based on the comments here, I'm more on the "Wolf-Dogs" side. Sounds like a whiner neighborhood to me.

To "Amazed",

Well, first off, I'm "Amazed" you didn't even read the article after saying that I didn't read it! Truely Amazing indeed. Try again, maybe you'll see "He never called the police" in there. Do you understand the meaning of "He never called the police"? It means "He never called the police".

If its a problem, call the police. If you don't call the police, its your problem.

Get a lawyer if you don't understand the law.

Hey "judge" guy:

"As for the police, neighbor Mark Deem wrote in an e-mail that "the laws on the books by which they have to abide simply don't give them the power to do more than they have, which is to repeatedly fine an owner who has told the police point-blank to just keep writing the tickets, that she doesn't care. There is nothing criminally that they can do until one of us or our children are attacked. That is just outright ridiculous, infuriating and completely unacceptable."

Police said they shared his concerns, but that the law is vague as to what a dangerous dog is. In the end, it's up to city attorney Michael Martello to make the call."

No too bright, for a judge.

To "The Judge"...

First of all, the quote

"Sam Rohlfs said police initially wouldn't take a report."

This refers to actual person involved in this story.
Since I LIVE in the neighborhood, and I was told by the ACTUAL people that witnessed the attack, I KNOW that the police were called and they arrived on-site but declined to take a report.

"He never called the police and said he didn't want to give his name because he doesn't trust the dog's owners..."

This quote is about a whole another incident regarding a totally different family! Maybe that owner really is afraid of the owners down the street and didn't want to be targeted?

Seems to me there have been a lot of incidents building up to this, and this was the straw that broke the camel's back. I am glad this family is finally speaking out against the behavior of this dog, and its irresponsible owners. Its just too bad their dog had to get attacked before something was done, as there could have easily been children in the yard.

Your argument makes no sense at all, so stop wasting your breath on a situation you know nothing about.

dysfunctional families create dysfunctional communities.

looks like the doggie is gonna end up paying for neighbors who are afraid of its owner who they trying to get in trouble

I live in the neighborhood but don't believe this dog comes as far as my street. I know the house referred to however and have always assumed its' occupants inherited the property because of the amount of junk in the yard. It appears that the owner has a problem parting with anything. To each his own.

Maybe calling the humane society whenever he runs loose might help. My gentle dog, "the great escape artist," used to take himself on walks even following our regular route. Until we saw him open the gate himself one day, It sure was a hassle going down to Santa Clara to bail him out of dog jail.

Obviously the dog's owner has little respect for her neighbors. If it is as dangerous as is described and the city can be of no help, perhaps the families involved can "relocate" the animal to a better home themselves.

Good post Sympathetic. And I thought my dog was the only escape artist.

The owner of the wolf dog probably just needs to get the dog fixed to control its wander lust. Gee... I can hardly wait for next week's Voice headline: "White Boy Wolf Dog Getting Preggers."

Ned, the woman who owns the dog doesn't seem to want to do anything about the dog. She told the police to just keep writing her tickets, that she doesn't care. The dog escapes through the front door of the house when it's left open, which apparently happens frequently. And if you read the article, you will see that this dog has attacked other pets and threatened some number of people, cornering them in their yards and coming at them growling and ready to attack. The Boston Terrier it attacked required 14 stitches. I like dogs, but I wouldn't want one like that in my neighborhood; and I'd be after the city to do whatever they could to make my street safe.

Why doesn't someone just shoot it? It's only a dog.

Good Call McCain 08-shooting a gun in a residential neighborhood is against the law and immoral, just as attacking a country (Iraq) pre-emptively. I'm thinking your "handle" is in reference to your political affiliation, which explains a lot. Bush clones (McCain & Palin) think nothing of shooting defenseless animals (see Palin shooting wolves from low-flying aircraft or slitting a moose's throat with her child present. They think nothing of killing INNOCENT CIVILIANS in the Middle East. It's funny that whiney yuppie REPUBLICANS care more for their prestigious address in "old" Mtn View than a neighbor who may just need a friend. HAs anyone ever tried to reach out to this person instead of condemming her for her "junky" yard and wayward dog?

