By Jim Gold, msnbc.com
A two-year effort to save Lennox, a death-row dog whose owners say was mistaken for a pitbull, sparked an international protest Saturday in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where the animal is slated to be euthanized next week, according to media reports.
UTV in Belfast reported that protesters had flown in from the U.S., England and Dublin.
Protesters organized by No Kill New York animal-saving group plan to target British and Irish consulates Monday in New York to prevent killing the dog that the Belfast City Council declared had a severe personality disorder but whose owners, the Barnes family, say is a well-handled family pet.
The 7-year-old dog was seized in 2010 as a breed banned under the UK?s Dangerous Dog act.
The dog?s owners say he is an American bulldog-Labrador cross, but dog wardens after measuring his legs and snout declared him a ?possible pitbull type.?
No complaints had been made against the dog, according to media reports.
The Court of Appeal last month rejected a plea spare the dog, being held in a secret location, the Belfast Telegraph reported.?
courtesy photo
Dog trainer and television presenter Victoria Stilwell
Protesters say they are trying to raise awareness not only about Lennox but also to show that ?breed specific legislation? is unfair.
Lennox?s plight is documented on a Save Lennox website and on a Facebook page with more than 75,000 fans. Expressions supporting the dog are also posted on Twitter.
The dog?s cause alsois championed by Victoria Stilwell of ?It?s Me or the Dog? on the Animal Planet network.
Stillwell is consulting with the Barnes family and with Belfast officials to stop the euthanizing and allow the dog to be brought to a new home in the United States.
?It is important to understand that every possible legal avenue to release Lennox back to the family has been exhausted, and that result is no longer an option,? Stillwell posted on her website. ?Indeed, the latest news is that he is scheduled to be euthanized next week. My heart goes out to Craig, Caroline and Brooke [Barnes] for what they are enduring.?
Stillwell has yet to hear back about her efforts, she wrote.
The Barnes family, in a?statement posted on Facebook and the Save Lennox website,??wrote, ?the fight to spare Lennox?s life may well be over. It has been almost impossible for us to accept that we have to admit defeat.?
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