Wolf dogs be crazy, am I right? But seriously, this three-and-a-half-month saga that began, for most of us, with the deaths of three family pets has had more twists than a mid-afternoon soap opera. Originally, I hoped to get a firsthand perspective from one of the families affected by McMinnville’s most notorious canines. But honestly, their stance is pretty clear: these dogs are dangerous, and something needs to be done.

I agree with that, mostly. But, after hearing from many people involved, this case is more complicated than your standard neighbor dispute. Let me try to briefly explain why.

First, the individual responsible for the wolf dogs raised legitimate concerns about the city’s role. Chief among them: the animals were being boarded at an unregistered facility not listed with the Oregon Secretary of State’s business registry. She also lodged serious accusations against city officials. I checked them all. Claims like the City Attorney being present during the impoundment of the dogs? After more than a month of digging, they didn’t hold up. And I didn’t half-ass this either. I spoke directly with McMinnville PD and city representatives, followed up, floated the theories I was given, and closed the loop respectfully.

Second, the situation didn’t cool off after the attacks. If anything, it escalated. Ms. Atwood, the wolf dogs’ handler, has since racked up additional citations and violations from both the city and the state, mostly tied to the animals. Strangely, rather than backing down, she seems more convinced than ever that there’s a grand conspiracy against her. From where I sit, I just don’t see evidence for that.

And lastly, the city and county seem to want the entire episode to disappear. Why? I believe it’s simple economics. Tourism is our lifeblood and you don’t want “household pets killed by wolf dogs inside wine country” showing up on Yelp reviews. So, instead of open dialogue or systemic fixes, they’re using citations like duct tape and literally hoping the problem fades away and doesn’t repeat itself. Meanwhile, no one’s talking about why county-level Dog Control was disbanded nearly a decade ago, or why we’ve all but abandoned dog license enforcement. Something that, I believe, might’ve actually prevented this whole thing in the first place by having the funding in place for a proactive animal management.

And if all that weren’t enough, neighbors shared stories online of howling sounds echoing through the northwest Mac neighborhood, allegedly piped through a sound system on a loop from the property where the wolf dogs were previously housed. Add to that an unverified report (there is a police report) of a decapitated deer head spotted in the yard (again, inside city limits), and you’ve got a tableau that feels less like a neighborhood dispute and more like the opening scene of a Pacific Northwest folk horror story.

So yes, I’m saying it: I’m done writing about this. Not because the story isn’t worth telling. Not because it’s resolved. And definitely not because it stopped being wild; if anything, it’s veered into full-on **Carol Baskin meets Joe Exotic** territory. But I’ve chased the leads, asked the questions, connected the dots, and somewhere in the haze of citations, silence, and spectacle… I hit my limit.

-Andrew Brunello

P.S. Of course, right after self-declaring that I was out like Michael Scott declared bankruptcy in *The Office*, I checked my message requests and someone tipped me off with a nugget of relevant information I did a check it, but it’s hard to verify without more record requests. So maybe, just maybe, there’s another twist left. But I meant what I said… I’m done.

P.S.S. There were reports on social media that the wolf dogs were loose again and roaming the streets of NW McMinnville briefly this morning. It doesn’t mean that they were the same wolf dogs, but attached below is a picture from a neighborhood social media group showing the purported wolf dog. As noted in the comments of that post and confirmed by actual court records, there are numerous court hearings in regards to the case and the wolf dogs in the coming days. Including a case in which Ms. Atwood is accused of feeding her wolf dogs a deceased deer.