Group aims to rescue pit bulls

The group will try to rescue pit bulls affected by Youngstown’s ban.

YOUNGSTOWN — Kelli Hileman says Sosa, a 45-pound pit bull dog named after the baseball player, “has become like my fourth child.”

Hileman, of Redgate Lane, Austintown, formerly of Youngstown, said she volunteers at a no-kill shelter in Kinsman Township, Trumbull County, that rescues pit bulls.

Over the years, she said she’s fostered pit bulls in her home and has never been bitten by them.

Humane Sanctuary Inc. takes in cats and dogs of all breeds and does a lot of pit bull rescues, according to its Web site. It serves Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York “and beyond.”

Sosa came from the shelter, which Hileman calls “a wonderful facility.”

City council’s passage of an ordinance that prohibits pit bulls, except for those already licensed, insured and properly confined, served to unite Hileman and other pit bull owners, mostly from Youngstown. The law took effect Sept. 15.

“Two weeks ago [the group] went from two dozen people ready to take action to 112,” Hileman said. “We realize there’s a problem, like with dog fighting, but there’s a couple of laws already in effect in Ohio.”

Hileman said the law, which requires dog sellers to have a vendor’s license, should be enforced. Unlicensed backyard breeders, she said, will sell to anyone, regardless of the type of home the buyer will provide to the pit bulls.

Hileman also would like to see Mahoning County require that pit bull dogs be spayed or neutered.

Not offered for adoption

County dog warden Mike Fox said stray pit bulls are not offered up for adoption at the pound. If not claimed by owners, the dogs are euthanized.

Hileman said it’s possible that, if permitted, her group could foster pit bulls taken to the county pound from Youngstown. She decried the idea of killing animals based on their breed.

Last week, county deputy dog wardens collected 10 stray pit bulls in Youngstown. Most were euthanized by week’s end. The owners of three more pit bulls that deputy dog wardens encountered voluntarily agreed to have the animals destroyed.

Deputy dog warden Dave Nelson has said pit bulls are being dumped by those who don’t want to face prosecution. Last week, he and others checking out complaints of dog fighting found a dog graveyard on East Warren Avenue that contained a variety of carcasses and bones, including those of pit bulls.