The house at 1841 Liddell Road in Deep Run was quiet Wednesday morning, except for the barking of one or two small dogs inside.
At the back steps, there lay a vinyl-coated cable dog lead — about 40 feet — and attached to the porch. But there was no dog.
The dog is quarantined at the Lenoir County SPCA, awaiting its fate at the end of 10 days after having bit a 9-year-old boy in front of the next door neighbor’s house — a house about 50 feet from where the dog was tied up.
The leash appeared to be able to reach as far as the end of a white picket fence where the two neighbors’ driveways merged into one and ran alongside the yard where seven youth were playing ball on Saturday.
The dog’s owner let the pit bull out and attached its leash to the dog when the children were outside playing. The dog, more than a year old, ran toward the neighbors front yard and arrived without its collar. And it wasn’t the first time the dog had gotten loose.
Nora Gearhart, the owner of dog, had the dog for about a year, Lenoir County Health Department Director Joey Huff said.
State law requires an animal that bites a person to be quarantined for 10 days in case it has rabies.
Gearhart signed the dog, which was vaccinated against rabies in February, over to the SPCA.
Leonard “Shorty” Spence, who lives at the home where his young cousin got bit, said he was told on Monday the dog would be euthanized after the quarantine period. But representatives from the SPCA and Lenoir County Animal Control say they did not make that decision.
The decision lies with the SPCA and is based on a determination of the personality of the animal, Shelter Director Lisa Wrzesinski said.
Wrzesinski said situations such as Saturday’s incident can be avoided by dog owners.
“It’s taking responsibility for your animals,” she said. “If they’re going to be outside, you need to be with them.”
Joseph Echols, who heads up the Wayne County Pit Bull Rescue in Pikeville, agreed.
“I would say the owner of the dog should be more concerned with the children, knowing the dog was there,” he said.
Amanda Boykin of Southern Belles Pit Bull Rescue in Wilson, agreed with Echols and said she was aware of the incident in Deep Run.
“That incident was clearly not the dog’s fault and the dogs breed should not be an issue of any sort,” Boykin said. “A Jack Russell would have reacted the same way.”
Dog owners should acclimate their pets to being around other people, including children, and animals, Wrzesinski said.
“The most important thing is socializing your animal,” Wrzesinski said. “They have to be introduced to other people, know how to interact from a puppy on up.”
Most pit bulls are good-natured, but some have been bred to be aggressive, Echols said, adding owners, too, may be at fault by not teaching their dogs social skills.
“Bring them to the dog park — with a muzzle on — and let them get used to other dogs,” he said.
Kinston has the Rotary Dog Park near the Neuseway Nature Center on N.C. 11/55 at U.S. 70 Bypass.
Wrzesinski said she owns several dogs, including seven pit bulls. She brings them out to pet stores, events, shopping and the dog park so they will be used to people of all ages.
“I have a house full of pit bulls and I can bring anyone inside,” she said about her home.
It’s never too late to teach a dog social skills, but caution should be used, Echols said. He suggests starting with a doll if it’s an adult dog.
Pit bulls are “notoriously strong,” he said.
Wrzesinski said any collar or the ring that connects the leash to the collar can break. She added, the dog enjoys playing ball and the children were playing with a ball outside.
“The responsible thing is if you know your dog doesn’t like people, don’t let your dog outside,” she said.
Margaret Fisher can be reached at 252-559-1082 or Margaret.Fisher@Kinston.com. Follow her on Twitter @MargaretFishr.