A tearful Angela Trauner appeared in provincial offences court Monday related to a vicious attack on a dog Jan. 4 that left the pup with mortal wounds.
Trauner will be back March 13 along with her son, Nick Coppo, who is also charged with failing to keep care and control of their two dogs, who are accused in the attack on Tonka, a Norwegian elkhound. Tonka later had to be put down because of his injuries.
On Monday, Trauner denied it was her dogs that attacked Tonka. She said there are two similar – but larger – dogs who live in their Lively neighbourhood who are likely responsible. She said they've been trying to find the owner.
"We did see his dogs running,” Trauner said. “And we saw them again a few days later, and the dogs were muzzled. (But) we can't find out where he lives … Those dogs look exactly like our dogs from a distance, but larger."
She also speculated that it could have been coyotes, which, Trauner said, have been seen in Lively.
"When you look at that attack, it looks more like a wild animal,” she said. “And we do have a pack of coyotes living right behind us. We have lots of coyotes in Lively."
When told that Tonka's owner, Terry Matthews, witnessed the attack and actually pulled the two attacking dogs off Tonka, Trauner said there's no way her dogs would behave that way.
“(Matthews) said the youngest dog was snarling and growling, coming toward her, which would not happen because that dog is afraid of everything," Trauner said.
When told that Matthews recognized the dogs from a previous attack last July, Trauner said that was different.
"Yes, there was a fight with my dogs in the summer, yes they did,” she said. “And (Tonka) had a cut on his leg."
"But it was just a fight,” said Tom Bayly, Trauner's spouse. “They didn't rip anything apart."
Trauner said she has suffered since her dogs were seized by the animal shelter, and was denied permission to see them when she tried to visit.
“They said they would phone the police,” she said.
The younger dog helps her cope with health issues, Trauner said, calling the pup her “care dog.”
"And what I mean by care dog is that I suffer from severe depression and anxiety, and he's the only one that calms me down," she said. "He stays with me when I go through my bouts. He'll stay four days in bed with me. And my anxiety this week has been so bad."
Her family has also been the target of attacks in person and on social media, Trauner said. Her teenage daughter missed a week of school because of the backlash.
"It's calmed down now, but she didn't go to school for a week," she said. "She was getting threatened."
"I've had to barricade our house. I've had people who, when they see me, threaten to shoot me in the head. So I've had myself locked in the house for the last few weeks."
"That's why I told her to get off Facebook,” Bayly said. “It doesn't matter what you say, it's just going to come out wrong."
