Bryant St NW pitbull attack; pitbulls not registered as required by DC law

See this Sunday, 08-28-2011 message from a Bloomingdale resident:

I was walking a friend`s dogs down Bryant Street, NW around noon when two (2) pitbulls coming out of # 126 attacked one of my friend`s two (2) dogs. I tried to beat the attacking pitbull off of my friend`s dog to no avail. Finally someone from that home brought a broomstick out and pressed it up against the pitbull`s neck. My friend`s dog was seriously injured and bleeding everywhere. I contacted the police and animal control.

The scary thing is that when Animal Control came they found that neither pitbull was licensed or registered as required by DC law. I was also bitten on a finger and my leg. To my shock and dismay, they did not immediately remove both animals from the premises. I spent the rest of the day at the Friendship Animal Hospital getting care for the injured dog. He had multiple puncture wounds and is lucky to be alive. I never got a chance to have my bites examined and will have to do so tomorrow. I now also will have to undertake a rabies treatment as the pitbull`s owner did not know when (or if) the animals had last been vaccinated for rabies.

Please let people in the neighborhood know that there are dangerous animals residing at 126 Bryant Street, NW. I heard from a couple people that these pitbulls have been seen on the loose in the neighborhood before. I don`t want what happened to my friend`s dog and myself today to happen to anyone else. I am going to do what I can to have DC Animal Control remove both pets from this residence as they are a safety risk to myself and others.

seeking referrals for getting rid of a raccoon under the deck

From a resident on the 100 block of Rhode Island Avenue NW:

I've noticed some holes under our addition in the space under my deck so I went to go board them up, re-insulate and investigate. In that process I came across a sleeping raccoon. I slowly backed away and called DC Animal Control. I was told they don't do animal removal. Seriously, apparently it has to be dead for them to do anything about it. So they told me a couple places to call. I questioned them on what they do for low-income residents or those who can't afford to pay someone to come take care of this and there wasn't much response.

Anyways, I'm wondering if any Bloomingdale residents have had success working with a good service that can get rid of the raccoon safely so either they or I can board up the affected areas.