The Bloomfield Board of Health will hold an “Evaluation Public Forum” tonight which may help determine the fate of Memphis the Pit Bull who has been embroiled in a continuing debate over his future. The dog has been kept by BOH order secluded at the Bloomfield Animal Shelter on Bukowski Place and has sparked a rallying cry from many who insist he is being discriminated against solely because of his breed rather than any documented episodes of violent behavior.
At the last meeting that addressed Memphis’s future, BOH officials denied rumors that he may be euthanized and said they planned to have him further evaluated for either adoption or assignment to a sanctuary. Tonight, the BOH is expected to present the video and verbal results of an evaluation being performed today by Jim Crosby, a renowned dog and behavior specialist they’ve hired.
As of this morning, more than 27,000 people have signed an online petition appealing to the Bloomfield Board of Health to return Memphis to the family of Jeff and Diana Coltenback, who were training the pit bull — a stray that wound up in a township shelter — in socialization behaviors before township officials abruptly took him back to the shelter, where he’s remained, to the fury of many local animal advocates. The couple are owners of a local pet shop, operate a nonprofit that advocates for pit bulls, and Jeff is a certified animal behaviorist; they say Memphis was taken from them because they included socialization with humans as part of his regimen and even though the dog never exhibited any aggressive behavior and has no bite history, the township deemed their actions had put people in danger. The BOH however has said it had concerns about the dog’s temperament since he first arrived at the shelter.
Tonight’s meeting begins at 6:00 p.m. at Bloomfield Town Hall.
Photo: Causes.com’s Save Memphis petition page
And some wonder why people think government is too intrusive.
Check out https://www.facebook.com/stbbs?ref=hl for the whole story. What a disgrace this is! That poor dog has been held hostage for 7 months for nothing! He’s a doll, no bite history, everyone loves him…everyone except for Kathleen Georgovich, Karen Lore and F. Michael Fitzpatrick. And the brain trust known as the Bloomfield Board of Health who fancy themselves experts on what is best for the shelter.
It’s better to be on the safe side, put this dog down. The money and resources spent on one of these ticking time bombs could be better spent. An attack from an animal like this is life changing. The sick people who NEED a weapon like this are crying for help. Do the right thing and save one of our own from a potential mauling.
Uh, Sheepy, why would you advocate putting animal down that has not bitten anyone or has not proven to be aggressive? Plus, a family wants to adopt him!
“Memphis, who came to the Bloomfield Animal Shelter as a stray in February, showed concerning behavior shortly after he arrived, according to Karen Lore, Director of the Bloomfield Health & Human Services Department, which oversees the shelter.
She explained during the meeting that the shelter sent Memphis to St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center in Madison for a professional evaluation to confirm the initial perceptions of his temperament. As a result of this evaluation, Memphis was deemed to be a problem dog and considered unadoptable due to signs of aggression or agitation around other dogs and hostile strangers.”
That’s enough for me. If a child got mauled by this weapon would that finally be enough? We have been warned about this dog and any subsequent mauling would open the town to a much deserved lawsuit.
What kind of family needs a four legged loaded gun loose in the house?
will they discuss the ANIMAL ABUSE of Memphis by shelter staff that was reported to them back in march???
Will they discuss the unethical practices of the Bloomfield health Department in ignoring the animal abuse- calling the police twice to intimidate Jeff Coltenback at his store – refusing Jeff and the NJ SPCA’s offer to involve jim Crosby back on August 9th (at their expense) and “firing” the in-shelter volunteers, putting TNR on hiatus and discontinuing their FOSTER program at the shelter.
The shelter hours have been reduced to 12n-2pm and days have been reduced to Mon-Sat. WHEN ARE PEOPLE SUPPOSED TO BE ABLE TO COME AND ADOPT CATS AND DOGS- ON SATURDAY FROM 12N-2PM?????
HEY SHEEPY – MEMPHIS lived with jeff Coltenback for 8 days- not a single problem. is karen Lore an ACO or animal behaviorist. NO
It’s better to be on the safe side, put sheepy down.
Did Karen Lore take bad advice about memphis- YES. Did she take the advice from a dog groomer- YES
On another note- does your child bite???
@ hrhppg I agree – sorry Sheepy- Karen Lore will be over to your house later – it’s been nice knowing ya
I hope someone answers the question of why the shelter thought it was a good idea to hire a convicted felon to attend to animals. And why he was not fired after it was found that he was abusing animals in his care.
I hope this situation is finally resolved, and Memphis goes home with those who love him.
