Vet appeals to Moses Lake to keep fourth dog

Former prisoner of war relies on dogs

MOSES LAKE - The Moses Lake City Council may amend an ordinance to help a man who relies on his dogs for his own salvation and health.

During the Tuesday night city council meeting citizen Martin Larioz asked council to allow him to keep his four dogs. He approached council sitting in a wheelchair with one of his small dogs stretched across his lap.

City ordinances allow a maximum of three dogs per residence in an R-1 residential zone. To have more than three, a kennel license is required. But the license is not issued in an R-1 zone.

"This request comes as a result of an enforcement action," City Manager Joe Gavinski said.

He said someone in the Lakeway Drive neighborhood where Larioz lives complained about the dogs.

"In view of the service I have provided to the nation I would at this time petition city council that something can be drafted and approved allowing persons such as myself (to have four dogs)," Larioz said.

"I am blind, (I have) severe nerve damage to both my legs due to freeze frost (from the) waist down while serving in Korea," he wrote in a letter to council.

He wrote stating he survived a firing squad during his service and the Sunchon North Korea train tunnel massacre of 183 prisoners of war.

"I have had five heart attacks, one cardiac arrest, one triple bypass, high blood pressure and many other medical problems," Larioz wrote. "I am on more than 35 medications and suffer frequent episodes of depression."

He said he needs the dogs because they are comforting to him after what he's been through.

Larioz said the dogs know when he is depressed and help to pull him out of it.

He said the dogs need him just as much as they require daily care.

Scooter, the dachshund he brought with him to the council meeting, is blind and diabetic. Scooter requires daily shots of insulin and his spinal column is wired due to injuries.

A blind pit bull and Labrador mixed named Lucky has several of the same problems as Scooter and requires daily thyroid medication.

A second dachshund, Arthur, wears a shock collar to prevent him from barking and disturbing neighbors.

The final dog, a Labrador mixed with chow named Goodness, serves as a guard dog when Larioz's wife, Maria, is out of the house.

"Being as they are, they are not adoptable," he said. "I'd appreciate if anything can be done to allow me to keep my dogs, especially the ones requiring medical attention."

Larioz said some of the animals are rescue dogs and have been treated for health issues since birth by Dr. Dwaine McIntosh of the Moses Lake Veterinary Clinic.

He said the animals rarely bark and are usually kept inside the house except to go outside to defecate within a fenced yard.

Maria Larioz said the dogs do bark if a neighbor does something loud such as mowing the lawn. She said she is not blaming the neighbor but says it is natural for the dogs to bark at something foreign.

Mayor Ron Covey said he received a phone call from a citizen on behalf of several citizens in Larioz's neighborhood. He said the citizen complained about the dogs barking day and night. The citizen indicated there may be another family caring for four dogs who are barking in the neighborhood.

Martin Larioz said he can hear barking in the neighborhood but it's not always his dogs. He said he didn't want to point fingers because due to being blind, he did not know which dogs were barking.

Councilmember Richard Pearce asked if Larioz would be able to give one of the dogs to a friend or family member to be in compliance with the ordinance.

Martin Larioz said it would be difficult because the animals require daily medications, some require daily shots and one serves as a guard dog.

"Trying to take a dog away from him could lead him to a depression mode that I don't want to see him in," Maria Larioz said. "I almost lost him last year."

Councilmember Jim Liebrecht questioned the decision making process on enforcing city ordinances.

"Now is it going to be the case of where you're going to go to all the veterinarians and all this stuff and look up animal records and see how many people have their allotment of dogs and cats?" he asked.

"It usually comes by way of a complaint," Gavinski said.

Liebrecht continued, "But if we're going to penalize this person for this kind of action, and so evidently it's a law and evidently other people break the laws unless they get caught … Myself I don't think that's right, on the fact that we're going to make this gentleman give up his dogs because all you got to do is have a complaint to invoke that action."

He said he is aware of more than 50 people violating the ordinance. He asked if the city staff would enforce the ordinance with the people if he gave them the names of the violators.

City staff will investigate and do the same thing with anyone else to maintain fairness in the system, Gavinski said.

"The city council adopts the ordinance and we're responsible for enforcing those ordinances," he said.

Gavinski said if council does not like the ordinance, they should consider changing it.

Liebrecht made a motion to direct staff to change the ordinance to allow up to five animals per residence in Moses Lake city limits.

"To what?" Covey asked.

Liebrecht accused the mayor of hating animals because the mayor did not hear the motion.

"Mr. Liebrecht, that was uncalled for, I did not hear what you said, so I don't need to take that type of retort, I just asked for a number," Covey said.

No councilmembers seconded the motion made by Liebrecht.

Councilmember Bill Ecret made a motion to direct staff to draft an ordinance to allow more than three animals per residence if the animals help an owner with a hardship.

Pearce seconded the motion.

Councilmember Brent Reese said he agrees with motion because the complaint does not appear to be related to the number of animals, rather it appears to be a noise complaint.

Covey said the situation is unique because Martin Larioz suffers from numerous health problems and his animals suffer from numerous health problems.

"I can't see that little dachshund causing anybody troubles," he said.

There may be discretionary action on part of the council with relation to the size of the dog, Covey said about the ordinance.

Council voted for the change in the ordinance.

Liebrecht appeared to abstain from voting. He did not indicate whether he was voting for or against the motion by voice or signal.

The ordinance will be voted upon at the next council meeting slated for Oct. 9 at 7 p.m. in the council chambers.