By BOB WARD
Standard-Examiner Capitol Bureau
SALT LAKE CITY -- When Tom Hutchinson's dog Kalee was injured in an attack by another dog in Ogden last October, the Weber State student literally lost his sight.
Hutchinson is blind and relies completely on a guide dog to steer him through his daily regimen. Hutchinson and Kalee were close; the two were an inseparable team. But the attack traumatized the dog, and Kalee had to retire as a guide dog before she reached the age of 3.
"It was awful. I can still hear Kalee screaming," Hutchinson said of the attack. "She didn't fight back, because she was taught not to."
Hutchinson brought his new guide dog, Ember, to Capitol Hill Tuesday to argue for legislation that would protect such essential service animals. Sen. Ed Allen, D-Ogden, is carrying a bill that would make dog owners liable if their animals attack guide dogs. The owners could be forced to pay the replacement value of the injured dog, along with court costs resulting from the attack.
Losing a service animal, Allen said, is much more severe than simply losing a pet. When blind people give up their guide dogs, they relinquish their sight, their mobility and often their employment prospects, he said.
"Service animals cost between $50,000 and $65,000 to train," Allen said.
By and large, the training is handled by non-profit agencies that subsist on private donations and provide the dogs at no cost to the blind person. Still, when Kalee was attacked, a $50,000 investment essentially went down the drain.
Hutchinson said the dog appeared to have survived the October 1999 fight with all her skills intact. But he began to notice that Kalee's attention would stray when other dogs were around. One day when Hutchinson was crossing the street at Washington Blvd. and 12th Street, Kalee heard a barking dog in a nearby car and just froze in the middle of the intersection leaving Hutchinson helpless.
Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Hutchinson likened a guide dog to someone's car, saying he absolutely needs the dog to get around. But now, the maximum punishment for the person whose dog attacked Kalee would be a $75 leash law citation.
Allen's bill is waiting for a Senate committee hearing, which he expects within a week.
You can reach reporter Bob Ward at 532-2104 or e-mail bwardstandard.net.