I second Nellie’s comment; hopefully the outcome is positive for Memphis after today’s eval. and tonight’s meeting.
It’s much much more than poor Memphis – who is a beautiful dog who has retained his love of humans even though he has been through all of this. I visited him at the Bloomfield Animal Shelter twice and had the cops called on me once- my crime- the man that I walked in with filmed memphis behind the barricades that the health Department has put up to keep him isolated.
Reports from people who visited last week say that memphis is losing weight!
I’ll never get why you animal zealots love and care more for animals than your fellow human beings. Get your priorities in order; people 1st, everything else 2nd. Put your time and efforts into a homeless shelter or visit a prison.
I trust Karen Lores’ expert opinion more than I do you self appointed animal nuts.
Where will you be when Memphis the Menace strikes?
“I’ll never get why you animal zealots love and care more for animals than your fellow human beings.” That’s easy to answer, it’s because of PEOPLE LIKE YOU.
Karen Lore is not an expert. She’s a social worker with a few more degrees. Most people who major in sociology quickly realize that they need a lot of degrees to actually make a living. Karen has now resorted to making a living through the NTNN, hiring felons who know how to manufacture date rape drugs and launder money. These are great qualities for Karen, since she has basically slipped the BOH a roofie and now she is funneling money from the shelter to her own organization. This has worked so well that she has promoted the felon!
Would I say that Karen Lore is an Expert in Shelter Management? No
Is she an expert in basic hiring procedures? Definitely No.
Is she an expert is wasting tax payer money to defend her ego and prepare for her role in the upcoming 101 dalmatians movie? Perhaps, but Im no expert to weigh in on that.
This is about more than a dog. It’s about mismanagement of the Bloomfield taxpayer’s money.
Sheepy, we do have our priorities straight. We love all of God’s creations, human and animal. I’ll never understand why people like you constantly drag out this old and stupid “argument”. You don’t know any of us personally so have no idea who or what we fight for. Yes, the dog story makes news. But you have no idea how many of us also give our time and money to help the downtrodden, victims of natural disasters like Katrina and the poor souls in Haiti. You have no clue. Period. One thing does not ever preclude another. We can love animals just as much as people in need.
And yes, the situation isn’t just about Memphis. He is just one of the symptoms of everything that’s wrong in the Health Department (a rogue department for decades) and at the animal shelter in particular. People who have no qualifications make life and death decisions about animals while ignoring those whose credentials in that area far exceed theirs. It’s not about and never has been about keeping the public safe. Safe from what? A dog that’s never done anything wrong or harmed anyone? A dog with no bite history even after enduring 7 months in a cage with limited exposure to the loving care of humans and the comfort of engaging with others of his species?
Put him down? For what, exactly? The bad and uneducated/unconcerned opinions of clueless bureaucrats who are in it only for the paycheck?
You are just as culpable as they are.
Everyone else has said what needed to be said to Sheepy, but I will add my two cents. Sheepy, you are exhibiting the typical response of someone who doesn’t care about animals and is ignorant about pit bulls – calling this loving dog a “weapon” just goes to show you know nothing about him and are judging him by his breed. Well said, all of you who have defended Memphis from Sheepy’s judgment. People can care about animals and people – it is NOT mutually exclusive!
Karen Lore, F. Michael Fitzpatrick and Kathleen Georgovich have no credentials which entitle them to have any say over how any animal is treated! Jeff Coltenback and any of the fired, core volunteers have more experience in that area then thay do. The difference? Oh, hell, they’re n charge!
The Board of Health is no better. The president, James MacLaughlin, is an accoutant. Member Joel Elkins is a computer geek. We have a few lawyers in the mix…sure, that makes them extremely qualified to properly assess a shelter animal! Or anything else health-related for that matter.
They are all jokes. The animal shelter was dumped on the Health Department. Period. Has nothing to do with their ability to properly run or assess any animal shelter related issue. The Board of Health is made up of friends of the mayor or council and approved by the council. They don’t need to have any background in health-related issues or anything other than being a friend of the mayor (Jim McLaughlin, president) or a councilperson (all of the others) to be approved and appointed.
Karen Lore is a social worker, shoved into the job of “acting” director of the Health Department 4 years ago (approx) when Trevor Weigle resigned. She has no more expertise in shelter management or snimal behavior assessment than I have to perform an appendectomy (I’ll keep it as simple as possible).