Since when is it immoral to shoot a gun? To kill a dog? The pro-choice county and state kill dogs all the time. It's all about population control for democrats.

Good point Palin 08. I meant shooting at dogs randomly would be immoral, not to mention illegal. Don't you think shooting dogs is a little extreme? Next, it'll be okay with your kind to shoot quirky neighbors or Democrats! I believe in "no kill" shelters and I also believe animals have kinder souls than many "civilized" people who live in our fair city. I'll make sure my dog wears his Kevlar whenever we walk by your house! Take Care Now.

Isn't there a leash law in this city? There is a law that forbids dogs to bark for more than 10 minutes at a time. These laws aren't aimed at the animals, but at the owners. Clearly the owner of "wolf dog" is plain lazy. Dogs require walking, training and attention. This dog just seems neglected and untrained. "Wolfie" might be a nice dog if he was placed with a responsible family.

I just moved into the area and have been running in the neighborhood and am scared now reading this article. I can't believe that all the police are doing is writing tickets! Isn't there any leash laws? And why are they not being enforced? feel like I've moved to the Wild West instead of Old Mt. View. Aren't dog owners responsible for their dogs? Who in their right mind would have their dog roaming freely around this area where anyone can get bitten especially with the downtown traffic? Do we have to have a Diane Whipple incident here for the city/police to step in???

Kate, a little irrationale, no? Remember, this is only a story in the Voice. If you are new to Mountain View, you will soon see that the Voice is notorious for articles based little in fact.

Why is everyone waiting for another Diane Whipple style attack?

I seriously doubt that the owner of this dog is a lesbian hating, white supremicist, disbarred lawyer looking for a little sport killing, which was what the Diane Whipple homicide was REALLY about.
The Husky breed, like all sled syle dogs are not bred nor are they dispositioned to fight or kill such as Pits, Canary's or other similar breeds.
Bad habits that the owner cannot deal with is a completely different issue.
Why don't you pick on the basketball headed Pitbulls that are constantly paraded around by the gang bangers of the once safe streets of this formerly lovely town?

Your a joke. No one is "targeting" a breed, its just one bad dog. Close your mouth, turn off your computer and get into the closet where no one can hear your retarded opinions.

I saw this dog out in my apartment complex (middlefield rd) this morning at 7am while I was walking my dog ( toy chi). While the dog was just going to the bathroom, my dog began to bark and shake, which she actually never does despite her breed. I originally had laughed at the story because as someone coming from LA, I thought that it was funny to see something like that on the front page. Until I actually encountered this dog myself that is. I grabbed my dog and ran, which I know may be as a result of group hysteria...but its better safe than sorry. From now on, I plan to walk with my baseball bat and a can of mace. I'd rather defend myself, my dog, and small children and risk answering questions later. It is kind of sad actually, that because of this owners arrogance and lack of compliance, it puts this dog at risk of harm because when push comes to shove, people will protect their pets and families if they need to.

Hello YOU Get real-

I am no joke. Either are the gang bangers and mean ugly dogs that plague Mtn. View, a place where I would never buy a house again, spend money or time in again.
FYI, my mouth was not open when I wrote my OPINION and any retardedness that you "hear" probably come from your close minded a** puckering fearful homophobic 3cell brain.

any time, any where, I can and will beat you.
As for the "closet", maybe you should go in and hang from a rope that you are at the end of...
have a beautiful day!

By the posts here, it seems like this dog is right where it should be.

I'm so glad I don't live in that hateful "community".

It seems that there is an issue here with this dog. This dog did attack another little dog who is lucky to be alive. What I want to know is why animal control has not been called and had this dog picked up ? Also does anyone know if the person who's dog attacked the little dog did they pay the vet bills ? If not take her to court.

I'm surprised at the stupidity of most of the comments here.

I've had my own run in with this dog (late at night, it ran up to a friend's yard and growled and barked at me as I was leaving the house, as if it was going to attack.) It's probably poorly trained and abused.

The owner is clearly a loser (you should see the front-yard, it's a mess,) and should be held accountable. I hope she feels humiliated a little bit, at least.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Problem solved.

Oh gubmint, please save me from this awful beast!