A four-month-old puppy who had been detained by police after biting a police officer has been returned to his family.
Bungle, a chow chow, was seized by Northamptonshire Police under the Dangerous Dogs Act for biting an officer twice when he got loose in a road after escaping from the family’s home.
His family were told that he faced up to nine months in doggie jail after the incident, which happened on Saturday, November 17.
The puppy rushed out of the family’s driveway on Saturday, just before the electric gates shut. He was found hiding under a lorry near Towcester, Northants.
Thousands of people backed an online campaign to free the fluffy puppy, with his devastated owners – David and Susan Hayes – reportedly appointing lawyers to fight for Bungle’s release.
Earlier this week, David told The Sun:
“We were informed that based on current case loads we would not likely see Bungle again until New Year and potentially up to nine months.”
Police confirmed on Thursday evening that Bungle had been returned home to his owners, but defending their decision to seize him – claiming the pip had been “aggressive” to those present.
In a statement issued on Facebook, they said that the family had agreed to a Voluntary Control Order (VCO) and had been cooperative throughout the investigation into what happened.
They added that a specialist dog handler met with the family on Thursday evening and assessed the conditions, which ensured that the dog could be returned.
Chief Superintendent Chris Hillery added:
“We understand that the actions taken on this occasion have generated significant public opinion on the proportionality of the officer’s actions. To be absolutely clear I fully support the officers’ actions in this case, the dog was unattended in a live carriageway and was aggressive to those present resulting in the officer being bitten and receiving injuries that required hospital attention
“In addition the decision made by the officer was in the context of some very real and serious cases involving dog bites that have resulted in serious life changing injuries and even death locally and nationally. This accords with ensuring we protect people from harm.
“The potential risk posed by the dog at that time is not diminished by its age or that it was frightened. Having already bitten the officer twice, causing puncture wounds and bruising, it would have been negligent to release a dog displaying such obvious aggression, regardless of the cause, without first ensuring both the dog’s and the wider publics’ safety.
“I fully support the decision of the officer at the time and the risk assessment process that has followed the seizure and subsequent return of the dog.
“The investigation into the safety of the dog is a process we take very seriously and is carried out by trained officers and rightly this takes time. Once the owners were identified, we maintained contact with them throughout, updating them regularly on the process. We arranged a time, at their convenience, to meet and discuss arrangements for the dogs’ return, which is now complete.”
Following the news of the puppy’s release, Joseph – the couple’s son – updated the Facebook group to share the family’s joy.
He said:
“We were contacted this morning by the authorities who said that they had reviewed Bungle’s case and reassessed his demeanour and felt that his behaviour warranted an immediate return home. This evening a very understanding police officer brought Bungle home to us. Bungle was SSSOOOO pleased to see us and excited, it was lovely.
“We want to thank all of you on this page for your support and reactions to Bungle’s plight. It has been amazing and so supportive. We were amazed that by this morning this had all led to national media coverage, including a campaign by The Sun to free him, which even involved getting “Zippy and George” on the case we understand!
“We have had a stressful few days. We felt so bad that Bungle managed to escape and caused chaos. We were particularly upset that during his capture a police officer was injured while on duty, we would like to thank him for his efforts to make Bungle safe and apologise again for any pain suffered in that process.
“However, we were also devastated that the initial information we received suggested Bungle would be kept from us for potentially months and we had no info on his whereabouts. This was a shock to us and seemed so disproportionate, given the circumstances and Bungle’s age. To have our young pup back home with us all now is such a relief.”
Photos via Facebook/Bungle the Chow.
