The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

8 - PORT PERRY STAR - Wednesday, May 23, 2001 "Scugog's Community Newspaper of Choice" Family fighting township over issue A Caesarea family continues to insist that their two dogs are not vicious, and shouldn't be declared so by the township. Here, Leah Dimpoulos, 7, is joined by Nala, left, and Buster. NOW ACCEPTING NOTIN TONE PORT PERRY STAR XE SX NEEDS YOUR HELP FLO 3 AY DIVAN) 8d S@) VAN Ol 8 21 LTO AY PURPOSE: The Citizen Of The Year Awards will be awarded to residents of Scugog Township as a means of providing deserved recognition to individuals who have per- formed noteworthy deeds within the community. It's these out- standing achieve- ments, extraordinary displays of compassion, dedicated volun- teers, and acts of courage WHO.IS ELIGIBLE? The award nominees will be individuals who have been involved in worthwhile community service endeavors, have overcome dis- abilitating physical or physiological handi- caps to match or exceed their fel- lows, or have per- formed acts of heroism, perhaps endan- gering their own lives. 1910 JA § 10] 3 aN §! NOMINATE STOMA IAG AR DESERVING by individuals we feel es = Nominees deserve recognition. TODAY! must have lived in Those honored Scugog Township dur- under this program will exemplify values such as resourcefulness, courage, ing the past year, or the act which they are being nom- inated for must have taken place within the township. ingenuity and selflessness which are such an important part of our society. Caesarea man says his dogs aren't.vicious By Chris Hall Port Perry Star The Caesarea family whose two dogs have been declared vicious by township officials still insist their pets have been wrongly blamed for the death of a neighbour- hood cat. Stephen Dimopoulos and his wife Deanna are upset over the township's decision to uphold a vicious dog declaration on their two dogs. They appealed the designa- tion before Scugog coun- cil last week. The declaration was recommended to council by township staff after a cat was attacked and mauled by two dogs in the Caesarea area on Feb. 7. The cat died as a result of its injuries. The Dimopoulos fami- ly claims that there is no hard evidence linking their dogs to the death of the cat, in an attack that took place a little more than a block away from their 42nd St. home. "This 'is all wrong. There is no proof that it was our dogs," Mr Dimopoulos told The Star on the weekend. "They Mackey & Bailey Bamister & Solicitor didn't do anything like that. They didn't kill or hurt that cat. This is a big misunderstanding." After the 11-year-old cat was attacked by two dogs, Scugog's animal control officers were con- tacted by Lynn Anderson, a Pine St. resident. She told township officials that her cat, Cody, was mauled while on her property by two dogs belonging to a neighbour. The Dimopoulos resi- dence was visited by an animal control officer on Feb. 13, and a notice was left for the family to con- tact officials. No reply was given, and the Dimopoulos family was served with two vicious dog declarations on March 13. The declarations, the first ever served in the township, call for the fam- ily to make a number of provisions. They must license and register their dogs with Scugog Animal Control and have the dogs identi- fied by microchip implan- tation; notify animal con- trol officers immediately upon relocating the dogs Saturday Mornings by appointment 'Oshawa Rd., Port Perry Lake Scugog Lumber Building Mon.-Fri. 436-7600 Sat. am. 985-7391 PORT PERRY DENTAL CENTRE NEW Patients' Smiles Always Welcome * Dr. J. Cottrell Dr. J. Hardy e Dr. L. Gideon * Dr. C. Banfield ¢ Dr. L. Poranganel ¢ Dr. H. Dewar * Dr. T. King (Orthodontist) e Dr. T. Mcintyre (Periodontist) ----Today's Smile... EE Junk is something you throw away three weeks before you need it. Dental Care For The Entire Family E Evening & Saturday Appointments Available Please Call 905-985-8451 Visit our website: www.iluvmydentist.com 238 Queen Street, Port Perry or transferring ownership; and restrain the dogs at all times when they're on the family property. When off the family property, the dogs must be muzzled, on a leash no longer than six feet, and be under the care and control of someone over the age of 16. The two dogs in ques- tion are a five-year-old Bouvier named Buster, and Nala, a four-year-old Doberman cross. The family claims their dogs were not out of the house when the cat was attacked, early in the morning Feb. 7. They also say the dogs are let out one at a time, and not together. "They don't go out together. It couldn't have been the two of them who attacked that cat," said Mr. Dimopoulos. He said dogs resembling his live nearby. They are also upset no effort was made by offi- cials to get their side of the story. The Dimopouloses claim that they were in Mexico when the notice was left on their door Feb. 13, and that it was not there when they returned. "They never let us know what was happen- ing. They never really tried to discuss it with us and get our side of the story," said Mrs. Dimopoulos. The Caesarea family was also angered that Scugog Mayor Doug Moffatt did not allow a petition to be included in the recent appeal process. A petition with the signatures of more than a dozen neighbours in support of the dogs was not considered at the May 14 meeting, said Mr. Dimopoulos. While he plans on talk- ing to his lawyer this week, Mr. Dimopoulos said his family will com- ply with the declaration's provisions. "I'll do it, but | still don't know how they can say my dogs are vicious. There's no proof it was them and | know it wasn't them," he said. "It's a big deal to me that my dogs have been declared vicious. It cer- tainly affects your credi- bility in the neighbour- hood."