Selectmen Move to Euthanize Dog After Second Attack

were once again a topic of discussion at Tuesday’s Board of Selectmen meeting following another recent attack at their owner’s home on Main Street.

One of the dogs’ owners, Tim Thomas of 143R Main Street was on hand with attorney Thomas Pursley to describe their testimony of the incident on May 17 where a water delivery man named Joseph Alvez was bitten twice in the leg while returning to his truck.

Unlike the incident in March where all three of Thomas’ dogs attacked a Town of Westford electrical inspector, this time only a boxer/terrier mix named Sabre was directly involved, with Pursley claiming that the incident was a moment to help the animal reduce its aggression around unfamiliar men, which ultimately went wrong with the dog became suddenly startled.

Pursley and Thomas also claimed that the Alvez was a close friend who owned similarly aggressive dogs and agreed to meet with the dog in order to help train it, but this claim was challenged by Selectman Valerie Wormell and Town Manager Jodi Ross, who indicated that they did not see any evidence that Alvez had volunteered to help Sabre’s training.

Although Selectman Robert Jefferies was not in attendance, the other four members of the board were unanimous in their decision to humanely euthanize Sabre, although there was doubt over what to do with the other two dogs: Kuma and Rocky.

Thomas and Pursley argued that Sabre was the primary instigating factor among the trio of dogs, and that the other two dogs’ behavior when not around Sabre did not show signs of aggressiveness, believing that only Sabre had violated orders placed upon the dogs stemming from the first attack.

However, the Selectmen did not agree, citing that the circumstances of the prior warning included all of the dogs, and that Thomas and the animals’ trainer, John Boston, could no longer be trusted to rehabilitate the animals following the previous meeting where it was stated that no further attacks would be tolerated.

Selectman Kelly Ross gave a motion to also humanely euthanize Kuma and Rocky, but his motion failed for lack of a second, with a motion to banish the two dogs from the town by a date of no later than June 22 being approved unanimously.

UPDATE: 6/25 -- There has been an appeal over the euthanization order for Sabre, will will provide more information as it becomes available.