A case against an Ohio pit bull has turned ugly, and his owner Heather Liechty is now fighting for her dog’s life.
The situation started on Thursday August 22, 2019 when Heather and Oliver arrived home. Oliver was let out of the car and was going straight toward their apartment when a neighbor, Whitney Weber had been getting out of her car.
Oliver saw her and ran toward her barking with his hair raised. Heather went over to grab Oliver when Whitney stated it was okay, Oliver was a good puppy. She reached out to touch Oliver while his hair was still raised; he jumped up and bit her on the back of the arm.
Heather was concerned about the injury, but Whitney passed it off stating that she grew up with dogs and had suffered worse bites than this. She reassured Heather that she was okay and just needed to see proof that Oliver was up to date on his shots.
What started out as a minor dog nip settled peacefully between neighbors soon turned ugly. A few hours after the incident, Heather went to check on Whitney and was informed that Whitney’s mom told her to contact the landlord about the incident. The landlord was contacted; however, no police report was made, nor did Whitney seek any medical attention.
Heather was completely caught off guard when the landlord told her she had to take Oliver to the Williams County Humane Society and surrender him before 5 p.m. that day. If she did not, the dog warden would come and confiscate him.
Unbeknownst to Heather, at that time she could have disputed this and said no. But because the landlord put it in those terms, she thought she had to comply. So, she took Oliver to the Williams County Humane Society.
A worker there named Pam Welch told Heather she would have the choice to quarantine Oliver for ten days at her own apartment or there at the shelter. But since the landlord did not want Oliver on the property, he would have to do his quarantine at the shelter.
No one ever told Heather she had the right to refuse or she never would have given Oliver over to them. The only recourse the landlord could take was an eviction which Heather would gladly have accepted in order to keep her dog. Pam also stated Oliver would only have to stay at the Humane Society for ten days; then he would be released. She also told Heather she could come and visit him every day and that he would be well cared for.
She then had Heather sign a paper relinquishing him for quarantine. Heather never received a copy of these papers. As time went on, it would be discovered these statements were complete falsehoods.
Then came the hardest part. Heather had to take her beloved Oliver, whom she had since he was four-weeks-old and put him in a cage. It was a horrifying scene. Heather was crying uncontrollably, and Oliver was terrified. He had to be dragged every step of the way to the cage.
When Heather left the shelter, she could hear Oliver screaming and crying all the way out to the parking lot. He had no idea what was happening or why. When she got home, she had to explain to her children why their dog was gone. They were devastated. Oliver was part of their family.
When Heather went to see Oliver the next day, she asked to speak to the actual dog warden to see if there was any way possible to do the quarantine at home. The warden said absolutely not. She then stated Oliver was the second worst dog she had ever seen in her career. She further stated there was no way Oliver would ever be adopted or released to anyone. This was not the Oliver Heather knew and raised.
Another shock came to Heather when she asked the dog warden if she could exercise her option to not surrender Oliver. She replied too late; Heather had already signed the paperwork and the dog was no longer her property.
It was then that Heather realized she was given misinformation from the very first moment she listened to her landlord, and her rights had been violated.
Heather counteracted this by saying she would seek legal counsel to which the warden stated if Heather tried to fight her in court she would lose because the warden had never lost a case in 18 years.
When Heather was finally able to see Oliver, his mouth was covered in blood and one of his teeth was stuck in his bottom lip. He was in extreme pain and agony. There was blood all over the kennel and in his water bowl. The warden stated this occurred when they tried to remove Oliver from his cage to do a transfer. She then asked Heather to go into Oliver’s cage to try to remove the tooth stuck in his bottom lip. Oliver was so happy to see Heather. He let her put her hands in his mouth to try and extract the tooth from the lip, but it was still very much embedded in his gum.
Heather was able to sit with Oliver as long as she wanted that day. She held him, she loved him, she cried with him. Heather only left when the vet arrived to sedate Oliver so the tooth could be extracted.
The next day when Heather and her children went to see Oliver, she was told she was not allowed in his cage because it was too risky. Yet, the previous day, she was allowed in there. When she asked why, she was told by the staff member she had no rights to Oliver and what the staff says goes. Heather asked why the rules were changed from one day to the next. The staff member threatened to remove Heather from the facility. Heather replied she and the children would visit Oliver outside the cage. They fed Oliver pieces of kibble through the cage and took some toys they had brought for him and tossed them up over the cage to Oliver. He was so happy for a few minutes and started to play with the toys.
His few moments of happiness ended when another staff member told Heather she and the children had to leave and would no longer be able to visit Oliver.
This was three months ago, and Heather has not seen Oliver since.
While Oliver has been imprisoned at Williams County Humane Society, he has been kept in isolation. Thick heavy blankets have been placed over his cage. He has been kept in an environment that caused injuries to himself and now he has been diagnosed with Parvo. Heather was told she must pay the $2000 for his treatment and if Oliver survives the treatment, he will be released to her.
There is a fundraiser set up to pay for this.
Heather is willing to do whatever she needs to do to get Oliver back. She even moved from the apartment complex to a rural area so Oliver could come home and be in an area where there are no strangers. She also offered to do training for Oliver, therapy, have him muzzled when they are outside the home; all to no avail.
There is no reason for this case to go as far as it has gone. Whitney, who was nipped by Oliver was not bothered by the bite and even said as much. She did not even seek medical treatment.
Oliver needs to go home. He has suffered enough. While at the shelter he has lost his teeth, is losing some of his fur and contracted Parvo. He is also suffering emotionally. No dog should be treated this way. Oliver should be given every chance to thrive; not die while his case is pending.
Oliver’s behavior at the Williams County Humane Society is not his normal behavior. Oliver was thrown into an environment totally foreign/unfamiliar to him. He is around all new people/staff, and not allowed to see his family. Oliver is terrified.
Oliver is loved by a lot of people. He has a whole army supporting him and his family. They do not want to see this young dog succumb to the sickness, injuries, and depression he is experiencing while in the care of Williams County Humane Society.
This was his first nip incident; not enough to condemn him to death or mistreat him.
To take a stand for Oliver, please sign his petition.
Heather has secured an attorney named Gary Smith. The first court hearing for Oliver’s case is November 13th, 2019.
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How Williams County Humane Society is far from “humane” and they need a new warden. I feel for Heather, she was lied to from the get go and there is NO excuse for the treatment Oliver is getting. I hope and pray she is able to get him back, although, who knows what condition he will be in by that time. Some of these “humane societies” seem to go above and beyond to hurt innocent dogs rather than help them.
PLEASE–PLEASE–WE MUST SAVE OLIVER! PLEASE SIGN THIS AND OTHER PETITIONS! ALSO, PLEASE CONTRIBUTE AND/OR SPREAD THE
WORD! JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED!