Training Accident or Negligence? Local Dog Attack Gets National Attention

A dog attack in Trinidad back in October is getting national attention, attention that may complicate things for a non-profit organization attempting to provide service animals for people that suffer from autism, traumatic brain injuries, and PTSD.

On November 14, the New York Post ran a story titled ‘Pack of 10 poodles attacks California beachgoer and her elderly corgi service dog’ that references the November 10 article, ‘Pack of 10 frenzied poodles swarms Trinidad beachgoers‘ by Jack Durham for local news site The Mad River Union.

The articles share a Trinidad woman’s terrifying experience at a local beach when her semi-retired corgi, Emma, was attacked, leaving the elderly dog in serious condition needing two surgeries.

On October 29, Kathrin Burleson was walking her dog Emma near the beach with her friend. She said she avoided the more populated areas of the beach and trails due to the growing number of people with unleashed pets.

As Kathrin, Emma, and their friend ended their walk, headed toward the parking lot, Kathrin states that a pack of standard poodles exited the van and charged toward the trio. Emma, frightened by the approaching poodles, managed to back out of her collar leaving Kathrin unable to lift her to safety before the attack.

Kathrin states that while she and Emma were attacked by eight to ten poodles, the dogs’ focus was on the small, elderly corgi. At one point in the melee, Kathrin said she felt a pain on her fingers, only to look up and see her fingers being bitten by a man she did not know.

During the attack, Kathrin said her friend used a walking stick to try to protect Kathrin and Emma, but the poodles were relentless. An unidentified, good Samaritan was able to grab Emma from the chaos, lifting her out of the pack of attacking dogs.

According to Kathrin, the good Samaritan got her and Emma to safety inside a vehicle. At this point, Kathrin states, the poodles’ owner, Frank Mallatt, approached the car offering his apologies and his business card. He stated that he had insurance and would cover whatever medical care Emma would need as a result of the attack. Kathrin said in explanation for biting her, Frank said that he believed he was biting one of his dogs.

Emma was rushed into emergency surgery for the wounds she suffered in the attack. A second surgery was necessary, but the corgi is on the mend, though Emma’s days of going for a stroll on the beach are probably over.

Emma, a former agility competitor, is a sensitive sort, said Kathrin. After a collision on an agility course, Emma could never quite recover in order to compete again, ending her career. Later, Emma became well-known at Mad River Hospital as a therapy dog that brought comfort to those in the hospital. Since the COVID shutdown, Emma has been in retirement, bringing comfort to those closest to her.

With this recent attack, Kathrin doesn’t believe Emma’s sensitive nature will allow her to be around other dogs without anxiety, putting any future public walks off the table.

Prior to the attack at the beach, Kathrin had never heard of Frank Mallatt or his poodles.

News of the attack spread quickly and allegations of other attacks and questions about Frank and his dogs arose, leading to questions about Critters 4 Service, a non-profit Frank founded to provide service dogs for people with autism, traumatic brain injury, and PTSD. Past issues with Del Norte County Animal Control and conflicts with neighbors is being further exacerbated by the recent attack.

Frank, who is an adult with autism, says he has been training dogs for individuals with special needs for twenty years, a need that arose due to his disabled mother. After his mother’s death in 2021, Frank, with the help of friends, decided to start the non-profit to provide service dogs to others with disabilities. The process has been fraught with complications and what Frank alleges as “blackballing”.

In an interview with Redheaded Blackbelt, Frank confirmed the attack on Emma in Trinidad, however, he states that only one of his poodles was involved. He stated that several dogs left the van, but he was able to recall all but one.

Frank also denies biting Kathrin as they attempted to separate the dogs, instead stating that he and Kathrin were bit by Emma.

Frank isn’t placing blame on Emma or Kathrin and states that it is an unfortunate and isolated event. The poodle in question will be quarantined as protocol indicates and then be placed with a family as a pet; the attack disqualifying the pup in training for any service work.

However, the attack incident is just the latest in a long line of complaints against Frank’s dogs. Del Norte County’s Ag Commissioner in charge of the Animal Control division wrote, “We have a long history of neglect and public nuisance complaints against Mr. Mallet.” Animal Control Officer, Mathew Brock, told us via phone that no previous reports of an attack had been reported to Del Norte County.

Frank claims this is the only time an attack has occurred, all other reports of neglect and abuse stem from what he believes is an effort to seize and sell his animals and personal issues with neighbors.

