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LOGAN SQUARE — A Logan Square family is mourning the loss of their 11-year-old shih tzu after he was killed by a notoriously aggressive dog — a dog that continued to attack people and pets on the block for months despite neighbors calling Animal Control and 311 for help.
The attack happened Sunday morning, when a family member was walking Louie on a leash near their home in the 3500 block of West Medill Avenue, family members and police said.
As they were about to go back inside, the aggressive dog — a female husky mix — came out of nowhere and jumped on the small dog, causing an intense scuffle that also injured the man walking Louie, family members said. They declined to share their names.
Louie was rushed to the emergency vet, but died from his injuries.
Neighbors, who called Chicago Animal Care and Control, police and 311 at least nine times about the vicious dog since May, want to make sure she does not return to the block.
“We talked to [Chicago Animal Care and Control] and told them about two incidents and nothing,” said one neighbor, who didn’t want his name published for safety reasons. “Police have not seemed to be doing anything urgently.”
The trouble started in early May, said Anne Allswang, owner of dog walking company Dog People of Logan Square who lives nearby. The dog, which was allowed to roam outside of a home on Medill Avenue with an open gate, chased and attacked an elderly woman walking to an area grocery store.
A few weeks later, the animal attacked another small, leashed dog out for a walk. The small dog survived, but its owner was left with an emergency vet bill for more than $1,000, according to a report filed with Chicago Animal Care and Control.
The small dog’s owner requested an administrative hearing to hold the husky mix’s owner responsible, but he never showed, documents show. He was fined $2,000.
Just days after that attack, the dog was loose again and police and animal control came to take the dog from the home, documents show. It was back the next day, neighbors said.
Layla Rivera, who said she was the husky mix’s owner, said she was not aware of the court hearing and “would not miss a court hearing for my dog.” Rivera is not listed as the dog’s owner on court documents.
Chicago Animal Care and Control impounded the dog and then returned it home a few days later after it was vaccinated, Rivera said. The dog is now chipped, vaccinated and has records that have been shared with detectives, she said.
In July, the dog got loose again and bit a woman watering flowers across the street, neighbors said. The woman also received medical treatment and filed a report with Chicago Animal Care and Control, which was processed and completed the same day, according to a 311 service request of the incident.
Chicago Animal Care and Control received two bite reports for the May and July incidents. During the July visit, agency officials confirmed the dog was current on its rabies vaccinations. An inspector looked for history but did not link the call at that time to past reports, a spokesperson said.
Rivera said she feels bad about Louie’s death and sympathizes with his family. She said she sent the dog away after it killed Louie to be with her mother in Colorado, who she hopes can train her better.
But she also defended herself and her dog, saying that the dog has been trained to be aggressive if there are strangers near the gate, where she often sits. She said the gate was not intentionally left open.
“I have been here by myself for about four years now, and my dog is the only thing that I have since my family has left,” Rivera said. “I understand that my dog doesn’t like other dogs, she’s an aggressive breed and she’s very large, but she’s never been aggressive to humans.”
Neighbors who spoke to Block Club anonymously for fear of retribution say that’s not true and that the dog only became a problem less than a year ago, when Rivera moved in. They want to see her face steeper consequences, like having her dog permanently removed from the area or show proof of behavioral changes.
For many, that starts with the city.
“I want the city to be responsible. It’s horrible this happened to a dog,” said a neighbor who ran into the aggressive dog last month on a nearby block. “There are toddlers all over this neighborhood; this could have easily been children or neighbors hurt. … For the city to point fingers and nobody take action when it is a deadly action is inexcusable.”
Officials with Chicago Animal Care and Control said the agency is aware of the aggressive dog and opened an investigation this week into the most recent dog attack.
Multiple neighbors said an animal control investigator arrived to the home Monday evening, after police, the alderman’s office and a Block Club reporter reached out about the situation.
Officials confirmed there was no dog on the property Monday but declined to say if the dog will be allowed back or how that will affect the investigation.
“We are committed to continue to thoroughly investigate this incident and will take appropriate action,” an Animal Care and Control Department spokesperson said in a statement.
Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35th) said he first got word of the issue Sunday, when nearly two dozen neighbors filed complaints with his office after Louie was killed. District police officers are working with the animal control agency to expedite the investigation, officials said.
“I will continue to push CACC for a timely resolution, and our office will provide neighbors with relevant updates as we work to address this tragic incident and keep our community safe,” Ramirez-Rosa (35th) said in a statement.
Rivera said she hopes the dog can come back to stay with her after the investigation is over and after her behavior is fixed, but that did not sit well with neighbors.
“Once the dog kills another dog, I don’t think that behavior can be changed,” said Louie’s grieving dog mom.
Another neighbor, who said she attempted to confront Rivera about the animal in the past and was met with contempt, agreed.
“If the dog does come back, we are going to need to see proof that she’s changed, and better fencing,” the homeowner said. “What I don’t get is why this wasn’t addressed sooner. Why are the [issues] being dragged on?”
Neighbors said they will continue to watch out for each other and hope the city holds the dog’s owner accountable.
“The neighbors have quickly banded together, and we believe the dog has been removed, so I would say that’s by far the most positive thing,” another neighbor said. “It’s unfortunate that we have to come together under such awful circumstances, but at least we have that.”
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