Save Axle and Paris from being executed.
The message was plain and simple Monday morning outside Richmond City Hall as a small gathering of animal rights activists, dog owners and dog lovers protested for the repeal of an order to euthanize a pair of eight-year-old Rotweilers involved in a biting incident of a construction worker last October.
While supporters held up placards saying Do Not Kill Our Pets, Rehab Works, and Save Axle and Paris, owners Prabjot and Raj Nijjer expressed their grief in the death sentence hanging over their dogs.
"I am here to support my two lovely dogs," Prabjot told a group of news media, her voice quivering. "I want them free and to come home very quickly."
Since the incident the dogs, Paris and Axle, have been in the care of the Richmond Animal Protection Society, but their owners have not been allowed to see them despite having to pay for their $25 a day care at the shelter.
Last October, the pair managed to get out of the Nijjer's yard and ended up approaching a construction worker employed at a nearby development.
According to Prabjot, Axle's encounter with the worker did not result in any serious injury. But the city is viewing the incident differently and considers the two to be a threat to public safety, said spokesman Ted Townsend.
"It's not something we take lightly," Townsend said. "But if we believe public safety is at risk, then this is an action (euthanasia) that is open to us. Ultimately, the judge will decide if that's the appropriate action."
A court date has been set for April, one the Nijjer's lawyer, Joe Peschisolido, hopes can be moved up and the city's order to put them down overturned.
In the meantime, Peschisolido, a former local politician, wants the dogs returned to their owners who have installed a sixfoot fence on their property to ensure the dogs do not escape again. They have also vowed to have them euthanized should another incident occur.
Peschilsolido added the city's current order to euthanize is unwarranted.
"I don't believe that is fair," Peschilsolido said, adding the Nijjer's are understandably upset at being separated from their pets they have cared for since they were young puppies and consider them to be like their children.
Ordering both dogs to be killed when only one, Axle, was directly involved in the incident is unusual, Peschisolido added.
"We don't know why they are asking to kill both dogs or any of them," Peschisolido said.
Protest organizer Carolyn Quirt said she feels the city is taking a "bullying stance" on the issue and believes the matter should be resolved before it goes to court.
"It seems really unfair and I don't like the way the city is dealing with the situation," Quirt said, adding when she learned about the story felt outraged and thought something should be done to save the animals.
