Sick dog finally at new home in Kea'au
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By James Gonser
Advertiser Staff Writer
It's going to be a sweet Christmas for Bill and Barb Schnurr. Their dog Chocolate was released from the state quarantine facility on the Big Island yesterday.
The 13-year-old mixed Labrador, which arrived in Hawai'i Nov. 4, was allowed to leave Bar King Dog Kennels in Kea'au after a blood test came back from a Mainland lab showing the dog is free of the rabies virus.
"We are going to have our Thanksgiving turkey tomorrow and the dogs get first choice," said Schnurr, a retired Navy commander.
Hawai'i state quarantine laws require a 120-day quarantine for previously untested animals. A less restrictive option requires a blood test and 90-day waiting period before pets are imported, followed by a 30-day quarantine here. The animals must undergo a second blood test in Hawai'i.
But Chocolate, who was diagnosed with lymph cancer after arriving in Hawai'i, failed the Hawai'i blood test, and the Schnurrs were told the dog would have to do the 120-day quarantine.
Bill Schnurr, 70, went on a hunger strike to free her, losing 14 pounds before ending the effort recently amid his own health concerns.
Schnurr also appealed to Gov. Linda Lingle's office, which asked State Veterinarian Dr. James Foppoli to try to find a legal way to have the dog released. Foppoli suggested the second blood test be administered.
"I'm very happy for the commander and Chocolate," Lingle said yesterday. "I could not be more pleased. The current law sometimes presents unnecessary hardships, and that needs to be changed."
A proposal to create a five-day quarantine for certain pets brought into the state won preliminary approval last month from the state Board of Agriculture. The board is expected to hold public hearings in the coming months on the proposal.