This entire situation is a cruel joke on poor Memphis and the people who truly love and care about him. This dog is no more a ‘menace’ than any other animal adopted from any other shelter. He’s a dog. He had teeth. He might bite given the proper provocation. So would my 20 lb. mini-schnauzer who had to be held back from other bigger dogs with both hands! Grown, big, men came into the house with the 20 lb. ‘menace’ barking, wondering if the were safe.
Please. If I now had a dog who behaved “negatively” when someone threatened me or my household, that dog would get a steak dinner that night.
Get a grip, Karen Lore. Get a clue, F. Michael Fitzpatrick. And get another job, Kathleen Georgovich, that you are more suited to.
Memphis is a dog!. You are reacting to his breed. He’s done nothing wrong. Ever. You are the problem, not Memphis!
You sound like a pack of Mathilda’s to me. Only that you are rabid about dangerous Pitbulls instead of nature.
Hey sheepy? You never answered my question. Do your kids bite? Are they vicious. Are your neighbors and other children scared of them? Are they the bullies of their block and school?
Sounds like you are one of those parents who feel that their kids do no wrong and who doesn’t advocate having pets in the household.
This dog has a loving home to go to with an animals trainer and aco. The motives and unethicalness of the Bloomfield Health Department need to be examined.
From what I am reading on Facebook, it seems that they have still not decided to return Memphis to the Coltenbacks. That is disgusting. How much longer can they allow this situation to be dragged out? No animal should sit in a run or a cage when it could be in a loving home.
I’m in agreement with all of you about Creepy Sheepy, who fails to mention which homeless shelter or prison he/she volunteers for. It seems the malevolent comments are intended to antagonize (unless Sheepy really is that ignorant).
Keep up the great work everyone — we hope Memphis gets a loving home with the Coltenbacks!
I am sorry I was unable to attend the meeting last night. So what was resolved, if anything? I see from Nellie’s post that Memphis’ fate is still up in the air.
Anne, you said “will they discuss the ANIMAL ABUSE of Memphis by shelter staff that was reported to them back in march???” You are quite aware that this dog has been abused and yet STILL want to let him out of the shelter. I love my own kids and grand kids (all kids) too much to let Memphis the Menace have a chance to chew their face off. I suspect you are barren, if you had kids and were a loving caring parent you would do every thing in your power to protect ALL children and wouldn’t be so fixated on animals.
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My Opinion: Pit Bulls & Penis Size
There’s an inverse relationship between the number of Pit Bulls a person owns and the size of their penis. Notice that I say person, not man, owns. That’s because more and more women are Pit Bull owners. For them, the inverse relationship is between the number of Pit Bulls they own and the size of their imaginary penis.
Undoubtedly, some people reading this are Pit Bull owners. I’m sorry that you were born to conform to the norm. It seems everyone owns a Pit Bull. Way to be original and creative there buddy. I bet you’ve also sported a goat-tee, have a skull tattoo somewhere on your body, and have those retarded spinning rims on your car. I know that I’m right, aren’t I? Oh please don’t even tell me you are one of those mental pygmies who combine them all with a backwards baseball cap. What are you, twelve? Here’s an idea. How about you actually DO or BUY something original.
Owning a Pit Bull does not make you an instant tough-guy. In fact, it shows your own fragile, wanting-to-be-loved-and-accepted, and conform-to-the-norm ego. Let me ask you this. Now that you own one, two, maybe even three Pit Bulls, has your penis grown? Measure it. I’m a scientist. I want to know if the act of buying a Pit Bull actually enhances that “special appendage” of the male anatomy. The biochemistry of such a discovery would be fascinating to study.
And for the women Pit Bull owners reading this … buy pepper spray instead. Okay? You look retarded being pulled around the neighborhood by that Neanderthal version of a canine. You can’t even hold the leash properly. I’ve seen you, countless times. Your Pit Bull gets a whiff of a cat or sees a small poodle (or child playing) and he drags you kicking and screaming down the block. Meditate woman. Get in touch with your inner self. Then maybe you can reincarnate next time with a penis. Until then, drop the macho she-man act. It doesn’t work for guys. And it certainly doesn’t work for you.
Some overlooked aspects of owning a Pit Bull:
Pit Bulls only make up 2-5% of the dog population, but are responsible from between 1/3 to more than 1/2 of all fatal dog attacks in the U.S. (the number varies year-to-year). They died for your small-penis complex.
Pit Bulls instinctively go for the throat & face. Survivors (usually children) are often disfigured for life. Thousands of children will go through life as freaks & outcasts because of your small-penis complex.
Sorry Anne, I meant Pat Gilleran.