Frank believes the prejudice against him began when his mother died last year. Frank, a Del Norte County resident, stated that Highway 101 was closed at Last Chance Grade, shutting him off from Crescent City, the county’s hub and location of its coroner’s office. Due to this, Frank decided to drive his mother’s body to the Humboldt County Coroner’s Office in Eureka. Once in phone service, Frank contacted a friend to let them know of his mother’s passing and his plans. Aware that what Frank was doing was not standard procedure, the friend advised Frank to pull over and call HCSO to report the death and await the coroner.

Due to the unconventional situation, Frank says the Del Norte County Sheriff’s believed a crime had occurred, going to his Del Norte County home while he was awaiting the coroner in Humboldt County. Frank states that his home was a “mess” due to the consuming nature of caring for his mother at the end of her life and his autism.

Humboldt County’s public information officer, Samantha Karges, was able to confirm that 81-year-old Mary Mallatt died of natural causes.

However, due to the nature of the primary residence at the time, Frank believes that Del Norte County now wants to seize his animals even though he moved to another residence on the property without the issues of the previous residence.

Sandy Douglas, Frank’s longtime friend and member of the Board of Directors for Critters 4 Service, believes that the issues stem from one of Frank’s neighbors that has close friendships within the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office. She also believes that Frank’s autism affects his communication with people, often annoying them and complicating issues.

Critters 4 Service does not currently have a kennel license, something that Sandy and Frank have stated that they have been attempting to obtain but are being denied from Del Norte County. In an email provided to RHBB, Frank asked Justin Riggs what requirements would need to be met as they build a new kennel facility for the animals. Riggs supplied a list of requirements, a list Riggs confirmed he sent.

However, in an email to RHBB, Riggs stated, “The conditions in which the dogs have been housed is in violation of California penal code 597 (neglect) and is seizable. The conditions would not qualify for a kennel license and are not close.”

Frank and Sandy believe Riggs’ goal is to seize the dogs in order to sell them based on a local kennel allegedly informing Frank that Del Norte County Animal Control had requested placement for 19 dogs that would be seized “as soon as legal part was over” and that the dogs in question already had homes awaiting them.

In an email to RHBB, Riggs wrote, “If we obtain custody of the dogs and prevail in due process we would expect to work with rescues on finding separate homes for them to mitigate the inappropriate pack behavior.”

Previously, Critters 4 Service had set up an event with the Arcata Elementary School in Humboldt County with some of their senior service animals. That event was canceled unexpectedly. When asked why, the school representative said that the principal was worried about the liability risk and stated, “Also, the district was contacted by Del Norte Animal Control Officer Mathew Brock.  Officer Brock stated in an email that there were some “licensing and code enforcement issues related to his [Frank Mallatt] dogs,” including the fact that “he is unable to provide proof of vaccination for several of his animals.'”

Frank and Sandy claim that the dogs are all up to date with their shots and provided records of rabies vaccination and receipts for self-administered shots to this reporter. Frank says he has tried to provide those records to Del Norte County Animal Control with no response that the records had been received.

Sandy told us only that only a few senior service dogs are allowed to interact with school children as the younger ones have not been fully vetted for service work yet.

Many of the issues that seem to plague Critters 4 Service are behaviors exhibited by the younger dogs when out in public with the pack. Sandy states that Frank trains the dogs in a pack without leashes due to the need for the animals to be able to serve their eventual owners-owners that may be unable to leash the service animal due to particular disabilities.

According to Frank, some people have become upset and/or frightened by the younger dogs approaching off-leash in what he characterizes as “sniffing butts” incidents. Although there may be incidents where the younger dogs have broken from their training, Frank insists that his animals are not aggressive and have never attacked another dog until the incident with Emma. The one dog that he says was involved in the attack is now disqualified from future service work.

After the attack on Emma, many people on the Neighborhood app reported having similar experiences with Frank’s pack of poodles. One person who reportedly gave their account of an attack to Del Norte County Animal Control, claimed that after one of the poodles attacked an animal of a cafe patron, Frank slammed the dog to the ground. “I found this violent and abusive act quite shocking,” they wrote.

Although Frank denies any other attacks and the nature of the complaints, he is aware that what he’s doing isn’t working. Sandy says that the dogs will now remain on the kennel property in a bid to eliminate any issues as Frank works with the pack towards service standards.

The Humboldt County investigation into the attack on Emma at Trinidad is ongoing, as is the Del Norte County investigation of nuisance and neglect. Riggs wrote, “I encourage anybody who has had incidents with him in Del Norte County to reach out to the department and file a sworn statement with us.”

Frank and Critters 4 Service continue to work towards obtaining a kennel license and providing service dogs for those in need.

Contact the Del Norte County Animal Control is 707-464-7235 or [email protected] or file a complaint at https://www.co.del-norte.ca.us/departments/AnimalServices/Complaints